A big giveaway to help kids

It’s a new season, and it’s hard to believe we’re a quarter of the way through it already. I promise that we’ll get into the fishing stuff in my next column, but I wanted to take a little time to talk about a couple of things Kim and I are doing over this next month. Actually, it’s in the first week of May, but one part of it is something we’re working on this whole time.

We will be doing our fifth Skeet Reese Kids Fishing Day in our home community of Auburn, Calif., again, and as always, it is going to be a fundraiser for some of our favorite charities. One thing that has been added this year allows us to reach out to fishing fans across the country to help the charities, but also give the fans a chance to win big in doing so.

This year, as a part of the fifth Skeet Reese Kid’s Fishing Day, we are giving people across the country the chance to participate in a $10 per ticket raffle to raise funds for the charities on our list. This isn’t a short list of a few raffle prizes either – this is a winner take all $10,000 grand prize that people from all over the country can have a chance to win. 

There have always been two reasons we wanted to hold an event like this. The first is because I love being able to share my love of the sport with kids. If I had not fallen in love with fishing at an early age, I don’t know where I would be, but I certainly wouldn’t be fishing the Bassmaster Elite Series. The other reason we wanted to do it was to do a fundraiser for charities in our community, and that has extended to charities that are near and dear to my heart across the country. 

My sponsors have kicked in to help by providing a giant package of prizes that will be included in a winner take all prize pack valued at $10,000.

The prizes include a LOWRANCE HDS9 Gen3 Touch, an 8-foot Power-Pole Pro Series II Shallow Water Anchor, a Lucky Craft Lure Gift pack, Eagle Claw TroKar Hooks, six Wright & McGill Co. Skeet Reese Tournament Series Rod and Victory II Reel combos, a HUK Next Level rain suit, two Ranger Boats Inflatable PFD’s, a Mercury Tempest Propeller and Mercury Premium Plus Outboard Oil, Gift Cards from DICK’S Sporting Goods, a Berkley and Berkley Havoc Tackle Pack and one of my 2016 tournament-worn, signed jerseys

All of the proceeds will go to help our favorite charities across the country and at home. The first one is the Tackle the Storm Foundation founded by my friend and Bassmaster.com writer Don Barone.

Several years ago, Don saw the devastation that a tornado caused as it ripped through Cullman, Ala., and when he saw a fishing rod and reel broken on the ground, the idea for Tackle the Storm hit him. Since then, Tackle the Storm has provided fishing tackle to kids impacted by storms across the country. The thought is that getting a fishing rod helps them feel like there is something helping them return to normal. I’ve loved it from the beginning and want to help whenever I can.

Along with Tackle the Storm, the raffle will help the Auburn Recreation District’s Youth Assistance Fund, the Meadow Vista Friendly Neighbors program and Kids First Now; all organizations that try to help kids in their communities. There are details about each organization’s programs on the raffle page on my personal website.

I really hope that everyone who reads this will consider buying a raffle ticket. Not only can you win all of that great stuff, but it will help these worthy charities continue their missions of helping children experience love, fun and health. 

Tickets will be on sale at my website until midnight May 5, 2017 and the drawing will be held May 6, 2017; the winner will be contacted and announced on my Facebook page.

I’ll get back to the fishing talk after Toledo Bend, but I wanted to make sure to share this with all of you.

Thanks for considering it.

Come to my Facebook Page and Twitter to follow me through the year.