Third annual International Family Fishing Derby fun for all

The Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club hosted the post’s third annual International Family Fishing Derby at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth on Sept. 9, 2023. The event was specifically intended for the international students and their families who are part of the Command and General Staff College Classes of 2024.

Maj. JJ Jiang, Taiwanese army officer enrolled in the Command and General Staff Officers Course Class of 2024, gets a laugh at the “sea monster” he reeled in during the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

Once again, volunteers from Fishing’s Future, a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching the skills and benefits of recreational angling, the Leavenworth Bass Club and the Fort Leavenworth Rod and Gun club helped run the derby. The CGSC Foundation and KAMO Adventures sponsored the derby with the fishing bait and concessions.

“We’re grateful for the opportunity to support something like this,” said Lora Morgan, interim president/CEO of the CGSC Foundation. “Fishing as a recreational activity is a truly American pastime and represents a great piece of Americana we can share with our international students and their families.”

Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, has hosted many fishing derbies before, but said this one for the international families that are at Fort Leavenworth is scored differently.

“Two inches or 10 inches long doesn’t matter, it’s all about the number of fish you catch,” he said.

According to Noell, there were 54 registered participants representing 19 countries in this year’s derby. In addition to Fishing’s Future members providing stations on fish identification, tying knots and a kid’s casting area, Noell said 39 Rod & Gun Club volunteers provided 162 hours of support. He also said the derby resulted in culling about 143 bluegill/bream which is a good thing since they are some of the overpopulated species that have a negative impact on the lake.

Kevin Mouawah, son of Maj. George Mouawah from Lebanon, shows off his catch during the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

Cheers and laughter were the spirit of the day on the dock and around the banks of the lake as families, almost all fishing for the first time, tried their luck with casting and eventually reeling in their catch. Volunteers from the Fort Leavenworth Rod and Gun Club and Fishing’s Future, outfitted in orange hats, were assisting with baiting hooks for those too squeamish to handle the worms and more importantly, record and measure a catch. They also helped with snags and other problems fishermen usually face and cheered everyone on.

At the end of the fishing period Noell gathered up all the participants and presented awards in four divisions: male youth, female youth and male and female adult. Winners were determined by number of fish caught, so the rule of the day was to haul in as many as possible, no matter the size. Award winners received a new rod and reel combination. The winners were:

Male Youth division: Simon Van Dyke, son of SAMS international military student Maj. Ian Van Dyke from Canada.

Female Youth division: Jenny Mouawad, daughter of CGSOC international military student Maj. George Mouawad from Lebanon.

Female Adult division: Julia Van Dyke, wife of SAMS Class of 2024 international military student Maj. Ian Van Dyke from Canada.

Male Adult division: Maj. Syergyei Bat-Erdene, Command and General Staff Officers Course Class of 2024 international military student from Mongolia.

At the conclusion Noell thanked all the participants, volunteers and sponsors.

Capt. Klemen Bancic, CGSOC international military student from Slovenia, attended the derby with his wife and two daughters. –– “Thank you for doing a family event such as this,” he said to a volunteer as his wife hauled in yet another fish and his daughters casted furiously from the bank beside him.

That’s about the best feedback on the day anyone could ask for.

View more photos and photos of the winners on the CGSC Foundation Flickr site

Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, presents Julia Van Dyke, wife of SAMS Class of 2024 international military student Maj. Ian Van Dyke from Canada, with a rod and reel combination for winning the Female Adult division at the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, presents Maj. Syergyei Bat-Erdene, Command and General Staff Officers Course Class of 2024 international military student from Mongolia, with a rod and reel combination for winning the Male Adult division at the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, presents Simon Van Dyke, son of SAMS Class of 2024 international military student Maj. Ian Van Dyke from Canada, with a rod and reel combination for winning the Male Youth division at the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, presents Jenny Mouawad, daughter of Command and General Staff Officers Course Class of 2024 international military student Maj. George Mouawad from Lebanon., with a rod and reel combination for winning the Adult Female division at the International Family Fishing Derby Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth.

From left, Larry Noell, president of the Fort Leavenworth Rod & Gun Club, Lora Morgan, interim president/CEO of the CGSC Foundation, and Bill Horvath, an instructor with Fishing’s Future, gather for a photo opportunity as the third annual International Family Fishing Derby rages on in the background Sept. 9, 2023, at Merritt Lake on Fort Leavenworth. Noell and his club hosted the event and the CGSC Foundation and KAMO Adventures sponsored the fishing bait and concessions.