Hundreds Turn Out for the 6th Annual
Wakulla Children's Fishing Tournament
In spite of bad weather, approximately 400 kids came out for the 6th
annual Wakulla Children's Fishing Tournament. According to
organizer Captain Larry Massa of the Wakulla County Sheriff's Office,
"The day was a huge success. Between the kids and their parents,
there must have been about a thousand people who were in attendance
throughout the day. We were very well pleased at how the day
turned out."
Participants were allowed to fish up until 12:00
noon, either on their own or on one of the boats provided by the
Fishing Tournament committee. Kids could fish in either fresh or
salt water. Weigh-in begin at 12:00 noon at Wooley Park in
Pancea, Florida, and continued until 2:30 p.m.
Trying to catch the big one!
 | |  | A great catch!
| | Baiting the hook.
|  | | 
| Weighing in the catch.
| | A job well done!
| | | | |  | |  | Casey Skyler and Captain Larry Massa
| | Could this be a winner?
|
There were many activities to entertain the participants throughout
the
day, including a bouncer and a slip-and-slide, and all participants
received a free hot-dog lunch. "We served over 600 hot
dogs!" said Captain Massa. There were also informational booths
set up for the kids and their parents to visit throughout the
afternoon, including the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, and the
Epilepsy Association of the Big Bend, who gave out free bike helmets to
registered participants. Local teen band "RadioActiveMaterial"
(RAM) kept the crowds entertained all afternoon with their unique mix
of music, playing everything from the Beatles to the Cars.
 | |  | Having fun in the bouncer!
| | Waiting in line for the slip-in-slide!
| | | | |  | |  | Giving away free bike helmets.
| | The hot-dog booth was very popular!
|
RadioActiveMaterial (RAM) entertaining the crowds!
Door prizes were given out throughout the festivities, and the winners
took home such items as rods and reels, tackle boxes, and many other
items donated by local area merchants. Nicole Pandolfi, the grand
prize winner, received a Family 4-Pack to Wild Adventures Fun Park in
Valdosta,
Georgia. This included 4 year-round passports, a parking
pass, and $100.00 to be spent towards refreshments in the park!
Trophies were presented to the top 3 finishers in each category. The winners in each category were:
Flounder
|
| White Trout
|
| Catfish
| 1st - Cole Baggett
| | 1st - Richard Reason
| | 1st - Hunter Hutto
| 2nd - Kevin Gaby
| | 2nd - Chaz Waltman
| | 2nd - Olivia Hutto
| 3rd - David Register
| | 3rd - Erica Reason
| | 3rd - Brett Metcalf
| 4th - Tyler Schmidt
| | 4th - Aidan Fox
| | 4th - Daniel Stuart
| | | | | | | Spanish Mackeral
| | Red Fish
| | Bass
| 1st - Spencer Sapp
| | 1st - Sarina Gilford
| | 1st - Shay Barwick
| 2nd - Tanner Plouffel
| | 2nd - Joseph Bill
| | 2nd - Zachary Clark
| 3rd - Kendall Thomas
| | 3rd - Naomi Gonzales
| | 3rd - Sloan Barwick
| 4th - Brandon Walker
| | 4th - Brandon Shuman
| | 4th - Brett Clark
| | | | | | | Speckled Trout
| | Panfish
| | | 1st - Walker Polanovich
| | 1st - Zachary Robison
| | | 2nd - Cole Gowdy
| | 2nd - Dakota Baggett
Shelton Griffin
| | | 3rd - Nicole Pandolfi
Becky Horst
| | 3rd - Taylor Clark
| | | 4th - Richard Horst
| | | | |
Congratulations to them all!
The Wakulla Children's Fishing Tournament would like to thank their
many sponsors for helping to make this year's event possible:
Wakulla Bank
Coastal Optimist Club
Wakulla County Parks and Recreation Department
Wakulla County Sheriff's Office
Angelo's Restaurant
Ben Withers, Inc.
Bernie and Carol Sloan
Charles Purvis, A.I.A. Architect
Circle J's Bait and Tackle
Citizen's Bank of Wakulla
CJIS Group, Inc.
Coastal Restaurant
Crawford Lodge 294 F. & A. M.
Crum and Colvin Construction
Crum's Bait and Tackle
David and Pamela Hart
Dentistry by the Sea, Quill Turk D.V.S.
Dr. Gene and Cathy Charbonneau
Easy Mail
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
The Fish Barn
Flag Credit Union
Freedom Boat Club
Gulf Coast Lumber
Gulf State Bank
Harrison Bail Bonds
Hello Gorgeous Lips
Holiday Campground
www.lisaslisting.com
Mike's Marine Supply
Mineral Springs Seafood and Bait
Movie Gallery
North State Title Services, Inc.
Ochlockonee Bay Realty
Panacea Coastal Construction, Inc.
Panacea Harbor Marina
Posey's Steamroom
Rascal's Auto Sales
RMS Marine Supply, Inc.
In Memory of Ronnie Kilgore
Sea Tow
Sherida Crum, Supervisor of Elections
Shops by the Bay
St. Marks Refuge Association
Tadpole Enterprises
The Landing Restaurant and Motel
Wakulla Fisherman's Association
Wakulla Moose Lodge #2510
Wakulla Rotary Club
Wakulla Shrine Club
Wison Ice Company
Rod Bender's Charters
Special thanks to Steve and Tracie Churchard
for contributing photos of the kids fishing for this article!
(Specifically photo #'s 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8.)
 |
Outdoors 
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