Remember the First Time Your Bobber Went Under?

A Story About IGFA's Education Programs

By Thompson Smith

 

“Reel, reel, reel…you got ‘em!”
"¡Recoge, recoge, recoge… lo tienes!"
"Tourne, tourne, tourne… tu l’as eu !"
"Dreh, dreh, dreh… du hast ihn!"
"摇，摇，摇……你钓到了！"

 

However those words are spoken, they bring back a moment in time that will long be remembered in the minds of our children.

Like most of you reading this, I have had the pleasure of teaching my kids, nieces, nephews, and now even my grandchildren the timeless joy of fishing.

Walking hand in hand with your legacy, down to the beach at first light or to the pond on a warm summer day, filled with anticipation of what the day may bring, is a feeling like no other and one to be cherished.

I was talking with my daughter and son-in-law about ways to keep my grandkids busy and active with fishing. My daughter told me she had heard something about the IGFA having fishing camps in the area but hadn’t looked into it. So, I decided that that would be a perfect gift for them to give to the kids, as I know they have been trying to find more ways to get them outside, like all of us!

I jumped on the old laptop, and after a short search, I found out that Lisa Morse, Director of Education at the IGFA, was putting on one of her popular fishing camps less than an hour from our home. Boom! Done.

Introducing the Next Generation to Fishing 

It wasn’t just the fishing camp. I found that the IGFA has a National Parks program that gets kids fishing in our National Parks, Habits for Habitats, a habitat cleanup program, hands-on Fishing Clinics, and the Passport to Fishing program, where they send out “fishing clinics in a box” that has everything to get them fishing for the day in other countries!

 

The IGFA and National Park Service are partnering to connect families with the outdoors through recreational fishing. Funded in part by a National Park Foundation grant, this initiative hosts events teaching fishing and ethical angling at some of the nation’s most scenic spots.

There are also online classes for those foul weather days when the kids might not want to go out.

The Intro to Fishing virtual online class is a foundational beginning for most children. It encompasses everything from identifying fish to knot-tying, with chapters dedicated to angling ethics and conservation.

You will find it a great thing to get involved with too, and heck, you may even learn something as well!

As I dug deeper, I discovered an upcoming program, Fly Fishing Basics, that would be perfect for the kids, as I have a Montana trip in mind next summer to get them into fly fishing. All of this is part of the Youth Education Initiative, which is on track to hit its goal of reaching 250,000 children in 2025! More about that later.

The more I got into it, the more intrigued I became by the amount of resources I found. I read on and saw pictures of kids learning about all kinds of things and even making art for the Plastic Portraits Project, which is an extension of the Habitat Cleanup program.

I had to reach out to Lisa and ask her about the programs she has on track for this new year. When I got her on the phone, she told me;

“Next year, we are definitely going to reach the 250K milestone we set in 2019 when we first worked on making our programs international in scope. I’ve been here from the beginning when we were just teaching kids in South Florida, and it is truly remarkable how far we’ve come. Kids are now learning to fish in countries like Malaysia and South Africa using the materials we put together at the headquarters. It has been a lot of work, but seeing the smiles on their faces when they catch a fish or get out on a boat for the first time, or even when they just tie a knot correctly, makes it all worth it and keeps us going.”

One of the things that was most intriguing about our conversation was the expansion efforts internationally. Lisa has organized kids’ fishing camps in The Bahamas and is planning one for Cabo San Lucas next year to get local kids out on the water.

I grew up around the ocean and will always remember the times I spent fishing in the Outer Banks, off of Nags Head, with my father and the unmistakable vicious attack of a bluefish crashing my silver Hopkins lure with the red and white bucktail.

For some of you, it is learning how to cast your Wooly Bugger to the head of a pool and watch it drift down in front of a brown trout lying in wait. For others, it is suffering through putting your first worm on a hook, watching the bobber go down, and finally catching your first bream. Whatever it is, passing on the tradition of fishing is key to the continued growth of our sport.

I ended up taking the “grands” along with my daughter and son-in-law to the camp near our home. When we arrived, about 20 kids with their parents were gathering around with enough energy to power up the electric cars that brought them there.

After Lisa and her team had settled down the kids, it was a beautiful walk down to the water's edge. The kids learned that they would be fishing for bass, and along the way, they talked amongst each other as if they had been friends forever. It wasn’t the most beautiful day, with some clouds moving in from the North and the wind freshening a bit, but that made no difference to the group of young anglers as they began to talk about how many fish they would catch and how big they would be. The youthful energy spread through the adults, and they smiled at each other, knowing that this was a special day no matter what!

The adventure is learning, and that is how we will open up our world of fishing even more to our youth. It is not just education for the kids but for us, too. Continuing the work that the IGFA has started and creating a stewardship is an honor as well being responsible for the conservation of our fisheries going forward.

Expanding the IGFA’s Educational Outreach 2025: Our Journey to 250,000

“The IGFA Education Department has grown astronomically in the last 5 years, working hard to educate young anglers and build new generations of ethical anglers around the world. But we could not accomplish these goals without the dedication of every angling educator out there working hard to accomplish this mission, the generosity of corporate partners helping us with the necessary gear and products to keep these programs going and growing, and the backing through generous donations from all our supporters who believe in this work and the necessity of this mission. Without you, it would make it extremely difficult to do the work we love and teach youth around the world about our beloved sport and the game fish we revere.”
                                                                     

                                                                                                    -Lisa Morse, Educational Director

No matter what language you are speaking, when you see the line go tight for one of your children, it is impossible not to say, “Reel, reel, reel…you got ‘em!” Your support can help IGFA continue this mission and ensure that the next generation experiences the same joy of fishing we all cherish.

Let’s keep their lines tight!