Say foundation officials, "We believe a wish experience can be a game-changer. This one belief guides us and inspires us to grant wishes that change the lives of the kids we serve."
As you might imagine, timing can be crucial in these cases. The story that follows is one such example.
By Captain David M. Rieumont
You see, the thing I love most about my life is I get the opportunity to meet young children like Joshua Lownes (pictured above right). Joshua was a young boy who came into my life a short time ago through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Joshua was going to get a wish, but even more than any wish, Joshua dreamed of going fishing. I hoped when he got out of All Children's Hospital that dream would come true. I was going to take Joshua fishing.
It's with tears in my eyes that I write this, as Joshua never got the chance to fish with me. I received the worst news anyone could imagine; Joshua passed away on Aug. 11, 2010. No one, and I mean no none that I know right now, can take away the empty feeling I have inside of me. Today I bow my head and close my eyes, cry a lot more, and laugh a lot less because Joshua cannot grace my presence and fish with me.
I have been attached to the Make-A-Wish Foundation for about 17 years. It's how and why I became a charter boat captain. Nevertheless, this story is not about me, but about an incredibly courageous and brave young man named Joshua Lownes.
I called Joshua's mom, Donna, before I was going to meet with him, and she told me how much Joshua loved to fish. It's not often that the foundation gets wishes from a child who loves to fish, but when we do, I know exactly what to do. I contacted "The Bass Professor," Doug Hannon, and he signed his book, Big Bass Magic, for Joshua. My next quest was easy enough--get my friend, Gary Poyssick, one of the authors of the saltwater fishing book, Skinny - How to Fish in Shallow Saltwater, to autograph his book for Joshua. I was all set with books, lures and paperwork and ready to find out exactly what Joshua wanted as his fishing wish.
When I met Joshua at All Children's Hospital, his father, Jeffrey, was there with him, along with Donna. They are not ordinary people by any means. They were Joshua's strength. What loving parents; Joshua was proud of them. You could see that immediately. They held him up at every step of his journey. They never let the circumstances or disease steal away Joshua's capacity for joy and wonder, just like the Make-A-Wish creed states.
When I met Joshua, the treatment he was getting was something no one should have to go through, much less a young boy. What he went through is indescribable. It is something he did not deserve; he is a lovable boy who loves to fish. What life had given him (Acute Myeloid Leukemia, as diagnosed on Jan. 21, 2010) was not fair or right. It makes me so mad. I cried so hard I put myself to sleep thinking about these cruel and unfair things. But Joshua, he surely would let you know that is not what he wanted you to do.
Joshua's smile that day warmed my heart. We talked fishing and shared fishing stories and laughs for hours. I had to bite my tongue so hard as not to let the tears roll down my cheeks during our talk. We talked about all his favorites--reels, lures, baits, his favorite fish to catch, and Doug, Jose Wejebe, Bill Dance, Kevin Van Dam, and the greatest bass story every told. Talking about these legends of our sport and their angling skills brightened his day, and for those moments, just maybe made him forget about the sickness and pain.
I told him Jose jumped in the water after a tarpon, and how Doug never has killed one bass in all that he has caught. Then it was onto fly fishing on the flats with those monster permit. The stories included Flip Pallot's first meeting with Jose and Kevin Van Dam's Classic wins. That day I left Joshua with the hope of taking him fishing.
The minute I walked out the door of the hospital, my emotions got the best of me until I thought of something Joshua had said to me: "I caught this beautiful bass on a bread ball. Why did the bass eat the bread ball?" Wow, I thought to myself. Here I am feeling sorry for Joshua, a young boy who does not even feel sorry for himself, even after the cruel, unfair hand life has dealt him.
"Joshua," I thought, "it was my honor to sit in the same room with you. You again have reminded me of the meaning of true bravery, courage, hope, faith, and sacrifice. You had the courage to fight and never give up hope. You were unafraid of everything that was thrown at you. You were a boy achored with so much guts. Your heart was tremendous. I wish every fisherman could have met you. You are truly inspirational. You taught me that we are put here for a purpose, and that purpose is to give, not receive. So, if I ever had a wish, it would be for you and every little boy and girl to never have to be sick, be afraid, hurt, or scared."
Joshua was teaching me lessons in life, not my teaching him anything about fishing. The message I got from Joshua is that no matter how barbaric or horrific his sickness was, that someway, somehow he was able to triumph because he was not going to get in the way of his dreams or his parents' love. His character constituted a victory, no matter what life threw at him.
The qualities Joshua possessed are what winning at life means, and that lasts forever. I always will remember Joshua as an amazing kid and the last smile I saw on his face as we talked fishing. I want the entire world to know how special Joshua was. "On this day," I thought, "I will take myself fishing, and as I catch that first fish of the day, I will release it in silent honor as a living memorial to Joshua. That fish I release will stand eternally in honor and remembrance of Joshua's courage and legacy."
I ask all of you likewise to go out and catch a fish and release it in honor of a great young boy who graced our Earth--Joshua. Let the fish go in celebration of life, and let Joshua's love for our sport live eternally. Joshua is looking down on us with a smile.
The power of my words never could describe how Joshua and all the Make-A-Wish children touch me. I have not forgotten any of their faces. They remind me the greatest quality any human being can have is compassion, no matter what the circumstance. When I came out of Joshua's room that day, he might not have realized that my life as a man was better because he had been in it. He made me a better man, a better human being. "Thank you, my fishing buddy. I will someday meet you at the greatest ocean of them all to once again share in our fishing plight. When I have that day, I will get to treasure it for life."
This is also a living testament to Joshua's family, who day after day bravely and quietly can piece their lives back together. Knowing Joshua, he would say to all of us: "If you want to honor and remember me, repay the world with a compassionate act of kindness to someone who is less fortunate. Take them fishing!"
This article first appeared in TheOnlineFisherman.
David didn't start his career on the waters of West Central Florida. In fact, he started his career as one of New York's finest and relocated to Florida, where he retired from the Clearwater Police Department after 25 years of service. He became a U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Marine in 2003. He also founded and serves as president and owner of Sea Scrap Charter Guide Service.
Captain David gives back to the community in a number of ways. Besides being a granter, facilitator and spokesperson since 1995 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, he's also involved with Wounded Warriors, Cops for a Cause, the Blooming Place for Kids, and other charitable efforts.
Another Seasoned Make-A-Wish Volunteer
Among the charities he supports is St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
"I have a lot of personal connections to St. Jude," VanDam, 48, told Rea. "I've taken Make-A-Wish cancer-afflicted kids fishing, and we have friends who have been afflicted with the disease."
"This is where VanDam's choice of charities gets personal," wrote Rea. "One of his closest friends is former pro bass angler Mike Auten, whose son Ryan is receiving treatment at St. Jude. VanDam has visited Ryan and other children at the hospital."
"I've seen the amazing things that the hospital does for families and the progress they've made in cancer research," said VanDam. "It is a special place for not only the kids but their parents."
As Rea noted, "VanDam and his wife have firsthand knowledge of kids and hospitals. Their twin boys, Jackson and Nicklaus, were born 15 weeks premature."
"They weighed about one-and-a-half pounds each," explained VanDam. "Now they are 18 and seniors in high school and doing great. We were blessed to have had great care for them in the hospital here in Michigan."
In his November 2015 article, Rea went on to note that "two years ago, VanDam and his wife set up a foundation to support youth-fishing efforts, camps and scholarships, with the intent of getting more youth involved in fishing and conservation.
And, as added KVD, "I have done a lot of things with veterans through the Wounded Warriors, and with the March of Dimes, as well as Make-A-Wish."
Wrote Rea, "The Make-A-Wish Foundation, in particular, is close to VanDam's heart."
"Mitchell Schmitt was the first person I took fishing for Make-a-Wish," said KVD. "At the time, he was 14, and now he is a senior in college in Iowa. The crazy thing is that all these kids could do anything they wanted, and they wanted to go fishing with me. When it is all said and done (please note the distinct similarity of these closing comments by KVD with what the author of the previous article said), fishing with these kids probably has done more for me than it has for them. The experiences have changed me," he concluded.
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