A young novice angler displayed her trophy rock bass, one of several fish that she caught at the first Chris Caris Memorial Fishing for Kids event held on Tuesday, July 8 at Fremont Lake.		Conservation Officer Mike Wells showed youngsters and volunteers how to identify various game fish species.

Fishing event honors Chris Caris’s memory

Scores of volunteers introduced 22 youngsters to the fun of fishing at the first Chris Caris Memorial Fishing for Kids event on Tuesday at Fremont Lake.

“The motivation for this event was to honor our son Christopher Caris’ memory,” said Jeannie Caris of Fremont. “Chris was interested in fishing from an early age. He also enjoyed sharing his knowledge of fishing with many others.”

Chris Caris was murdered in October of 2007, a couple of days before he was to receive his first professional fishing contract.

“The purpose of this event was to combine Chris’ love of fishing with encouraging young children to learn about fishing and related subjects, and to have fun.”

Along with instruction in the art and science of fishing, the children were given their own fishing poles and reels, plus other items donated by supporters of the event. The youngsters were also taken onto the lake for some fishing.

Kids Hope USA and Patti Wildfong worked together to select the Newaygo County children who were invited to participate. More than 70 volunteers, 19 fishing mentors and many local and national sponsors helped make the event successful.

Jeannie Caris said that plans are already underway for next year’s event.

The event was funded in part by the Christopher R. Caris Memorial Fund at the Fremont Area Community Foundation.