Kids, volunteers benefit from fishing event

OTHELLO - More than a dozen Basin kids took to the water over the weekend for the Bureau of Reclamation's annual C.A.S.T. for Kids fishing event at Potholes State Park.

About 20 children participated in this year's event, Reclamation's Jennifer McConnell said. They spent a few hours with their poles in the water, then came back to shore and had lunch, she said.

The C.A.S.T. (Catch a Special Thrill) for Kids program gives children with a wide range of disabilities and terminal illnesses the opportunity to learn how to fish, McConnell said.

"It gets kids out and gives them a chance to see their abilities," she said.

Reclamation's Stephanie Utter said the agency has hosted the event in the Columbia Basin since 1992. The event previously alternated between Potholes and Steamboat Rock State Park, she said.

For the past few years however, it's been held at Potholes, Utter said.

Utter said while Reclamation hosts the event, other groups play a big role in making the event a success each year.

Volunteers from the Potholes Bass Club and the Columbia Basin Walleye Club bring their boats and take groups of kids and their parents out on the water and culinary students from the Columbia Basin Job Corps prepare lunch for participants.

Other groups also help fund the annual event, which is how participants are able to keep their fishing poles and tackle boxes, she said.

Kids also get a hat and a T-shirt for participating in the event.

Utter said the best part of the event is interacting with the kids when they come back in for lunch.

"They're so excited about having been out there fishing, it's just great," she said.

Utter said many participants have so much fun, they end up coming back the next year.

"A lot of the kids today have been coming for many years," she said. "It's fun to watch them grow up."

For more information about the program, visit www.castforkids.org.