The one that didn’t get away
Staff photo by Mary Kemper
A group of fishermen returns from a day on Stick Marsh, near Fellsmere, Nov.14. The outing was arranged by the Veterans Resource Committee of the Melbourne Regional Chamber of Commerce, which took 20 disabled veteran anglers out for a free and fun competition for catching the biggest bass.
Staff Writer
It was 5:30 a.m. on Nov. 14, and the quiet calm of Stick Marsh, near Fellsmere, was a hive of activity.
With military precision, Justin Anderson and his team were directing pickup trucks and their boat trailers in and out of the marina. As each boat was unloaded, another was ready to take its place.
At the table set up to register the boats, captains and community leaders signed up and got their bracelets, and then headed over to another table for bagels and coffee.
By the time the sun came up, the boats — with special passengers — were off, ready to see who would catch the biggest bass.
Anderson is the community relations director of the Veterans Resource Committee of the Melbourne Regional Chamber of Commerce — and this day culminated months of hard work to make sure 23 service-disabled veterans enjoyed a free, fun day out on the water, otherwise known as the Stick Marsh Bass Challenge.