Project Healing Waters - Northern California Council, Fly Fishers International (NCCFFI)

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Project Healing Waters

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PROJECT HEALING WATERS NOVEMBER 5-12 ONLINE AUCTION EVENT

The Norcal fly fishing community - fly shops, guides, private waters, lodging, clubs, and supportive anglers - are supporting this auction. So are many others. We would appreciate your help in recruiting bidders! Please review the need, auction, request and next steps outlined below.

THE NEED:

Support injured/disabled veterans: On Veteran's Day we remember veterans no longer here. We thank others for their service. There is a group that especially deserves our thanks and support - injured or disabled veterans who gave so much. Project Healing Waters is a free fly fishing program that provides physical and emotional rehabilitation to these men and women. The attached flyer briefly describes the program and the healing outcomes. Along with dollar donations, grants, and donated services and lodging, our November 5-12 online auction provides a major part of SF East Bay and SF program funding.

OUR ONLINE AUCTION - WOWZA!

Our November 5-12 online auction will include a great collection of holiday gift ideas, and personal choices too, in 16 categories: art, boating, collectibles, dining, fishing and sports gear, fly fishing guided trips, golf foursomes, lodging, private fishing waters, spirits, entertainment tickets, family tickets, sports tickets, unique experiences and wine. A quarter (25%) of the categories are related to fly fishing and those items include a unique collection of gear, guides and private water in multiple states. If you have concerns about fly fishing item or timing conflict with your club auction, we ask that you consider asking club members to hold purchases of gear and flies.

HELP REQUEST:

Please help us recruit bidders by alerting club members, friends, family and others who appreciate these veterans and/or know that fly fishing can provide gains in calm, peace, happiness, self-confidence, friendships and less reliance on medications.

Contact: allenpeterson@comcast.net

THE MARTINEZ PROGRAM

The Martinez Program for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing was started in 2010 with Diablo Valley Fly Fishing Club as its sponsor. The Program supports about 30 veterans primarily receiving support from the Martinez Outpatient Clinic.

Very simply the mission of the PHWFF-Martinez, CA program is to help in the rehabilitation, both physical and mental, of disabled veterans. This includes veterans from all eras going back to Viet Nam and the more recent conflicts of Iraq and Afghanistan. Our volunteers aid the rehabilitation process of these veterans through all things associated with fly fishing, including but not limited to fly fishing indoctrination, fly casting, fly tying, rod building, entomology, and most importantly - taking these skills and going on outings.

To be successful the PHWFF program needs three essential elements:

1. A sustainable cadre of disabled veterans interested in fly fishing.

2. A group of dedicated DVFF volunteers to participate in the activities

3. Funds and equipment to make it all come together - veterans pay nothing to be part of the program.

The other main factor to success is time spent in fly fishing activities - this is the reason PHWFF Martinez veteran participants and volunteers maintain a very active schedule of training activities and outings. It takes time to heal and remain healed.

In 2022 we normally met 2-4 times per month in training activities, i.e. fly tying, casting, rod building, etc. The program, supported by the volunteers from DVFF will have gone on 14 overnight outings with each veteran averaging about 2 ½ outings per participant. It is the outings which we believe help most in the healing process - this is when the camaraderie between the veterans and the volunteers really happens. As was so aptly expressed by one of our women veterans after a trip, "Because of this program there are at least 3-5 people I can text, call, or hang with when I just need a little reminder to continue the mission of living."

CHICO PROJECT HEALING WATERS

SERVING THE GREATER CHICO AREA

We meet twice monthly in the day time and twice monthly in the evening, making it available for all who wish to participate. Vets are invited to join us on either or both depending on their circumstances, The veterans have the opportunity to learn all aspects of flyfishing, fly casting, equipment set up, fly tying, rod building and have many fishing outings to hone these skills.

We had a number of new vets join us at our most recently meeting. As an introduction to these new people some of the currently participating vets related what the program met to them. One vet related how the activities such as fishing and rod building help to relieve his PTSD.

Another related how it gave him something to look forward to and help him to get out his "funk", out of the house, be around people and relieved his depression and PTSD.

For information contact Program Lead, Stanley Thomas at:

530-518-3715

stanley.thomas@projecthealingwaters.org