By Amy Batista, Special Writer
Families and friends started the Fourth of July holiday weekend with some fishing despite stormy skies during the annual Fish Derby on Friday morning.
The fishing derby was held at Northern Community Park. Registration began at 9 a.m. followed by the fish derby from 10 a.m. to noon.
”It is a pleasure on my part to have hosted an event that is such an important part of our Independence Day celebration,” said Mayor Stephen Benowitz.
The late James T. Oross, who passed away on Dec. 30, 2008, previously served as the official presenter of the Fish Derby. In his honor, a memorial stands by the pond and reads, “For many years he was a great inspiration to all of us, dedicating and sharing his time, talents and knowledge with all our derby participants.”
The fish derby has been held for 14 years, according to Angel Sauro, confidential aide to the mayor.
Prior to the start of the derby, the lake was stocked with 100 sunfish, 375 young largemouth bass, 25 brown bullheads and 25 channel catfish by Ron Jacobsen, a fisheries technician with Hackettstown State Fish Hatchery, said Superintendent Craig Lemon of Hackettstown State Fish Hatchery.
”We have been stocking this event for many years on July 4 and for a long time it was Jim Oross, another hatchery technician,” he said. “He got to know the folks in town so well that when he passed a number of years ago they dedicated a nice memorial to him at the sight.”
Mr. Jacobson set up a display aquarium with fish that would be representative of what was in the body of water.
”He has a 25-gallon plastic touch tank so that the kids could actually handle the fish and feel their scales and fins,” he said.
He gave a brief presentation on the New Jersey Department of Fish and Wildlife Division’s goals and the role the Hackettstown Hatchery plays within the division. He also displayed each species and gave a brief description on how to handle the fish for both the fish and angler’s safety.
”He then nets all the fish into buckets and allows the kids to do the stocking,” he said.
Fishing license fees are $22.50 for a general license and $10.50 for a trout stamp.
”There is still lots of good fishing this year, with water temps around 80 degrees the warm water species like hybrid striped bass and channel catfish are just turning on,” he said.
The Fish Derby is a free event for kids ages 2 to 13. It was made possible through sponsorships from Sportsmen’s Center, the Department of Fish and Wildlife and Mercer County Anglers Association (MCAA) as well through additional donations.
A total of 100 kids competed in the fishing derby.
”This number was an increase from last year,” Mayor Benowitz said.
There were trophies, prizes, and gift certificates given out to the participants. Each participant got a certificate, he said.
Members from MCAA and volunteers were on hand all around the lake to measure all the fish that were caught by the anglers for the tallies at the end of the contest.
”We love coming out every year to the fishing derby,” said Brian Sabo, vice president of MCAA.
He noted that “seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces is what makes the day so special.”
”All the kids have a good time even if they don’t catch any fish,” he said. “Mercer County Anglers looks forward to the fishing derby every year.”
