P r e s i d e n t ’ s C o r n e r
Mike Bryant (mjbryant1954@hotmail.com)
I’ve never liked winter and cold weather. And even though we have the opportunity to fish for trout in the winter, I have to admit I find mys
elf inside the house tying flies versus fishing more often than not. At least I’m rebuilding my fly inventory. Jan and I will be in Florida again this winter, so I’ve been busy preparing for saltwater fishing, including tying flies and practicing long distance casting. Future Chapter Business With 2014 behind us, it’s time to look forward to 2015. And I’m excited about our opportunities to continue building on our successes.
• We will again hold our Troutfest Banquet and Auction in April. Mark your calendars for Friday night, April 24. We are planning yet another great Troutfest Banquet & Auction. Last year’s Troutfest was phenomenal and we plan to build
on that success.
• Our Trout-in the Classroom programs will expand to four schools! The two trout releases in December were fantastic. We were able to already touch the lives of more than 70 children, with more to come!!
• We will support Trout Camp in June. Do you know any kids ages 12-15 who enjoy the outdoors? Consider enrolling a child in the 2015 Trout Camp (full name – Trout Unlimited Great Smoky Mountains 2015 Trout Adventure Camp). The Camp is schedule for June 15-20. You can find more information and a registration form at www.tntroutadventure.org .
• We will continue to support critically important Park Service efforts with our volunteer efforts.
• We will continue to work on fishing trips• We will start a more concerted effort on membership education. All of these efforts are possible only because of the volunteer efforts by you and our chapter members.
Monthly Meeting
January Membership Meeting (Thursday, January 22), at Calhoun’s Restaurant, 751 Watkins Rd Maryville. We meet at 6pm for dinner and fellowship, followed by a short business meeting at 7pm. Then our speaker. Kulp (Supervisory Fishery Biologist-Great Smoky Mountain National Park) will present another program laying out the plans for the Fisheries Department in 2015. Matt is an excellent speaker capable of explaining the direction and challenges facing our Park and how we can continue to play a vital role in their efforts. This is a presentation you don’t want to miss.
Stay warm and safe. I hope to see you at the January meeting.
Thanks,
Mike
