Presiden's Message December 2008 - "Circles"

by Joe Filer, AFF President 2008

Life is full of circles. Fly fishing has its share of circles. Each means something a little different depending on where you are or which fish you might be chasing. A small dimple might mean a slow rising trout. A bigger circle might be all that is left of a tarpon taking a meal off the surface of the water.

With this article, I complete another circle as the end of a year as your President is coming up fast. Throughout the year, my articles have focused on the natural cycle of events that consistently make up a year in the life of our group. December means our annual Christmas Party that points to the end (or start depending on your perspective) of another year of good friends and good fishing. More on the Christmas Party later on.

I hope you agree that we have had a good year. We have caught some reds, trout, white bass, tarpon, rainbows and even a steelhead…. along with some perch here and there. Based on the pictures I have seen Tuesday nights at the church, some of us had good years. Maybe you had a good year or maybe you are hoping that next year will be better. I always hope next year will be better and so far, so good!

At any rate, I can say that as a club we met a lot of our goals based on the survey responses you provided earlier in the year. Here are a couple of things I am especially proud of:
• We provided casting lessons and overall mentoring to students from two different high schools.
• We supported TPWD efforts to provide fish attractors in local lakes.
• We sponsored a bunch of fishing opportunities where our newer members could learn from the old timers.
• We supported Project Healing Waters along with the GRTU.
• We continued to support expansion of the sport of fly fishing with a general meeting focused on women in the sport.
• Our membership remains vibrant in the face of emerging difficult economic times.

As we close out the year, our organization has reason to be very excited about the upcoming year under the able leadership of Rob Burlingame and his new slate of officers. I am confident that he will continue to support the fundamental ideas that make our organization strong. We can continue to expect a full schedule of fishing outings and educational opportunities that will provide each of us with some new experiences to share or new concepts to learn. Even us “old gray hairs”.

Trout season is upon us. Expect to hear more about rainbows in the Guadalupe at our Tuesday evening sessions at the church. Feel free to do a “rain dance” so that our fish can flourish in a strong river. Come on out to the Christmas Party. We always have a great time. As usual, there will be a great selection of auction items and raffle prizes.

Take advantage of some of the guide trips offered and get out after them. For more info, see the website or the article in this newsletter. Buy lots of raffle tickets. I have a project or two I have been tossing around so you can be sure I will remain an active member of this great group. Thanks for your support over the past year and your ongoing support for the great sport we all enjoy.

See you at the Church or on the River…………

P.S. Wooly Buggers NEVER work on those rainbows. Never! Throw them away or donate them to our fly raffle at one of our upcoming meetings. Worthless!