A new addition to the list of activities available to Wranglers is storytelling. Okay, it’s not storytelling. It is fishing, but that’s the same thing, right?

Thanks to the generosity of our neighbor, Ranger Oilfield Products, the Wranglers can now learn how to fish at the beautiful, stocked, easy-to-access lake on the company’s campus. The class is called Catch and Release, and the first fishing trip occurred in early June.

Colt is already hooked on fishing, all puns intended, even though he has not yet had a chance to take one of the trips. His taste for angling in pursuit of Micropterus salmoides (largemouth bass) now whetted, he proudly announced, “I got a new fishing rod. It is long, six-foot eight, and has a camouflage pattern. I will let others borrow it if they want.”

There will be plenty of opportunities for him and others to use it. According to Nicole Martinez, day program coordinator, “We have had to juggle our schedule a lot because of the rain and muddy conditions, but there is a lot of interest among the Wranglers to wet a line.” 

Debbie Rigsby, a direct support professional who works with our Wranglers IIs (clients who need more assistance and attention), took them on the first fishing trip.  “Even with their short attention spans, they had a lot of fun. We enjoyed taking fish off their hooks for them and rebaiting because we knew they were about to have fun catching another soon,” she said.

Several more fishing trips are on the schedule for the summer. As the trips continue, the stories of the ones that got away will certainly become more and more creative. Matt Harughty, director of sales for Ranger Oilfield Products, assured that there are some beauties in the retention pond turned catch-and-release fishing lake. “I hope I’m there the day a Wrangler gets a really nice one,” Matt said. “I’m sure the expression on their face will be priceless.”