PROJECT HEALING WATERS

BY JOHN BERRY

Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing Inc. is a not for profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation (both emotionally and physically) of veterans and disabled active duty military through the healing effects of fly fishing and fly tying. The organization was first started about four years ago by Ed Nicholson, a retired Navy captain who was visiting patients at Walter Reed. He was looking for something that they were interested in. It has since grown to twenty programs in fifteen states. Project Healing Waters is run in conjunction with two other not for profit organizations, the Federation of Fly Fishers and Trout Unlimited. The concept is to teach fly casting and fly tying to wounded personnel at VA and military hospitals through twenty affiliated programs in fifteen states with volunteers from local fishing clubs.

My brother Dan, a Federation of Fly Fishers Certified Casting Instructor, has been working with some of the wounded active duty personnel on their fly casting in Memphis. I sat in on a session and was very impressed with the determination and positive attitude of the warriors. Other Mid South Fly Fishers Club members have been teaching them fly tying.

A major part of the program is to take wounded warriors fishing. In a couple of weeks, they are going to hold an outing here which will be coordinated locally by Rim Shoals. The idea is to take eight wounded warriors fishing for three days. These guys are all wounded veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan and most are amputees. They will fish both the White and Norfork rivers. There are a host of local groups that are providing meals or services including: the American Legion, Angler’s Coffee Café/Blue ribbon Fly Shop, Cotter Area Chamber of Commerce, Knights of Columbus, Mountain Home Veterans of Foreign Wars, North Arkansas Fly Fishers, the North Central Veteran Council, Trout Unlimited White River Chapter, Trout Unlimited Memphis Chapter and Wapsi.

The festivities begin on Monday the twenty seventh of October with a meet and greet at Rim Shoals. This is where the participants get to meet their guides and discuss the next days fishing. On Tuesday, they gather at Cotter Big Spring Park for breakfast sponsored by the Cotter Area Chamber of Commerce. At 7:30 AM, they begin their float and fished their way down to Rim Shoals. Lunch is at Rim Shoals and then they spend the afternoon fishing in the area. Dinner is at Rim Shoals. On Wednesday, they gather at Anglers coffee Café for breakfast and the shuttle to the Norfork River for another day of fishing. Lunch is at the confluence with the White River sponsored by the Mountain Home Veterans of Foreign Wars. They then shuttle back to Rim Shoals for a dinner sponsored by the North Arkansas Fly Fishers. On Thursday they begin the day at Rim Shoals with a breakfast provided by the local Trout Unlimited Chapter then it is a float trip down to Buffalo City. Lunch is provided by the Knights of Columbus and eaten during the float. As you can see this is a lot of fishing and a lot of coordination to make it happen.

The guides for this group are Duane Hada, Denis Dunderdale, Davy Wotten and Me. We are all working at reduced rates. I am especially pleased to be a part of this group. As a Viet Nam veteran, I feel a natural kinship with these guys and I look forward to spending some quality time with them on the water. If you see us out there, give us a wave. Stop and think about the service and sacrifice the guys have made for us.