FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — Fort Leonard Wood held its annual Kid’s Catfish Derby event on Saturday at the Training Area 228 pond, organized by the Directorate of Public Works’ Natural Resources Branch.
According to John Brant, a fisheries biologist with DPW and one of the event’s key organizers, more than 100 children between the ages of 2 and 15 participated in this year’s event, which included the chance to fish for more than 400 catfish that were stocked in the pond just for the occasion — some of which were tagged and could be turned in for a special prize.
“Sadly, none of the participants caught a tagged fish for a prize,” Brant said, although he noted there were 11 first-time fishers at the event — and creating connections between children and the outdoors is the major goal of the event each year. “Creating a connection with the outdoors is essential to a sustainable community, and opportunities such as our youth fishing derbies are a great place to begin that connection.”
In addition to the efforts of DPW, other agencies were also critical to ensuring a successful event, Brant said, including the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation and the Directorate of Emergency Services.
“The Fort Leonard Wood Outdoor Adventure Center — and FMWR as a whole — provided great support with advertising, and grilled hotdogs and drinks for attendees,” Brant said. “And, as always, we appreciate the support from the Directorate of Emergency Services, that allow its Conservation Law Enforcement officers to attend our outreach events. It provides a great opportunity for youth to see law enforcement in a positive setting and provides support at our events in the event there are medical emergencies.”
Laura Hankla, an FMWR marketing assistant, provided photography support at the event. She said it’s delightfulto see the families enjoying some of what Fort Leonard Wood has to offer.
“The pictures are always cute because the kids are always smiling when they catch something,” Hankla said. “And the hot dogs were good — people were enjoying that.”
Hankla said the highlight of the event for her was watching one child catch a particularly large fish, with a little help from her family.
“It was supposed to be a catfish derby, but one of the kids caught a big bass, and that was the biggest fish I saw in the two hours I was there,” she said. “The child was really excited, but then, I think it was the dad, maybe — he helped her catch it, but then he dropped the fish. It was really funny.”
Brant said overall he thinks this year’s derby was a great success.
“We had gorgeous weather with a great turnout,” he said. “Few fish were caught, but many smiles were seen.”
More photos from the Kid’s Catfish Derby are available to view and download on the Fort Leonard Wood FMWR Flickr page.
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