Tri-State Steelheaders and the Walla Walla District Corps of Engineers are hosting a Kids’ Fishing Day at Bennington Lake on June 11. Youth 14 and under will receive goodie bags that include fishing gear, an entry into the casting contest, and a hot dog and a soda.

Catchable (8-12 inches, ½ pound each) and Jumbo (14 inches or more, 1 ½ pounds each) rainbow trout have been stocked in the lake all spring by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, so the fishing should be good! Fishing rods will be available to loan to kids without their own gear or those who want to try fishing for the first time. The event is intended to be fun for the family, and an opportunity for kids to learn a new hobby. All participating kids will also be entered into a drawing for brand-new fishing poles.

We hope to see you there!

Our Crab Feed Fundraiser is May 18^th, and we’re looking for business and individual sponsors to help us successfully support Salmon in School, Kids Fishing Days, the Jumbo Trout Program, and other programs that benefit the community.

What’s in it for you?

• For each $100 in sponsorship, you’ll receive one Crab Feed ticket ($40 value).
• For a $200 sponsorship, you’ll get two tickets.
• For a $300 sponsorship, you’ll get three tickets.
• And so on. There’s no limit.

You’ll also be listed as a sponsor in printed material at the event and in our next newsletter. If you sponsor a specific item, your sponsorship will be prominently featured with the item! 500 people in attendance will see your name and logo, and sponsored items will be featured with your sponsorship in Facebook posts prior to the event.

There are many reasons to consider a sponsorship:

• You like fishing
• Wild and natural habitat is important to you
• You like to watch kids reeling in fish
• Recovery of salmon and steelhead is important to you
• You want your kids and grandkids to be able to catch salmon
• Improved water quality in local streams is a priority to you
• You like to know that kids are learning about salmon in their schools

Interested? Call us at 509-529-3543 or email tssfish@tristatesteelheaders.com.

Whatever your reason for becoming a sponsor, you are supporting a local, community based non-profit organization to provide benefits for the whole community. We hope you’ll join us in our efforts — see you at the Crab Feed!

Join us for our annual Crab Feed Fundraiser on May 18! Once again we’ll be at the Community Building at the Walla Walla County Fairgrounds, serving up a fabulous meal including (of course!) shelled crab while having fun with a dollar raffle and silent and live auctions. Funds raised from this event support all of Tri-State Steelheaders’ habitat restoration and education programs.

Doors open at 5pm. Tickets are $40 and need to be purchased in advance; call us at (509)529-3543 or stop by the Visit Walla Walla Kiosk on Main Street. Beer and wine will be available for purchase, so 21 and over only, please.

We hope to see you there!

Our winter 2017 newsletter has arrived! If you’re a member, you should see it in your inbox and mailbox soon, if you haven’t already. It’s also available to read online!

Highlights in this issue include:

• An update on our Salmon in School program
• A recap of our recent annual meeting
• An explanation of the ways our December “fish fling” benefited the Tucannon River

The Lions Park Pond in College Place used to be stocked with rainbow trout by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for an annual Youth Fishing Derby [left], attracting about 100 kids and their families every year. Today, problems with sediment and water quality have brought the beloved community program to a halt. Tri-State Steelheaders hopes to restore the pond so that stocking can resume — but we need your help.

Completing the preliminary design for restoring the pond is expected to cost $10,000. So far, we’ve raised $7,995 toward that goal, but we can’t move forward until we raise the remaining funds. Your donation in any amount will help introduce a new generation of College Place kids to outdoor recreation, so please consider giving today!