Christen Gray will always be grateful for the day a Tampa teen showed up to her son’s hospital room holding a fishing kit.
“Jake showed Finn at the hospital how to use it, how to practice with it,” she said.
Jake Klopfenstein started a non-profit called Angling For Relief to honor a friend who died from childhood cancer. He created “dry fishing kits” for kids stuck indoors – specifically kids facing cancer and other illnesses – so they could practice their casts.
Gray’s son, Finn, was the first to ever receive one.
“At first, he was just so scared and shy,” said Klopfenstein, 14. “I started talking to him and showing him all the stuff in the dry fishing kit he just warmed up.”
Angling For Relief made over 100 dry fishing kits for kids around the nation but COVID-19 threw a wrench in distribution plans. Klopfenstein was no longer able to visit kids in hospital rooms.
He had to adjust. So, he turned his attention to the families of those sick kids.
“We were always wanting to take the kids out fishing on a boat with a captain, with a charter, but we just couldn’t really find an opportunity to do it,” he explained. “So as soon as we couldn’t get into the hospitals and have large crowds, we just decided that it would be much better to take the children and their families out individually on charter boats.”
Angling For Relief set up charters for families with sick children and children who has passed away from their illnesses. Captains in the Tampa Bay area volunteered their time and boats to get those families on the water for a day of actual fishing.
Gray lost Finn to cancer in January 2020. Her older son, Declan, 9, was able to enjoy a day on the boat with his father, Jim, to get their minds off the loss of their loved one.
“Angling For Relief has allowed us to do what we love,” she said. “They just had an amazing mental health day and didn’t have to worry about anything except who caught the biggest fish.”
The chance to send families on boats to give them that experience is something Klopfenstein finds heart-warming.
“I’m just glad they get to focus on themselves,” he said.
To a mother like Gray, it means just as much as it did the day that teen came to visit her son in the hospital.
“For them to consistently include all families and add a bereavement program to their organization has been super helpful.”
Angling for relief has sent fifteen families fishing so far with many more ready to cast off. If you would like to go out with your sick child on a fishing trip, get in touch with Angling For Relief on Facebook or email toni@anglingforrelief.org
Gray started Finn’s Fighters after the passing of her son as a way to “pay it forward to the community.”
“It really has turned into more of a support system,” she said. “Our mission is to increase awareness of pediatric cancer while we support families facing medical crisis in the Tampa Bay Area.”
- QR codes: How to protect your cell phone from scams
- Rays 101: Your ultimate guide to jumping on the bandwagon this season
- '40,000 cases daily': Florida scientists say U.K. variant could spark a 4th wave of COVID-19 infections in the state
- House approves Equality Act with expanded LGBTQ legal safeguards
- Militia official: US strike in Syria kills 1, wounds several
- The sky will be extra bright this weekend from the full "Snow Moon"
►Breaking news and weather alerts: Get the free 10 Tampa Bay app
►Stay In the Know! Sign up now for the Brightside Blend Newsletter