Fresno Walleyes were in hand Thursday to present Big Sandy 5th & 6th Grade students with free fishing poles.
Every 5th and 6th grade student at FE Miley Elementary received a fishing pole last week, compliments of Walleyes Unlimited of Montana, Fresno Chapter. Neil and Bope Kulbeck, along with Charlie Foussard, delivered the fishing poles during classes on Thursday the 20th. Neil explained the reason for the gift of fishing poles: "Our goal is the future of fishing, especially for kids. We normally have a kids' education day for 5th and 6th graders in the spring. Of course, Covid has stopped that. We're here to give them their fishing rods regardless."
The annual kids' education day typically involves 4 fishing seminars, boat rides, and a meal for the students. Each child typically receives a fishing pole during the outing. The education day is offered to schools around the area including: Chinook, Havre, Chester, Box Elder, Big Sandy, Rocky Boy, Gilford, and Kremlin. Because schools weren't able to commit to attending this year, the event was cancelled for the second consecutive year. Last year, the cancellation was due to the lockdowns.
In an effort to engage students who were unable to attend for the last two years, Fresno Walleyes Unlimited distributed the poles they typically hand out for the education day to students. Over 560 poles have been delivered to students at various elementary schools.
Fresno Walleyes Unlimited generally puts on a fishing tournament every year, though the last two years have been cancelled due to the pandemic. In addition, they typically run a banquet fundraiser to pay for poles for the kids, though that event has also been cancelled in the last couple years.
The Fresno Chapter of Walleyes Unlimited maintains a Facebook page and website (fresnowalleyes.com). Their website features a live camera feed of the lake so fishermen can gauge weather conditions before heading out to fish. The site also features information about events and other fundraisers.
Charlie and Neil have been involved in Fresno Walleyes for more than 30 years each. They were recruited to the organization by Jim Rettig, former owner of The Mountaineer. They proudly pointed out that Fresno is known as one of the best fisheries in the state.
