Full Freezer and Jeff...First I want to thank you for supporting our chapter by signing up as members. We really have taken this club from next to nothing to the most aggressive and fastest growing chapter in the state. So what good has that done? Well let me go into some detail:


First of all, we have been in a building mode for a year and a half. No small feat to create something that is attractive enough to pack the Edmonds Yacht Club most months. No small feat to put those meetings on and hold the interest of those who trust us enough to join. We have devoted much of our meeting time for instructive presentations to help the new fishers learn how to do what we all love to do so much which is fish. We have attracted families and kids to the club as active and equal members. Many of the kids are some our most avid fishermen and most helpful.With that said, we , as an individual chapter, have not changed anything on our own. We have, however, joined the other chapters to devote time and resources to such things as the North of Falcon process and WDFW commission meetings to help enhance some of the opportunities we now have for fishing and shellfishing as well as maintaining some opportunities that may have been restricted or taken away. As a group, PSA has come of age a bit and is not the confrontational group that caused so much angst with the Ban The Nets campaign. We have gained notoriety throughout the sportsfishing fraternity and our voices are now being heard where they were simply ignored a couple of years ago. Without our seat at the table I think things would be much less friendly to sports fishers. It takes some time to build trust and relationships with the decision makers.

Many of us are on advisory boards. Our VP Ron Garner is on the crab advisory board and PSA was very helpful in the drive to get the crab catch record card set in law..which it now is. This will eventually improve our access to the quotas of crab and shrimp in the future. We have also worked hard to help keep the WDFW honest, if you will, in spending the $10 Puget Sound salmon enhancement surcharge money directed towards what it was intended for instead of where it was being diverted which is into the general fund. The ultimate goal is to try to return to the glory days of Puget Souond salmon fishing. Elliott Bay chinook fishing opportunity is another success story.

Mostly what we have given back is our efforts and contributions to CAST for Kids to help kids get interested in fishing. We donate money to them and volunteer at events. We have gained notoriety for our Edmonds Coho Derby where we really make the kids King.

So much more can be said but no one would probably read that far. I will mirror what Slab says about politics. Most of the folks I talk to about that part of our club want those of us who are doing the heavy lifting to keep doing so and don't want the meetings to be political rallies. We will however surprise you on July 13th when the New Recreational Fishing Alliance state of Washington Chapter is unveiled. Your club has decided to donate a substantial amount of money to that organization and also help get the state chapter off the ground. The meeting on the 13th will showcase RFA and what they are all about and what is going to happen in Washington state. I will be part of that new organization as will two other SnoKing members. This organization will make you proud we were part of launching it and will offer all the politics you can stand.

Good things are coming guys and I hope you will join in and voice your own opinions on the issues and you are always welcome to come to the board meetings and if you so desire become a board member. There is only so much time at a meeting but I promise we will take all your suggestions to heart. I hope we have grown to a level where we need to be so I can spend more time with individual members. Thanks again