Monday April 8th, sixteen men and women of the armed services were treated to a day of fishing in Bay St Louis, MS. The event was held at Bay Marina, and was a perfect venue to host such a great cause. The participants were from a variety of military backgrounds. Some of the men and women were injured serving their country, others were veterans, while several were on leave, awaiting deployment.
Four local charter captains, with Shore Thing Fishing Charters, donated their services and boats for the day, as a way of saying Thank You. Local fishing organization, Southern Anglers of Mississippi(SAMS Club) was nice enough to donate all the food, equipment and cooking crew to prepare a feast, that could literally âfeed an Armyâ. The event was created was by Jeanne âGrannyâ Greaser.
She is a proud representative for Soldiers Angels and very active in helping the troops. Granny has been organizing outings, including fishing excursions for soldiers for many years and her dedication to the cause is with out measure. With four full boats of soldiers, the guides took the excited crews out in to the Mississippi Sound for a great day on the water. Everyone involved caught fish: speckled trout, white trout, red fish, black drum, sheepshead, and flounder.
The smiles, high fives and hugs back at the dock were proof that it was major success. While the guides cleaned the fish, the soldiers were treated to a feast compliments of the SAMS Club. Head cook Wally Thurmond had a team of over a dozen helpers prepare fresh fried fish, jambalaya, gumbo with all the fixings and even dessert! The Biloxi VA Hospital joined the festivities, bringing injured veterans to partake in the meal. Simply put, a great day for a great cause.