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By Mark Taylor
(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association November 2000 Newsletter)
I am happy to see that requests for
JCAA Awards Dinner are coming in. Penny Dalton, the head of National Marine
Fisheries Service, has accepted our invitation to be our keynote speaker. It will be
interesting to hear her thoughts on the direction she sees NMFS taking in the new
Millennium. Make sure you don’t miss out on this event. This is a fundraiser that
helps us to help you in protecting the natural resource that we all enjoy. So mark your
calendars for November 12, 2000 and join us for an enjoyable event. We have two
nominations so far for Sportsperson of the Year. The two nominees are The Fisherman
Magazine and Bob DeLeonard. Both work very hard protecting what we all love to do.
So make sure your club has a delegate at the next JCAA meeting. Additional nominations
will be accepted from the floor before the final vote to pick this year’s recipient
of the Sportsperson of the Year honors. Background information on the two candidates
can be found at the end of my report.
On October 1, 2000 the 9th Annual Governor’s Surf Fishing Tournament was held with great success. The final number of people that participated was not available at the time I wrote this article. I would estimate that this was the largest number of people to participate in the event to date. More fish were caught than in past years by all age groups and the weather cooperated. If you missed this year’s event you don’t want to miss next year’s. I would like to thank all the people that made this event such a huge success.
The volunteers at Jersey Coast Anglers Association, with the help of our friends from Canyon Gear, have designed a new JCAA t-shirt. The design was created to send a message. The message is “We Could Be The Next Endangered Species,” if you don’t get involved by writing, calling, faxing and e-mailing your legislators. This could become a reality if you sit back and do nothing. If you want to purchase a few see the order form and art JCAA web-site (www.jcaa.org) or call the office and we will mail one out to you.
Would you like to be an officer in the Jersey Coast Anglers Association? We are looking for dedicated people to fill positions for next year. If you are interested please give me a call.
Bob DeLeonard has been nominated for JCAA Sportsman of the Year. He serves as the President of NJBBA and Vice President of United Mobile Sportfishermen (UMS). His strategic plans within New Jersey and up and down the Atlantic coast have produced a record number of volunteer hours fornatural resource management and preservation by members of the Associations, as well as other aligned organizations.While this leadership effort alone produced exemplary results, the two Associations were beset with a record number of beach access issues, the likes of which have never been seen before. Obtaining accurate information to develop effective action plans was Bob's most time and effort-consuming endeavor. Bob persevered, prevailed and inspired others to make a difference on the issues. By building coalitions of diverse user groups, Bob has been able to put forth contemporary ideas to re-habitat endangered species and maintain public access. In spite of tremendous consternation and challenge, Bob has remained a model of reasonableness and perseverance to overcome counterproductive efforts.His commitment to see efforts through to compatible results has been a model of leadership & management and has inspired others to support our resources.
The Fisherman Magazine has earned a reputation as the leading
authority on fishing in New Jersey by providing anglers with outstanding coverage of
fishing action on a weekly basis for over 29 years. From the beginning, the editorial
staff made covering conservation and fisheries issues a priority. Keeping the anglers in
the trenches informed has helped our influence in the management and political arena grow.
Over the last fifteen, The Fisherman
has become a strong ally of the JCAA, providing editorial support, even more solid
coverage of the issues and our positions, and helped us bring our message to tens of
thousands of anglers throughout the state and the region. Associate Publisher, Pete
Barrett, has been quick to respond to our calls for help when it is critical to rally the
troops to generate public pressure for important legislative issues. He has also been
receptive to providing funding and support for JCAA projects. The Fisherman has been a
major sponsor of The Jersey Coast Fluke Tournament since the first year and has helped us
grow the tournament into what it is today.
Many JCAA members feel that The
Fisherman deserves the Sportsperson of the Year Award in the magazine’s name, so it
thanks the many editors and staff members who have worked with us over the years
collectively. For that reason, The Fisherman magazine has been formally nominated.
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