KatFishin Kids – Making Lasting Memories By Bernard Williams

The first week of June each year brings an event that’s near and dear to my heart, KatFishin Kids. It’s a fishing rodeo sponsored by Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. Walmart, Mississippi Wildlife Federation and many other businesses join together to bring this free event to children 15 and under to teach them about fishing, water safety and the outdoors. The Magnolia Crappie Club has been a yearly volunteer since this event started. This year was no different. I would like to thank David and Samantha McWilliams, Robbie and Stephanie Nivens for volunteering.
Folks let me tell you one thing for sure; we had as much if not more fun as the kids. The ponds were fully stocked with POLE BREAKERS. That’s right, I’ve never in my last 8 or 9 years seen as many cane poles and line (12#) break as they did on Saturday. By the way, the kids were taught how to tie knots. I think some of the ones that fixed up the poles needed to go through that class. I noticed several hook come un-tied.
My hats off to the MDWFP for providing and excellent place and plenty of 3 to 5 pound catfish; they were some of the biggest fish I’ve ever seen caught in a kid’s rodeo. The weather was fantastic and the fish never stopped biting, from 6:30am to 10:30am. I did hear one complaint from several kids about having to get up so early on a Saturday. All volunteers were there at 6am. That’s not a big deal if you’re a true fisherman. The Walmart employees were there in full force and provided the worms, fish bags and refreshments.
The rules were:

• Kids came in groups of 10 with different color arm bands, based on the arm band color
• Kids were directed to a fishing area that had about 12 to 15 poles baited and ready to fish.
• There were about 7 to 8 areas with 5 to 7 volunteers.
• Each kid could catch 3 fish or fish for 30 minutes
• Afterwards they had to leave the area and return to the place where they were issuing the arm bands.

David and Samantha brought their son, 6 year old Trae McWilliams. Trae had a blast. I saw him break his line two times; break a pole and then the hook came loose before he landed his first fish. Trae is no stranger to fishing or hunting. His dad started him fishing and hunting around the time he started walking. He’s killed deer, caught crappie, catfish and hunted alligator. This was special to him, being around other kids his age was like his own catfish tournament. Once he landed his first fish he became ecstatic. It was a nice catfish, about 3 ½ to 4 pounds, he landed it all by himself. He told his dad he caught the fish “Tight-lining”.
Robbie and Stephanie came with their four grand kids and they had a ball. Their oldest granddaughter Keely Davis, a graduating senior worked as a volunteer. The Nivens raised these kids on the water. Keely is no stranger to baiting hooks, and taking off fish. Matter of fact, she had her own gloves. The Nivens next granddaughter, 14 year old Tailyn Esco, had decided she didn’t want to fish. I gave her a pole and as soon as it hit the water a huge catfish grabbed it and the fight was on. She landed the fish and nothing; absolutely nothing could stop her from fishing. She later told her grandmother, “I had a blast, I loved it, when are we going to do this again?”
A special thanks to Strike King Lures for providing t-shirts, hooks and catfish bait for this event. We caught some of our biggest fish on the Strike King Dynamite catfish bait. It’s excellent bait for catching big catfish. The kids with the biggest fish were given Strike King T-shirts. Thank you Mark Copley, Strike King Lure Company. These kids had a feeling of excitement, like winning the rodeo. I’ve got news for them, it can become addicting.
So you might ask, “Why are you writing about a kids fishing rodeo?” Because it’s where memories are made, these 200+ kids will always remember their first fish. Some of the kids I saw came up to me and asked if I remembered them from last year. I would answer “Yes”. For example, 10 year old Bryson Ward and his 10 year old cousin Jhamia Perry are four-year attendants. They’re hooked on KatFishin Kids. Hopefully one day they’ll become volunteers. This is a once-a-year treat for most of these kids, they don’t get a chance to go fishing and catch fish.
I’m glad I could help out, glad to be a part of something that benefitted kids. It’s not about me, it’s about them. If doing this saves one kid, then I’m paid in full. If taking out 6 or 7 hours of my time, helps one kid become an outdoors person later in life, I’ve made my contribution; I’ve given something back to the community. I don’t know if we’ve made fishermen out of these kids, but I do know it kept them off their electronic games and away for television for a half day and in my opinion it was worth the investment. By Bernard Williams, Outdoor Writer