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Cliff Crochet raised more than $ 80,000 for stocking efforts at two fisheries in his home state of Louisiana . cliff crochet : ‘ every fish matters ’
Working with the MLFAA in 2022 , BPT pro Cliff Crochet hosted the first Every Fish Matters banquet to raise money for stocking F1 largemouth ( first-generation offspring of Florida and Northern bass ) into Lake Verret and the Atchafalaya Basin in his home state of Louisiana . The event proved to be an extraordinary success , raising $ 80,000 in one night .
This spring , 65,000 F1 largemouth were stocked during two community events , the first during a local fishing tournament and the second at Veterans Park , with the entire community invited . Crochet followed up with a second fundraiser this summer , raising money for more stocking in 2024 plus starting a hurricane relief fund for future emergency use .
VANDAM foundation at redcrest
At REDCREST 2022 on Grand Lake and 2023 on Lake Norman , the Kevin VanDam Foundation made $ 5,000 donations to groups supporting F1 largemouth stocking programs at the host fisheries .
The first went to the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Foundation . This donation was matched and multiplied several times before REDCREST ended . The program resulted in 93,000
2- to 3-inch F1 largemouth bass being stocked in June 2022 , with plans to maintain this stocking schedule for the next 10 years .
The 2023 donation went to a nonprofit called NCF1 , whose mission is to build stocking programs throughout North Carolina . The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission pledged to match the donation three-to-one . It will provide 40,000 F1 fingerlings to be stocked in Norman , Lake Gaston and Jordan Lake . The foundation plans to
The Kevin VanDam Foundation ’ s REDCREST donations have translated into tens of thousands of fingerling stocks . make similar donations in Alabama in 2024 and 2025 .
As genetics analysis continues to improve our understanding of the potential for largemouth to grow to an advanced size , the MLF FMD will continue to build programs around anglers and fisheries that can benefit from stocking . Ultimately , the most important role of stocking will always be building community and youth engagement , which will benefit more than just today ’ s anglers .
PHOTO BY PHOENIX MOORE
12 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2023