On Tuesday, March 12th, Captain Greg of Learn 2 Fish With Us hosted two Fishing Basics seminars for the fourth graders of Omro Elementary.  Fourth graders learned about the equipment and skills needed to begin fishing through our interactive seminar!!  Students learned; safety while fishing, spin cast and spinning fishing combos, how to cast safely and accurately, simple fishing presentations, how to tie the Clinch and Palomar knot, fish identification, live and artificial bait, aquatic invasive species and so much more.  After the seminar students received a Future Pro shirt and fishing educational book due to all our great sponsors and donors!!  The students were excited as you can see in the pictures!!!

This was the third year Learn 2 Fish With Us has hosted fishing seminars at Omro Elementary.  Dave, the principle along with the teachers of Omro Elementary were so happy to have us back as they feel we have a fun and educational program.

Captain Greg, Certified Angler Educator of Learn 2 Fish With Us and NPAA member #138 along with Karen Karch NPAA member #121 hosted two seminars during the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Sport Show, and did they pack the seminar room!!

The first seminar, ‘Fishing Basics’, was held on Saturday, March 9^th.  ‘Fishing Basics’ educated youth, families and adults to all the skills and equipment needed to begin fishing.  Topics include; safety while fishing, spin cast and spinning fishing combos, casting safely and accurately, basic fishing presentations, knots, fish identification, parts of a fish, live and artificial bait and aquatic invasive species and so much more.  

The second seminar, ‘Beyond The Basics’ was held on Sunday, March 10^th to another full house!!  ‘Beyond The Basics’ seminar is built upon the ‘Fishing Basic’ skills and equipment and educates attendees on: bait caster and line counter reels, jigs and plastics, crankbaits, crawler harnesses, jigging and trolling presentations, how a graph works, maps, filleting a fish and cooking fish.

Thanks to the Future Angler Foundation and Learn 2 Fish With Us sponsors, youth attending the seminars received many of these great fishing items from a Shakespeare fishing combo, mini tackle box with tackle, NPAA Future Pro Shirt, along with a fishing educational book.

On Friday, March 8^th, Xavier kindergarteners learned who Walter The Wily Walleye was!!  Captain Greg of Learn 2 Fish With Us read ‘Walter the Wily Walleye’ from Bob Allen Books to the kindergartners.  Kindergarteners learned where Walter likes to swim and hide, what bait he likes, how he likes to be in school, how he can be sneaky and his special eyes and how they help him see at night!!  Walter also noted, that grownups may catch walleye but they like when kids catch them!!  Walter likes being in pictures but also like to be released back into the lake so he can get bigger!!  Captain Greg brought his monster walleye he caught, which was thirty-three and quarter inches and just over thirteen pounds and were the kindergarteners were impressed.  Students learn about the different parts of a walleye.  Students also learned how important it is to wear a life jacket along with the different baits Captain Greg uses to catch walleye.  Captain Greg and the kindergarteners had such a fun time!!  Students were so excited when they found out each of them was getting a fishing shirt!!

Captain Greg and Karen Karch of Learn 2 Fish With Us and the National Professional Anglers Association attended the Wisconsin Fishing Expo where they hosted Fishing Basics and Beyond the Basics seminars during the Fishing Show.  Wisconsin Fishing Expo was held at the Alliant Energy Center located in Madison. 

Learn 2 Fish With Us provided three total seminars during the Wisconsin Fishing Expo!  Captain Greg kicked off with Fishing Basics at 10 AM on Saturday, February 24th followed by Beyond the Basics at 2 PM.   Another round of Fishing Basics at Noon on February 25th rounded out the event for the Learn 2 Fish with Us Crew. 

In Fishing Basics, across the two sessions, nearly four hundred people attended where they learned the skills and equipment needed to begin fishing.  Youth attending the seminars received one of the following; spin cast fishing combo or a NPAA Future Pro Shirt thanks to the National Professional Anglers Association and Future Angler Foundation.

The Beyond The Basics seminar brought in nearly two hundred people where they built thier skills on advanced tactics like jigging, trolling, cleaning fish, electronics and so much more!! Youth attending this seminar received a mini tackle box with tackle.  All attendants were put into a drawing for one of these great prizes: Pflueger spinning fishing combo, ABU Garcia bait caster fishing combo and Off Shore Tackle Company boards that to Learn 2 Fish With Us sponsors

Greg would like thank his and Learn 2 Fish With Us sponsor’s which include: National Professional Anglers Association, Shakespeare, Mercury Marine, Berkley, Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, The Boat Doc, Lake Poygan Sportsman’s Club, Dave’s Musky Club, Off Shore Tackle Company, Northland Tackle, TTI Blakemore Fishing Group,  WowGee, Future Angler Foundation, Pioneer Marina and WalleyeX lures.

This past Wednesday, Captain Greg hosted his Icing Panfish On Local Lakes for the Yahara Fishing Club.  So many of the members said they learned so much from electronics to fishing equipment Captain Greg uses and why.  Yahara Fishing Club presented Learn 2 Fish With Us with a five hundred dollar grant to be used to support fishing clinics that Learn 2 Fish With Us will host around the Madison, Wisconsin area.

Captain Greg of Learn 2 Fish With Us and Jehan Brown (teacher) kicked off Oshkosh’s South Park Middle School Fishing Club which will host four session over the next three months.  The first session of the Fishing Club attendee’s learn about safety while fishing, spin cast and spinning fishing combos, how to cast safely and accurately along with live and artificial bait.  At the end of club meeting youth learned they would receive a NPAA Future Pro shirt, Off Shore Tackle hat and line cutters and fishing education book thanks to Learn 2 Fish With Us and our sponsors and donors.  The next session Fishing Club members will learn the different know and how to tie them along with identifying fish.  They will also learn where they can catch the fish locally and bait to use.  In the third session, Learn 2 Fish With Us will distribute a new spin cast or spinning combo to each member where they will rig the fishing combo with a bobber, hook and sinker.   The club member will use their newly rigged fishing combo to go fishing in the fourth session and will keep their fishing combo to fish over the summer.

Yes, Learn 2 Fish With Us educated over thirty million anglers to fishing content through Facebook and their website.  What an accomplishment!!  In 2018, Learn 2 Fish With Us set up a Facebook page and started posting regularly.  Slowly they grew their social media presence by posting about their in-person fishing clinics.  Two years ago, Captain Greg started building a fishing educational video library in You Tube, which consisted of open water and ice fishing content.  Content included; fishing for different species, reviewing fishing gear, tips for fishing and even preparing fish videos.  Have you ever wondered how to make your own tartar sauce?  Well, Learn 2 Fish With Us even has a video for that.  Sometimes the memes even hit it out of the park.

On an average, Captain Greg, posts three to four times a week on Facebook and their website, which is www.Learn2FishWithUs.com .  In 2022 Learn 2 Fish With Us averaged a reach of three million people for the year, so they were excited with their results in 2023.  Captain Greg said ‘they plan on continuing to build new fishing educational content in 2024 and hopefully by 2025 to have over two hundred educational videos’.  Learn 2 Fish With Us so looks forward to building its following!!

Greg would like thank his and Learn 2 Fish With Us sponsor’s which include: National Professional Anglers Association, Shakespeare, Mercury Marine, Berkley, Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, The Boat Doc, Lake Poygan Sportsman’s Club, Dave’s Musky Club, Off Shore Tackle Company, Northland Tackle, TTI Blakemore Fishing Group, Maui Jim, WowGee, Future Angler Foundation and Pioneer Marina.

Friday Captain Greg was with the Kiel High School Fishing Team where he presented his Icing Panfish On The Bago And Area Lakes seminar. Ted Bonde said his team learned so much from the seminar and would like me to start hosting this seminar with other WIFA High School Fishing teams in December

Thank you Art Dumke for awarding us a grant from the CC2DAY Fund of the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation. This grant will be used to host our 2024 Fishing Clinics across the Oshkosh and Fox Valley. Together we will make a difference in our communities!!
#makingadiffernce #futureanglers