Biggest not Always Best in Texas
By: Art Pasley
May 17th marked the first annual "Ian Surratt Memorial C.A.S.T. Event" at Eagle Mountain Lake, sponsored by the Sportsmen's Club of Fort Worth. As America's top professional anglers launching their custom wrapped boats for the first "Bassmasters Memorial Tournament", Troy Moncrief and members of the Fun & Sun Pro Staff from Fort Worth, Texas launched their boats for a day of fun and fishing with participants from Cooks Children's Hospital.
"With the pro's being here, I thought it would be a lot of fun for the kids to be able to meet them and get autographs," stated Moncrief. "I'm a little concerned that we may have a small turnout due to this being the middle of the week," he added. His concerns were soon justified, as only six children from Cooks were able to attend this year's event, but a big turnout isn't always the best. A lot of individual attention was given to those in attendance at this special event.
As the children started arriving to a host of volunteers, each was given a Zebco rod & reel, a Plano tackle box, a C.A.S.T. t-shirt and hat and received a personal welcome from Ian's parent's Ron & Lauren Surratt. Also on hand to welcome everyone was Professional Angler Kelly Jordon and Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief with Fort Worth's 1st Lady, Rosie Moncrief. Once the children met their boater captains, they were off for a day on Eagle Mountain Lake.
Upon their return, reports of huge numbers of fish caught began to echo around the West Bay Marina area. "I caught 46", announced one young participant. "We saw snakes and still caught fish", declared another. "This is wonderful", stated Mrs. Surratt. "Ian was surely working to make sure these kids had a good time and caught a lot of fish", she declared.
As each participant and boater returned to the dock, they were met by several of the world's top professional anglers. On hand for the Bar-B-Q lunch were Peter Thliveros, Kelly Jordon and Gerald Swindle, all eager to sign autographs and visit with the crowd. After a wonderful lunch each boater and participant were awarded a plaque, which included a picture of the two, for their efforts. The Surratt family and Cooks Children's Hospital received a C.A.S.T. T-shirt autographed by everyone in attendance as well as a plaque with a group picture that included Professional Angler, Kelly Jordon.
Most of the time we think the bigger our event is, the more we have to give away and that the more activities we have for the kids and volunteers, the better our event is. I stayed for a while after the crowd left and watched one of the participants, his boater partner Jerry Johnson and uncle fish from the bank catching fish after fish. That young man couldn't possibly have more fun than he was having with his uncle and new boater friend. They each now know what "Special People, Helping Special Children, Catch A Special Thrill" really means.
Thanks Troy and all the Pro Staff Boaters from Fun & Sun. Your event may not have been the biggest, but your hearts truly were.
Ian was a young man who participated in our program for several years at the Mistletoe Ranch and last year's Eagle Mountain Top Gun event. After an ongoing battle with cancer, Ian left us this past April 3, 2006. He will never be forgotten.
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