Capt. Wayne Moore
Fishing with Coulter Hnatt
Thursday, June 14th was an incredible day here on Lake Oconee. Coulter landed 20 hybrids before 9:30 am. He caught them on popping corks and down-lined live shad. You all may be wondering, who is Coulter? Well, I can tell you that he is a delightful young man and one heck of a fisherman.
Coulter is also a cancer survivor! He is 10 years old and has been a trooper for the past 6 years. Coulter’s Mom and Dad (and over 33,000 followers) have a Facebook page dedicated to his journey: (https://www.facebook.com/prayforcoulter/)
Coulter has, “spent most of his life fighting cancer and likely does not grasp the impact he has made in both cancer research and the faith of others. He is blazing a trail as ‘Patient Number 1’ on a clinical trial which is now treating more than 50 other children.” These clinical trials are done at Children’s Hospital of Georgia – (part of the Augusta University Health System.)
Now, back to the fishing trip and how I got lucky enough to go with Coulter and his dad Mike. There was a fishing derby here initiated by local guide, Doug Nelms. At the end of the derby there was a gathering of participants and local guides. Eric Sanders and Captain Stan Elrod of our DNR came to speak about the Outdoor Dream Foundation: (http://outdoordream.org). They grant outdoor adventures to children who have been diagnosed with a serious illness.
When I learned that they were looking for local guides to take a child out, I thought I would be the first on board. Actually, I was second, as local guide Jimmy Holmes already knew the folks at the DNR who got this moving. A few days later I got a call from Jimmy, and we waited to hear about a date.
The plan was for Jimmy to have a young man and his father on his boa,t and I would take another young man on mine. Unfortunately, the young man scheduled for my boat was not able to make the trip. Jimmy invited me to just join on his boat, and I am so glad he did!
We met Coulter and his dad, Mike, around 7:00 AM at the boat ramp near the dam. Georgia Power was pumping water, and when we got to the point Jimmy wanted, he set the spot lock on the trolling motor and pandemonium broke out! Fish were busting shad on the surface all around us. Jimmy and I set out the down-lines and Mike threw the popping cork. Coulter started reeling in one fish after another; like I said, he is a heck of a fisherman! It was so busy that I think Jimmy was glad he had another guide on board to help. And me, I was blessed to be able to join.
So does this sound exciting to you? Maybe you are wondering what you can do to help Coulter or someone else have a similar experience? Well, my first suggestion is to go to Coulter’s Facebook page then like / follow him (https://www.facebook.com/prayforcoulter/).
You could also check out the Outdoor Dream Foundation: (http://outdoordream.org) and donate.
Finally, you could and should take a child fishing with you. If you listen to ‘O’Neill Outside Radio, he encourages this on every show. For a young man like Coulter, it’s an opportunity to forget about doctors’ appointments and just enjoy some time on the water.
I’ll close with words from the beloved Lefty Kreh, “It’s the fishing and company that matters.” For me, there was no better company than Coulter, Mike, and Jimmy!
Thanks guys!