This past week, it was our distinct pleasure to host a sold-out crew of 32 people who were all here in support of the Westman Dreams for Kids charity. The charity's president is Kerry Campbell, and Ron Ball is the Vice-President. Both were in attendance for the first ever WDK Aikens Lake fishing trip! Ron spearheaded this event to raise money for the foundation, and a percentage from each trip was donated by the lodge back to the charity. The 32 spots filled quickly once word started going around. Most participants were from Brandon, MB - with a contingent also being from Winnipeg. Although some of the people didn't know each other when the trip started, everyone certainly knew each other by the end of it! There were lots of jokes, stories, and laughs over the 3 days. The trip to the lodge was highlighted by a two-day tournament in which all competitors teamed up in pairs. With their guide, they were to measure their top 4 walleyes of the morning, with penalties given to those who arrived to the GGO dock past 12:00 noon. Morning #1 of the tournament began as 16 boats lined up in front of the dock for a shotgun start! Patrick and his guests Bruce and Jim had an advantage with his 75hp and got to the South Arm first where Bruce quickly reeled in a 26.5" walleye, and followed it up with a 28.25" Master Angler Walleye among others to vault into the day 1 lead. Alex had a different play in mind, and decided to stay near the dock that morning with David and Geza while everyone else took off in a hurried race onto the lake! Their plan paid off as they filled up on slot walleyes to stay within a few inches of the leaders after day 1.

The 2nd morning was a slower one on the lake. Pat, Bruce, and Jim used their boat's speed to go from one spot to the next, but in the end were not able to bring in a big enough score. David and Geza were able to take over the lead when Alex brought them to some more secret spots and they won the competition by a full 5 inches. The tournament's biggest fish was caught by the organizer Ron Ball - a 29" beauty in the South Arm. The winners each received a spot for the 2012 Dreams trip to Aikens! All in all, a very memorable event! We would like to thank Ron Ball. He is an man of unquestioned character who unselfishly gives back to his community through the WDK he helped establish. Not only that, but he has the unique ability to bring 32 people together on a sold-out fishing adventure to further benefit the Dreams foundation! All told, about $10K will be raised for WDK through this trip and others to Aikens Lake sold through the charity. Thank you Ron for your vision in setting up this new fundraising event Aikens Lake. You can't have an annual event without having the inaugural, and the past three days accomplished just that! We look forward to continuing our relationship with Westman Dreams for Kids for many years to come.

Westman Dreams for Kids trip!