Justin Hart '06 Sees the World by Sea, Leads A LIfe of Adventure

As Ishmael, the central character in the novel Moby Dick observed, some characters are simply drawn to the sea and a life of adventure.  Justin Hart may not have shipped aboard the Pequod, but his 20th Century adventures on the high seas are no less compelling than the lives led by 19th Century sailors like the fictional Ishmael.

Unlike the famed Ishmael, Hart does not hunt whales, but he does go after some pretty big fish.

For much of the year, Hart is working in the big game fishing industry, a profession that he pursued right after graduating from Unity College with a degree in Conservation Law Enforcement in 2006.

“When I graduated I went back to big game fishing (which he had done earlier during his college career) on a 64 foot custom boat called Cyntinory (www.cyntinory.com),” Hart said.  “I was fishing in Florida from December through January.  In January we would take the boat to Mexico and fish there until May.”  At that point the Cyntinory made its way back to the United States and up the East Coast to Maryland for the summer months.

Since graduating from Unity, Hart has seen his career progress precisely as he had hoped it would.

In addition to making a name for himself by doing well in fishing tournaments, he has made important, career-enhancing connections within the big game fishing industry, and contributed to several sport fishing videos.

Currently, Hart is a crew member aboard the boat that left Ocean City, Maryland, at the tail end of the summer for Florida.  After months in Florida, the boat left on February 1st for the Caribbean.

“We fished a few tournaments down there and were able to do quite well,” Hart said.  “This winter we headed off to the Dominican Republic, and then in April we will be off to Venezuela for the month then back to Mexico.  Finally, we will return to Ocean City, Maryland in June.”

Achieving a balance between his personal and professional lives has been difficult for Hart, who faces the uphill struggle so common at the outset of a career.

“My career faces a lot of challenges, I think I can count on one hand how many times I have seen my parents and been to their house this year,” Hart noted.  Traveling so much has broadened his horizons though.

“I have been forced to speak many languages along out fishing stops around the world,” Hart revealed.  “It is hard to remember the slang talk at each place.  I deal with a lot of high-end clients while fishing.  Dealing with them and taking care of their needs throughout the day is a big challenge.”

Though he is a young man only a few years removed from life at Unity College, Hart has gained a good measure of maturity and perspective in that short time.

He urges Unity College students to be flexible.

“Have an open mind when you are thinking about your career,” Hart advised.  “Most of the time you will end up in different fields than when you were first considering your career and you will find the one that you like.  Be flexible.  It will pay off for you.”

When considering his life before Unity, it seemed likely that Hart’s interests would eventually lead him to America’s Environmental College.

“I attended Perry Hall High School in Maryland and was a student who did enough to get by,” he said.  “I was always involved in sports.”  His two favorite pastimes were then as now, hunting and fishing. 

While growing up in the small Maryland town of Kingsville, Hart developed an affinity for the kind of small, close-knit community that Unity offers.  His family loves animals and he fondly recalls his two Labrador retrievers and two horses, the latter he described as the “pride and joy” of his mother. 

“When I was not fishing I was hunting,” Hart said of his early years.  “I grew up on the ocean so I was lucky enough to get involved with big game fishing.  Little did I know that I would make a life out of it and fish around the world.”

Each fall and winter, Hart could be found in a tree stand or duck blind.  “I was lucky enough to have great spots to hunt and fish right near my home,” Hart said.  Having many friends who enjoyed the outdoors as much as he did made his formative years ideal.

Hart first attended Unity College in the fall of 2002, but left for a time after his first semester to fish and guide waterfowl hunts.  He returned to his studies at Unity in the fall of 2003.

The kind of close-knit small town feel where everyone knows everyone else that had marked his formative years in Kingsville, drew him to Unity College for its similarity.  Unity was a place where making friends came easily, indulging outdoor interests a priority, and personal attention from instructors a cornerstone value.

“I received a packet from Admissions, opened it up and was immediately interested in what Unity offered,” Hart said of his path to the College.  “The next month I flew to Unity and checked it out.  When we were on the flight back home I told my parents that I was going to Unity no matter what.  How could a country boy like me refuse a college that would let me have my guns?  I knew it was right up my alley.”

Beyond the immediate connection, Hart said the professors were outstanding.

“I think that I took a class with just about every professor at Unity,” Hart said.  Dave Potter was among his favorites.
 
“Dave and I really clicked and became good friends,” Hard said.  “He was a great teacher and I believe that I took just about every class that he offered.”  Other favorites included Tim Peabody and Dave Knupp.

 “All the teachers at Unity were great,” Hart stated.  He especially liked how many of his classes stressed hands-on learning.

Hart feels his Unity experience shaped his life in many ways.

“I learned a lot about myself and who I am as a person at Unity,” said Hart.  “My teachers watched me come in as a young, crazy boy, and leave as a mature man with a good head on my shoulders.  I remember a lot of my professors saying that was the transition they had seen in me.”