ATHENS-Fishermen Gary Thacker and Carter Woodall caught 17.32 pounds of bass to win $2,000 and custom-made rods at Saturday’s City of Athens Relay for Life Bass Fishing Tournament held at Ingalls Harbor in Decatur.
The rods, donated by Grassy Custom Rods & Tackle, included trim in the Relay for Life color purple, as well as pink, and had the tournament’s phrase “fish for a cure.”
Sam Bennett won the Big Fish Pot and $480 with a bass that weighed 5.71 pounds.
“Looking at the National Weather Service, it recorded winds between 10 to 14 mph with some gusts as much as 25 mph,” Team Captain Holly Hollman said. “I know along the Tennessee River, we never felt the wind stop blowing, and some boaters left early, but many stuck it out.”
Thanks to the fishermen who supported the event and sponsors, including major sponsors like Athens Gas, Athens Electric and Wesco, the fishing fundraiser netted about $8,000 for the American Cancer Society.
Athens Police Chief Floyd Johnson led prayer before the fishermen took off at safelight. He prayed not only for the fishermen’s safety, but those impacted by cancer. The City of Athens and Athens Utilities volunteers had many on their minds as he prayed, including the late Kathy Cothren who recently died from colon cancer. She was a long-time volunteer at the fishing tournament.
“One of today’s volunteers lost her dad to cancer this year,” Hollman said. “Our city lost Councilman Frank Travis to cancer, and we lost Kathy who beat breast cancer but died from colon cancer. Those we love who have been impacted by cancer motivate us to get up at 3 a.m. on a Saturday morning and bundle up against the wind and cold because we know we are making a difference. Thank to advances in treatments and detection, one of our volunteers who helped us at the tournament is a two-time breast cancer survivor.”
The Top 10 Teams who helped “fish for a cure” Saturday were:
- Gary Thacker and Carter Woodall – 17.32 pounds
- Jeremy Tomlin and John Welborn – 17.09 pounds
- Chris Webb and Larry Melvin – 15.88 pounds
- Kade Mchalffey and Will Worthey – 15.74 pounds
- Cody Lewter and Shelby Davis – 15.09 pounds
- Connor Ezell and Sam Bennett – 14.75 pounds
- Jonathan Nixon and Cole Self – 14.41 pounds
- Chad Hall and Ryan Hall – 13.59 pounds
- Jody Schrimsher and Daniel Myers – 13.42 pounds
- Joe Discerni – 13.31 pounds
