What could be more satisfying than reeling in fish and winning prizes while supporting a noble cause? The Bellevue/Issaquah Chapter of Trout Unlimited provided just such an opportunity over Veterans Day Weekend with their Perch-A-Thon fishing derby on Lake Sammamish (WA). Similar to a Run-A-Thon fundraiser, participants recruited sponsors to donate money per fish caught. These anglers then had a four-hour window to catch as many non-native yellow perch as possible, in turn raising funds for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing and their Fort Lewis, Washington program. Project Healing Waters is a national non-profit organization with over 200 local volunteer-run programs that provide therapy and rehabilitation opportunities for local disabled military personnel and disabled veterans through fly-fishing.
Read more about the event at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pacific Region’s Tumblr and Facebook pages.