KINGSTON TWP. — The 12th annual Rusty Flack Memorial Kids Fishing Day on May 5 promises to be big on fun as well as fish tales, according to organizer Ross Piazza.
The free event held at Frances Slocum State Park in Wyoming gives Back Mountain and West Side children between the ages of 5 and 10 an opportunity to learn to fish and participate in a variety of outdoor activities with their parents or caregivers.
“There are two main goals of the event,” Piazza said. “First, to have uniformed officers interact with the kids, so they are not afraid of them. Second, to introduce them (the kids) to fishing.”
All participants are required to sign in at Pavilion 3 from 7:30 to 8 a.m. at the park Park, 567 Mt. Olivet Road. Pre-registration is required and available at backmtpolice.org, Piazza said.
Activities start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 2 p.m.
Children will receive an activity punch card and will be broken up into age-based groups upon registering. Every child will be given a loaner fishing pole, bait and tackle, Piazza said.
“Kids do not need to bring any fishing equipment,” he said as donations from local businesses and organizations will provide fishing equipment for up to 150 children. “Every child will receive a free Kids Fishing Day hat.”
Participants are asked to bring a “light-colored t-shirt for a t-shirt design class with a fish theme,” he said.
All children will attend a fishing instruction class before casting their lines into the park’s pond, Piazza said.
The pond will have a 60-foot by 100-yard impound area sectioned off and stocked with nearly 1,000 trout, he said.
Children will take turns fishing with a pole and netting fish from the shore.
Parents can help children baiting hooks, casting and netting fish, but kids will need to retrieve fish on their own, according to the 2018 Kid’s Fishing Day schedule.
Children will be allowed to keep up to three fish.
Other activities include a K-9 unit demonstration that showcases the drug-sniffing and “chase and take down” skills of police dogs,” Piazza said.
“Luzerne County 911 will talk about what they do,” he said. “There will also be police, fire vehicles and boats, which are always of interest to children.”
The Pennsylvania Game Commission will have a bear trap on display, Piazza said. The state Fish and Boat Commission will also be in attendance.
Piazza said the Back Mountain Police Association will provide breakfast and the Ranch Wagon will provide lunch.
Children can win a variety of prizes based on the size fish they caught, he said.
Also, 10 bicycles, five boys bikes and five girls, will be awarded.
After the children’s event closes, the impound will be open to the Wounded Warriors members to fish, Piazza said.
The Back Mountain Police Association is comprised of 23 police departments from the Back Mountain and the West Side areas.
The annual Kids Fishing Day was named after Charles “Rusty” Flack, a prominent businessman and philanthropist who died in May 2011.
