LAVALETTE, W.Va.—More than 200 youths and their families gathered at Beech Fork State Park on Saturday, June 6, for the 8th Annual Tri-State Take Kids Fishing Day hosted by IBEW Local 317.
The free community event brought together families from West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky for a day of fishing. Through a partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers, which stocked the lake the morning of the event, more than 200 children experienced the excitement of catching a fish, many for the very first time.
Every youth participant went home with a free fishing pole, and all attendees enjoyed a complimentary lunch provided by volunteers from Local 317.
“For a lot of these kids, this is their first chance to get outdoors and try fishing,” said Josh Bills, IBEW Local 317 membership development representative and the lead coordinator for the event. “That’s what makes this so rewarding. You’re not just teaching a skill; you’re creating memories for families and introducing kids to something they may carry with them for the rest of their lives.”
Bills has volunteered at the event since its inception in 2015 and has led on-the-ground volunteer efforts for the past four years. He said the event continues to grow because of the strong community support behind it.
For IBEW Local 317 Business Manager Shane Wolfe, the event represents an opportunity to strengthen community connections while demonstrating the values of organized labor.
“Getting out there gives us a chance to show the community who the IBEW is beyond just an acronym,” Wolfe said. “These events help people see our members as neighbors, mentors and volunteers who care deeply about the communities we work in.”
According to organizers, this year’s event brought many first-time attendees and generated overwhelmingly positive feedback from parents and families throughout the day.
One especially memorable moment came when a longtime participant landed a freshwater drum. Organizers were able to recreate a photograph taken years earlier of the same young man proudly holding a small bluegill at a previous Take Kids Fishing Day event.
“To see that kid come back years later and recreate that photo was pretty special,” Bills said. “It shows the lasting impact these events can have.”
“Events like these mean a lot to our members and their families,” Wolfe said. “They remind me of the union picnics we had 25 or 30 years ago. Now we’re seeing kids who attended those events become members, and they’re volunteering their time to help the next generation experience the outdoors.”
Take Kids Fishing Day is part of USA’s Work Boots on the Ground initiative, a conservation program that brings together union members to volunteer their time and skills for conservation projects and events that benefit communities nationwide. The 8th Annual Tri-State Take Kids Fishing Day was made possible through the efforts of IBEW Local 317 volunteers, their families and the Army Corps of Engineers.
Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA): The USA is a union-dedicated, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose members hunt, fish, shoot and volunteer their skills for conservation. The USA is uniting the union community through conservation to preserve North America’s outdoor heritage. For more information, visit www.unionsportsmen.org or connect on Facebook, X, YouTube and Instagram.
Work Boots on the Ground (WBG): WBG is the USA’s flagship conservation program that brings together union members willing to volunteer their time and expertise to conservation projects that improve and enhance public access to the outdoors, conserve wildlife habitat, restore America’s parks and mentor youth in the outdoors. The USA’s Work Boots on the Ground program works closely with federal, state and local agencies and other conservation groups to provide manpower needed to complete critical projects that may otherwise go undone.
