SRTU Members,
DREAM VACATION GIVEAWAY II (check the website...)
After great success last year, we decided to do our “Dream Vacation”
Giveaway again this year. Forest Lake Travel was kind enough to donate a companion airline ticket to us again and we were able to
procure the cabin in
LOTS OF GREAT THINGS AHEAD IN 'O8
IMPORTANT:
2008 has been a very exciting year for SRTU. As many of you know we had to move our monthly meeting place to the Green Quad Learning center on USC’s Campus. I have to admit that many of us had the pregame jitters before that first meeting on whether or not anyone would show up, but you did. I am always amazed at the quality and dedication of our members and that first Monday night was a perfect example. We have also begun to see a lot of new faces at our meeting which is very exciting. I have received countless e-mails from first time visitors that have been amazed at what our organization has done as well as the fellowship they received. I know that no one ever leaves one of our events feeling like a stranger. Another great part of that evening was the $5000 donation to Partners for Trout for the stream restoration of the Middle Saluda River. We believed that this was the perfect opportunity to support a conservation effort in our own state and I am proud to say that our donation was the largest of its kind. Take a look, in case you missed it, at Susan Guynn's presentation in this issue. Congratulations are definitely in order for all the members who made this possible both financially and through volunteer hours.
Mike Waddell and Malcom Leaphart continue to volunteer countless hours of their time towards the FERC relicensing program. If you were at our last meeting they gave an excellent presentation. With things finally winding down, Mike and Malcolm have done a wonderful job representing the issues of anglers and river- goers safety in general. I have also heard rumors that, if managed right, the Saluda River has the possibility of becoming a reproductive stream for trout. Keep your fingers crossed. Another exciting event at our last meeting was to introduce our nominee for the Rivercourse camp this Summer. Will Unthank was selected to represent SRTU because of his passion for fly fishing and impeccable character. I believe Will first came in touch with SRTU during our intro to fly fishing class a year ago and apparently he has hit the ground running after that. Will is an excellent young man and I hope that he will continue to become involved in Fly Fishing and SRTU for it is people like him that will be the future of Trout Unlimited. Will's winning essay has been reprinted in this issue.
Coming up soon on your calendars, SRTU will be setting up a table at the Sportman’s Classic at the end of March. We still need volunteers to man the table Friday- Saturday. If you think you might be able to help out, please contact me or even if you are at the Classic be sure to stop by. We would love to see you out there.
And finally the big ticket item, The officialSRTU BANQUET will be held Saturday April 19th at the Vista room near the Blue Marlin. This year we decided to make the event more of a celebration of our successes and give everyone a chance to unwind and enjoy each other's company. We will be having some of Blue Marlin’s famous shrimp and grits among other things, a full cash bar and there’s even been mention of a little blue grass music. But don’t worry, we will still have plenty of great prizes and trips and will also draw for the winner of our Dream Vacation giveaway. Keep an eye out for your invite in the mail and we hope that with our reduced ticket prices you, your family and your friends will be able to join us. If you would like more information you can visit us on the web or, as always, feel free to contect me. I hope to see all of you soon.
Luke