CGSC Foundation sponsors sixth annual International Family Fishing Derby - Command and General Staff College Foundation, Inc.

Families line the docks and the banks of Fort Leavenworth's Merritt Lake during the sixth annual International Family Fishing Derby on Sept. 19, 2026.

The Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club and the CGSC Foundation and Alumni Association hosted the sixth annual International Family Fishing Derby at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth on Sept. 19, 2026. The Foundation sponsors this annual event for the international military students (IMS) and their families who are attending the Command and General Staff College.

Dominik Janecek, 5, son of CGSOC international military student Maj. Jan Janecek, left, shows off his catch during the International Family Fishing Derby on Sept. 19, 2026, at Fort Leavenworth's Merritt Lake. — Dominik Janecek, 5, son of CGSOC international military student Maj. Jan Janecek, left, shows off his catch during the International Family Fishing Derby on Sept. 19, 2026, at Fort Leavenworth’s Merritt Lake.

Volunteers from Fishing’s Future, a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching the skills and benefits of recreational angling, and the Leavenworth Bass Club both assisted the Fort Leavenworth Rod and Gun club in running the derby. The CGSC Foundation sponsored the derby with the fishing bait, concessions and prizes.

“Introducing these international military students and their families to a great American pastime like fishing is a great way to help welcome them to our country,” said Lora Morgan, president/CEO of the CGSC Foundation and Alumni Association. “It’ll never get old seeing how the kids, and sometimes the parents too, react when they catch their first fish. It’s always a good day and we thank the Rod and Gun Club for helping make it happen.”

Sixty IMS and their family members from 20 countries participated in the derby. Throughout the morning volunteers from Fishing’s Future taught classes on how to handle the rod and reel combos and how to cast, while volunteers from the Rod and Gun Club and the Leavenworth Bass Club moved around the shore, recording each catch, assisting with snags, helping bait hooks and releasing the fish back into the lake if the anglers were too uneasy about touching them.

Maj. Charles Allegre, CGSOC international military student from France, helps his daughter Gabrielle, 4, pose for a photo with her first fish during the sixth annual International Family Fishing Derby on Sept. 19, 2026.

At the end of the fishing period Morgan, along with Tad Slatter, the fishing coordinator from the Fort Leavenworth Rod and Gun Club, thanked all the participants and volunteers and then presented awards. The awards were for the most fish caught in four divisions: male youth, female youth and male and female adult. Winners received a new rod and reel combination. The winners were (photos below):

Female Adult division: Shafiga Kalbizada, wife of Command and General Staff Officer Course (CGSOC) international military student Capt. Eltaj Kalbizada from Azerbaijan

Male Adult division: Maj. Anthares Salindeho, CGSOC international military student from Indonesia

Female Youth division: Maram Kamel, 7, daughter of CGSOC international military student Maj. Saleh Kamel from Egypt

Male Youth division: Mohamed Kamel, 13, son of CGSOC international military student Maj. Saleh Kamel from Egypt

View more photos on the CGSC Foundation Flickr site