August-September 2025

We had so much fun on the river (and lakes) in the back half of summer. We started working with 5 new young men, and Mended’s first young woman!!! We are thrilled about the opportunities we have to build relationships with these extraordinary young people, walk through the doors the Lord is opening, and provide wonderful experiences that bless their journeys.

This is a real fish that this real young man really caught with a real rod and real reel. Really!!!

Haiden’s first trip was a short one on Lake Brandt that was mostly a dud, all things considered, but he ground it out and was rewarded handsomely on his second outing which was nothing short of epic. After trying the fly rod most of the morning with nothing showing interest we switched to spinning gear and Haiden tossed a nonchalant cast over into the middle of the river, in the opposite direction from where Patrick directed. We assumed Haiden was hung up, the rod came apart, the line was wrapped around the tip of the rod, but then it started moving- only the way it would if something alive were on the other end. Something alive and HUGE! Somehow, Patrick (by the grace of the Lord) expertly navigated all the obstacles and landed this smallmouth of a lifetime. Over 23 inches and over 6 pounds! Needless to say Haiden is ready to fish any time, any place now.

First time fishing. First cast. First fish.

Zay walked confidently to the end of the dock.

‘Have you ever fished before?’, I asked.

‘Nope’, Zay said, then proceeded to throw out an outstanding first cast of his life, set the hook, and reel it in all on his own. He was so proud and excited. He is going on a river trip in October and can’t wait!

A couple of weeks later I took two more new Mended students, Khiri and Khamani, out on the pond. They had watched uncles or friends fish but were never really allowed to do it themselves. Both caught the first fish of their lives and were thrilled. My favorite was Khiri who reeled in a couple that I had hooked and was happy to do so, but when he caught one that he casted he was over the moon excited. That is what good mentorship looks like.

The pond sits at the bottom of a little hill and Khiri also had endless fun just running up and down the grassy slope. Do you remember being a kid, flying over grassy hillsides? What a wonderful gift to give.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support. We are thrilled to be working with these young people and all that the Lord has in store for us and them. We have some river trips planned for the fall and are going to take some kids wading on a private stream as well. We have been working to build some ‘smaller’ more accessible programming in addition to the top-notch river experiences and it has been such a blessing to do so. We are building partnerships with folks like the Big Brother Big Sister program to expand our programming and mend more lives through impactful fishing adventures!