Five high schoolers headed off to college in the fall will each be taking $3,000 in scholarship money with them after they were selected as winners of The Ike Foundation Fishing Scholarship Awards.
Rory Franks (Ohio), Morgan Miracle (Kentucky), Eric Schuhrer III (New Jersey), Eric Obenaus (California) and Morgan Krell (New York) all carry grade point averages of 3.3 or better, are avid anglers or contribute to outdoor conservation, as is required for scholarship consideration.
Foundation trustees conducted a blind review of more than 100 applications. High school seniors submitted essays about the lessons they've learned from their fishing experiences, along with references, grades, and information about their extracurricular activities. Trustees scored submission using a pre-defined point system.
In addition to the announcement of the scholarship award winners, The Ike Foundation announced several upcoming events related to its mission to get more kids fishing and in the outdoors, especially youth in areas where those activities are not readily available.
The events are:
> A free kid’s fishing tournament, Ike’s Hook'em Early Kids Fishing Event, Saturday, May 12th at Haddon Lake Park, N.J. More than 200 children, aged 15 and under, along with their parent/chaperones are registered to compete for prizes based on the total length of the fish they catch. Fishing slots filled quickly, and registration closed early. All ages will enjoy fishing, food, games, coloring, and a reading of Amir’s Big Catch by the author Sheila Jones.
> The third annual Ike’s Celebrity Benefit Dinner, Friday, July 20 from 6:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., on the Battleship New Jersey on the Camden Waterfront Harbor, Camden, N.J. Many of the professional bass anglers and celebrities taking part in the next day’s event attend the dinner and talk with guests. An auction of donated items including fishing products, jewelry, sports memorabilia and more, takes place during the evening. Tickets, which cover food and drink, are still available.
> The third annual Ike’s Celebrity Pro-Am Tournament, Saturday, July 21, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Camden Waterfront in Camden, N.J. Amateur anglers pay an entry fee to fish with a pro, fish from their own boats, or fish from a kayak to compete for prizes. The kayak division is a Hobie Fishing Worlds Qualifying Event 8. The winner of the boat division will receive a new Bass Cat boat, and the winner of the kayak division will win a competitor’s spot and paid expenses to the 2019 Hobie Worlds in Australia.
> The Ike’s Free Family Fun Fest will also take place on Saturday, July 21 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Wiggins Park on the Camden Waterfront. This event is free and includes a ‘Dry Land’ High School Fishing Challenge, games and prizes a ‘color your own bait’ station, live music, delicious food and a Yards Beer Garden. All attendees are welcome to stay for the fishing tournament weigh-in.
Previous Ike’s Celebrity Pro-Am Tournaments have been met with great reception from the community and bass fishing industries. Thanks to the success of past tournaments, the foundation has been able to support other kid’s fishing programs by providing fishing equipment to approximately 30 youth community organizations across the country.
