Each year we are amazed at the number of videos which beautifully capture stories born from our unique kind of therapy and the work being done by our volunteers across the country. Here are a few of our favorites:
AnnMarie O’Malley was born and raised in Wisconsin and graduated from the US Air Force Academy (Official) in 1996. After completing her time at the Academy, AnnMarie was commissioned in the United States Air Force as a Civil Engineer. During her seven years in the Air Force, AnnMarie participated in several deployments and advance team operations in support of multiple in theater conflicts. Following her Post 9-11 deployment, AnnMarie separated from the Air Force in October, 2002. AnnMarie sustained significant injuries while in the Air Force and credits Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. as a key factor in her recover and reintegration progress.
Willis “Duke” Davis, USMC. Duke is a Marine Corps veteran who served most of his time as a Scout Sniper and Infantryman. He was medically retired after almost 22 years of honorable service and became a PHWFF participant in October, 2014. Duke continues to work hard as an ambassador for program — giving back as a volunteer guide and trip leader for his local and regional programs. He is also an avid fly fisherman who combines his experiences as a disabled veteran and with his fishing skills to uniquely help in our participants rehabilitation process. His passion for the cause now extends to his professional life as he took on the role of Assistant Operations Officer for PHWFF in 2017 while continuing to volunteer whenever possible.
William Hayes (Bill) is a retired Senior Master Sergeant (E8), New York Air National Guard and retired Firefighter from the New York City Fire Department (FDNY).
This special video highlights our Space Coast Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing Inc Program. Framed around the programs recent 2-Fly Tournament, this film extends itself to showcase the relationships, passionate volunteerism, and continuum of care our unique form of therapy provides. Special thanks to Andrew Gilbert for filming and producing this powerful short film.
We were honored to have Captain Stephanie McKeen, United States Air Force grace us with a beautiful and powerful rendition of our National Anthem on the banks of Tennessee’s famed Clinch River at the 3rd Annual Smoky Mountain Grand Slam
What a weekend!!! The Mossy Creek Invitational celebrated 10 years in remarkable and inspiring fashion. We’ll be sharing much more from this very special event in the upcoming days, but in the meantime enjoy Capt (ret) Eivind Forseth U.S. Army and volunteer guide Colby Trow of Mossy Creek Fly Fishing
tangling with one of the many big trout caught during this special day.
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Our deepest thanks to all who supported this great event, our cause, and the veterans we serve.
Over 116 VA healthcare facilities host Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing programs! This has enabled us to bring our unique form of therapy to an ever-expanding number of veterans who may benefit from it in communities across America. At these locations, Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing (PHWFF) volunteers are VA volunteers. They provide fly fishing, fly tying, and rod building programs and a caring community for the Veteran patients. Through our collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs our cause has grown from a single program in 2006 to over 200 programs serving over 7,400 veterans annually today. We are pleased to announce that we are continuing to grow this relationship by joining over 40 other major veteran, civic and service organizations as members of The National Advisory Committee of the Department of Veterans Affairs Voluntary Service (VAVS)
Program Lead Jeff McEnroe shared a great short video showcasing the past year with the Umpqua, OR Program in our Northwest Region.
“When two fishermen, Oliver White and Wesley Hodges, have a burning passion for fishing and meet through a non-profit called Project Healing Waters, it’s only a matter of time before they go on an epic fishing trip together. And thanks to Oliver, Wesley finds himself saltwater fly fishing in Southern Louisiana for the first time ever.”
This past November the PHWFF Erie, PA Program held their annual ‘Steelhead Slam’ on some of the finest steelhead waters east of the Mississippi. This annual outing proved to be a great success for all the veteran participants in attendance thanks to the generous support provided by numerous local volunteers, businesses, and organizations
We were honored to have the honorable Judge Thomas Hogan deliver the keynote address during the 11th Annual PHWFF 2-Fly Tournament at Rose River Farm. Judge Hogan has been a fixture at the annual 2-Fly since its inception and we were honored to have him as our Keynote Speaker. Judge Hogan addressed the pre-tournament dinner on Saturday night under the stars in picturesque Madison County. His remarks touched upon his experiences as an angler and the personal relationships, inspiration, and motivation he garnered from important veterans in his life during his distinguished tenure as a Federal Judge.
This song was written by William (Charlie) Trawick, a veteran alumnus of Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing (Tennessee Valley) and Operation Song. Charlie wanted his song to be about his favorite R+R in-and-out of the service: fishing.
The vocal was provided by Matt Dame, and it was co-written by Bob Regan and Don Goodman. Operation Song is a Tennessee based not-for-profit program that pairs veterans, active duty military, and their families with professional songwriters to help them tell their stories. 400 + songs written with veterans of WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.