A short while back in the late afternoon while I was re-spooling one of my
fishing reels my wife had yelled down to me in the cellar and said that I
had a phone call. Right in the middle of my winding I had asked her who was
on the phone to which she responded, "I think you'd better get this call."
So I stopped what I was doing and picked up the phone and said hello. The
voice on the other end of the phone introduced herself as Cheryl from the
"Make A Wish Foundation," she then proceeded to ask me if I was the Bass
Coach?, to which I responded yes!... She then asked if I was the person
that had the bass fishing school and a bass charter service located up in
the Lake Champlain region in upstate New York, to which I again said yes!...
I was thinking to myself (kind of dumbfounded) and was wondering why she
would be calling me, so I asked what I could do for her. Cheryl then told
me that a 17 year old boy by the name of Jared who presently resides in
Michigan had made a wish. Now, I had heard of the Make-A-Wish-Foundation in
the past and even donated to it's foundation but I wasn't sure how the
foundation really functioned, I just knew that they had helped people with
terminal illnesses make their wishes come true, but when Cheryl had told me
that Jared specifically requested that he wanted to meet me in person, and
especially that he wanted me personally to teach him how to fish for bass I
was speechless. I then thought to myself for a moment wow!, what an honor,
Cheryl said that this young man (17 years young) had been diagnosed with a
terminal illness called "Leukemia", and of anywhere in the whole world he
could have choose to visit, or of anybody that he could have wanted to meet
or see, he just wanted to meet me personally and to have me teach him how to
fish for bass. I never in my wildest dreams expected an honor such as this
one.
After the Make-A-Wish Foundation and I had set up a time slot that was open
on my calendar and scheduled Jared and his father to attend my 3-Day
"On-Water" Bass Fishing School, much to my surprise, not only was Jared and
his father coming to the Lake Champlain area, but the Make-A-Wish Foundation
made it possible for Jared's whole family to come with along with them and
visit the Lake Champlain, NY area during the period when the school would be
scheduled. The more I was learning about this foundation the more impressed
I got in finding out what they were doing for the unfortunate people
suffering from all the many different terminal illnesses. This Make-A-Wish
Foundation is truly great! All of my life I have donated to charities of
different natures but after dealing with this foundation I feel that it's a
true "second-to-none" organization that really supports its cause. Anyway,
while helping with lodging accommodations I had suggested to Cheryl that a
Bed & Breakfast establishment would be a great idea for Jared and his family
to stay at because they would have the old "Home-Town" hospitality that
would make their stay more comfortable, and she agreed. When the
reservations were made, the lodging was reserved at the Crown Point Bed and
Breakfast which was only a minute from Lake Champlain and about 10 minutes
from Lake George (which being the two lakes that I teach on), and just
minutes away from Lake Placid (NY), Burlington, VT., Rutland, VT., and Fort
Ticonderoga which is located in the Town of Ticonderoga, NY. This gave
Jared's family a chance to visit the many different areas here in the
famous Adirondak Mountains as well as a chance for Jared and his father to
enjoy the different places after the finish of each "On-water" school day.
When the first day of the school started, I picked up Jared and his father
(Ron) at the bed and breakfast where they were staying. After meeting them
for the first time, the first impression I got from Jared was a good one.
He was a tall, slim, good looking boy with a great personality. As the
three days had so quickly moved on, while spending time with Jared and his
father I couldn't help but from getting attached to them. We had so much
fun fishing together especially while catching several bass each day that we
had spent on the water. Just being able to teach them how to use so many
different baits that they'd never used before and consistently catching bass
with them, we all had a great time. Jared and Ron didn't realize that
there were different types of baits that caught mostly big bass while other
types of baits caught smaller ones (especially in numbers.) Jared used to
fish with his grandfather off and on through the years while growing up, but
now his father had a chance to learn not only how to catch bass, but how to
spend more quality time with his son fishing together as a family should.
During these three days, Jared and his father not only learned how to fish
for bass, but they learned how to enjoy each other just spending time doing
something they now had in common.
When the last day approached I was starting to feel a deep kind of sorrow
for Jared because I knew that I probably wouldn't have a chance to see him
again. The little time that I had spent with Jared, I found him to be an
amazing seventeen year old boy with a positive attitude in just about
everything that he talked about. I don't know if most of us wouldn't just
pity ourselves if we were in Jared's situation or not, but I do know now
what strength, love, caring, and having friends and family is all about. I
know the Lord has reasons for everything that he does, and I'm sure that he
had a reason for Jared's condition, but, I would gladly trade places with
him if I could. I just want Jared and his father to know that I'll always
hold a place in my heart for them and that my prayers will be with them
always.
Lastly, I want to thank the Make-A-Wish Foundation once again for all that
they have done for Jared and his family. It's organizations like this one
that truly make wishes come true! Please, help in supporting this
foundation because they are truly for real.
Until next time... Take care & God Bless!... "The Bass Coach"..Roger Lee
brown
www.capital.net/~rlbrown and www.fishing-boating.com/basscoach or you can
email me at: rlbrown@capital.net or call me at (518) 597-4240
