Elochoman Marina hosts annual Warriors and Widows salmon derby

Not surprisingly, given the fact that salmon season is in full swing, the Elochoman Marina was buzzing with activity the evening of Thursday, August 29, as folks sought to put a fresh salmon on the barbeque or in the freezer. But there was certainly more going on than just salmon fishing, at least for a few hours, as military men and women along with Gold Star families gathered at the marina pavilion for the 10th Annual Warriors and Widows Salmon Derby. A Gold Star family, for those unfamiliar with the term, is one that has experienced the loss of an immediate family member who died as a result of active-duty military service.

The brainchild of the late Bud Mickelsen, the derby, designed to honor veterans, law enforcement personnel, and first responders, was first held in 2015. Except for a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic the derby has been a tremendous success.

This year, as in years past, my wife, Julia, and I were invited to volunteer for the event, an invitation that we gladly accepted. That said, what follows is a personal account, certainly with the help of many others, of the proceedings.

Thursday evening, August 29

The organizing committee, spearheaded by locals Doug and Jill Martin, Willie Johnson, Nancy McCoy, Cecile Bamer, Rich Casapulla, Shane and Dayle Conrad, Sherrill Bollen, and a long…and I do mean long…list of other folks, had everything ready to go in advance of the attendees’ arrival. I had the pleasure of helping register the military men and women who would be fishing the next morning, which meant I got to personally speak with each and every one of them. As the son of a U.S. Army artillery captain (Vietnam, 1965-66), I couldn’t have felt more honored to shake the hands of these individuals. Beside me, Puget Island’s Laura Borak handled registration for the boat captains who would be ‘leading the assault’ on the river the next morning. A tip of the ‘ole fishing cap to the 25 or 30 folks who volunteered their time, fuel, expertise, and boats in order to accommodate all.

Following a wonderful dinner catered by The Crowded Kitchen Catering Company out of Toledo, Washington, the veterans were assigned to their boats and given a chance to hob-nob with their captains prior to bunking down for the evening. Lodging for the participating veterans was graciously provided by The Hotel Cathlamet and the Elochoman Marina.

And a HUGE ‘Thank You’ to Ms. Ashley Hilton of Puget Island for her wonderful, albeit baby interrupted – Inside joke! – rendition of our National Not surprisingly, given the fact that salmon season is in full swing, the Elochoman Marina was buzzing with activity the evening of Thursday, August 29, as folks sought to put a fresh salmon on the barbeque or in the freezer. But there was certainly more going on than just salmon fishing, at least for a few hours, as military men and women along with Gold Star families gathered at the marina pavilion for the 10th Annual Warriors and Widows Salmon Derby. A Gold Star family, for those unfamiliar with the term, is one that has experienced the loss of an immediate family member who died as a result of active-duty military service.

The brainchild of the late Bud Mickelsen, the derby, designed to honor veterans, law enforcement personnel, and first responders, was first held in 2015. Except for a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic the derby has been a tremendous success.

This year, as in years past, my wife, Julia, and I were invited to volunteer for the event, an invitation that we gladly accepted. That said, what follows is a personal account, certainly with the help of many others, of the proceedings.

Thursday evening, August 29

The organizing committee, spearheaded by locals Doug and Jill Martin, Willie Johnson, Nancy McCoy, Cecile Bamer, Rich Casapulla, Shane and Dayle Conrad, Sherrill Bollen, and a long…and I do mean long…list of other folks, had everything ready to go in advance of the attendees’ arrival. I had the pleasure of helping register the military men and women who would be fishing the next morning, which meant I got to personally speak with each and every one of them. As the son of a U.S. Army artillery captain (Vietnam, 1965-66), I couldn’t have felt more honored to shake the hands of these individuals. Beside me, Puget Island’s Laura Borak handled registration for the boat captains who would be ‘leading the assault’ on the river the next morning. A tip of the ‘ole fishing cap to the 25 or 30 folks who volunteered their time, fuel, expertise, and boats in order to accommodate all.

Following a wonderful dinner catered by The Crowded Kitchen Catering Company out of Toledo, Washington, the veterans were assigned to their boats and given a chance to hob-nob with their captains prior to bunking down for the evening. Lodging for the participating veterans was graciously provided by The Hotel Cathlamet and the Elochoman Marina.

And a HUGE ‘Thank You’ to Ms. Ashley Hilton of Puget Island for her wonderful, albeit baby interrupted – Inside joke! – rendition of our National Anthem. It was, truly, one of the finest I’ve heard presented anywhere.

Friday morning, August 30

The morning was clear. Still. A little fog. Perfect. I wasn’t surprised to find the hive buzzing around the coffee pot and the boxes upon boxes of Heavenly Donuts on the table. Thank you, Ladies, for the maple bars! It was quiet, as captains sat under the glow of multiple LEDs readying gear and warming up four-stroke outboards. Myself, I’d been asked to deckhand for our good friend and former New Jersey pin-setter, Rich Casapulla, and I jumped at the chance to spend the morning with the U.S. Army veteran, expert salmon fisherman, and maker of the finest pumpkin bread on the planet.

Our angler – our veteran – was U.S. Army (retired) field artillery sergeant, Floyd Cunningham. An experienced fisherman with a penchant for ‘everything sturgeon,’ Cunningham provided me with an opportunity to stand and listen to, for lack of a better phrase, what made him tick. Looking back at my notes…

Cunningham grew up in Indianapolis, and lives in Vancouver now with his wife, Celeste, with whom he’s been married 32 years, and their 16-year-old daughter, Skai, both of whom he was obviously insanely proud of. “She’s a straight A student,” he boasted of his daughter. “Plays lineman. Is a second degree black belt in jiu jitsu. She’s my lifeline.” Cunningham’s resume was most interesting. Fifteen year U.S. Army vet. Assistant pastor. Ford assembly line. And finally, a Ford ‘parts place,’ he called it, on Marine Drive in Portland.

He was a lot of things, Cunningham was, I learned as I listened to him and Casapulla talk, including, I’d discover, pretty darn good with a fishing pole, handling one…two…three big kings from start to finish and making it look like something he did every day, all day. Done, our captain said, as we made ready to make the run back upriver to the marina. Casapulla smiled. Cunningham grinned and called Celeste to tell her the news. Bloody and covered in scales, I felt damn good myself.

A long story short

Back at the weigh-in, Cunningham’s biggest, a wide-shouldered 15.56-pound beauty, would land him in second place overall, a pound shy of the leader, veteran Amais Grant, and his 16.84-pound king. Grant was captained by Mr. Mike Nelson, who himself tagged a dandy 10-pound chinook. All 15 of the veterans caught fish, averaging a healthy 12 pounds give or take.

On the first responder/law enforcement side of The Big White Board, it was District 4 firefighter James Smith, captained by Fred Hoven, who walked away with first place with his 14.97 pound chinook.

The event culminated with an excellent lunch catered by Cathlamet’s own, Maria’s Place Mexican Restaurant, the collective rubbing of full bellies, awards, thank yous, and, ultimately, goodbyes.

From the folks who made it happen

The marina pavilion was quiet. The tables and chairs are gone. As Jackson Browne sang, “Let the roadies take the stage. Pack it up and tear it down. They’re the first to come and the last to leave.” But it’s true. It’s quiet. Empty. A low murmur here and there. It’s now I had a chance to stop Dr. Doug Martin and his wife, Jill, committee chair-people for the event, and talk logistics: the behind the scenes, the appreciation, the community support, and how and why events like the Warriors and Widows benefit all those who participate from “roadies” like me, to the men and women who run the skiffs, organize the event, sponsors, friends, families, and all those who support the effort.

Martin has been involved at some level since the derby’s inception in 2015. Today, he holds a seat on the board of what he refers to as the Warriors and Widows Foundation, but he’s quick to point out he’s far from a one-man show. “I’m, I guess you’d say, the operations portion for the group. There’s another person (Willie Johnson) who’s more involved with the fundraising, and we have a group (lead by Nancy McCoy) that handles the food service. We have a good core group,” Martin continued. “It has taken a while to figure out how to make things work smoothly, but we’re getting there. Every year, the event seems to flow a little better. And now that we have the systems down, I think it’s time to reach out and get a bigger group of volunteers. We need to train our successors in order to ensure the organization continues on.”

And so here’s a shameless plug. If you’d like to get involved with this event, which I would strongly suggest you do if you have the time, you’re welcome to contact Dr. Doug Martin via text at 360-751-4497 or by email at dr.doug@live.com. There’s something for everyone to do. “It’s a neat opportunity for people to not only give, but to receive as well,” Martin said. “I see all these captains giving of themselves and their time. I was talking to one of the veterans, and he compared the event to the act of ‘paying it forward.’ He came and experienced this, and now he wants to get involved.”

“Everybody brings something to the table,” said Jill Martin. “I would say this year, we had more volunteers in great positions. It’s nice when you have people available just to go and talk with passerby in the marina who are simply curious as to what’s going on. But yes, there’s a role (here) for everyone. If you can drive a boat. If you know how to fish. If you want to touch a fish,” she laughed. “There’s a role for kids. Kids can help hand out t-shirts. We had a young person drawing the (awards) names. I think it’s great that we have kids involved.”

An event such as this, the Martins reminded me, would be impossible without the help and support of the community, the sponsors, and the almost infinite list of folks who give. And give. And give. “We really couldn’t do any of this without our sponsors,” Doug said. “We have the hotel rooms donated. Big or small, all of our donors are vital, and it all adds up to the whole event. We greatly appreciate whatever can be given. We have folks who provide merchandise. Who provide meals. We have financial donors. And the people who donate their time. No one sponsor or donor is more important than another.”

Martin, and I’m sure the whole of the event organizational staff, the captains, the food service providers, the volunteers, and the community, summarized the concept of the Warriors and Widows Salmon Derby, past, present, and future, with these simple, yet heartfelt words. “A lot of the veterans were coming up to me and thanking me for all this stuff. And it strikes me that we appreciate so much what they’ve done and what they’ve sacrificed for our country. Here they are coming up and thanking us. It’s amazing to me the character of these people. They’re not entitled. They feel very grateful, and what strikes me most is the quality of these people. And that’s what keeps us doing this. They deserve it.”