BY AMANDA PEVEY
SPECIAL TO THE ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
PHOTOS BY AMANDA PEVEY AND NILI KOSTERMAN
One definition of a great dad is when you see a father untangling a pink fishing pole for his daughter.
The Alabama Wildlife Federation hosted the 18TH annual Youth Fishing Rodeo on Saturday with the event completely booked, a lot of keepers to brag about and take home for a fish fry.
Participants were encouraged to register for this event early to get a limited spot for this fun fishing event. The event lasted from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Lanark in Millbrook, the home of AWF.
The AWF Youth Fishing Rodeo is a program designed to provide children that live in Alabama a chance to experience the outdoors and learn all about fishing. The rodeo is open to any child 15 and younger.
Each child that attended the event was able to receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win a door prize. These prizes , along with the snacks, drinks, and stringers were provided by many sponsors.
AWF would like to thank the sponsors for this event that included: Allen Foster, First Community Bank of Central Alabama, Elmore County Commission, Gary S. McAnnally, LLC, Alabama Dumpster, Bass Pro Shops, Front Porch Grill, Academy Sports & Outdoors, Nancy Kirby Law Office, and H&R Block.
There were a lot of children and their families that attended and squeals of delight (sometimes from parents) echoed across the pond. Each child was allowed to take home five catfish, or release them back in the water. The only requirement for each child was to make sure they only kept catfish and to throw back smaller fish. There were hundreds of catfish that were caught at this event and the biggest was over 10 lbs!
The AWF Youth Fishing Rodeo only lasted for four hours, but the memories will last a lifetime for these young anglers and their families. If you would like more information about becoming a volunteer or a sponsor for next year’s event, and have the opportunity to influence a young child’s life forever, please reach out to Matt Vines at [email protected].
1st Door Prize Winner- Maggie Ragland with her Mom Penny Ragland
2nd Door Prize Winner- Ella Bobo with her Dad James Bobo
3rd Door Prize Winner- Elana Bishop
4th Door Prize Winner- Cazpian Carter
5th Door Prize Winners- Noah Dyer, Collyns Leary, and Cole Wise with their grandmother
6th Door Prize Winner- Hunter Armstrong
7th Door Prize Winner- Ledger Lowman
8th Door Prize Winner- Hudson Bingham
9th Door Prize Winner- Lily Chapel
