By: Carla Davis
When Wanda Westbrook and Treva McDougal got the idea of organizing a fishing event for Birmingham-area students with special needs 28 years ago, they never dreamed it would become so popular.
“It’s everybody’s favorite field trip of all,” said Westbrook. “The kids and teachers start asking about it the day school starts.”
More than 1,000 special education students from the Jefferson and Shelby County school systems and Alabaster and Pelham city schools got the chance to reel in “the big one” at the annual Exceptional Anglers event: “Gone Fishin’, not just Wishin’” at Oak Mountain State Park May 10-12. Retired teachers Westbrook and McDougal still head up the event.
“We’ve had kids with all kinds of abilities out there,” Westbrook said. “A lot of them may have needed help at first because they had never been fishing. But they have become more and more independent over the years.”
Lacey Slack, Calera Middle School special education teacher, said the day offers a great experience for her class on several levels.
“Fishing is something they really enjoy doing, and it gives them a chance to experience something they may not get to do all the time,” Slack said. “I think it’s also super important because trips like this allow them to practice social skills they will need in everyday life, like making conversation with adults and other students they don’t see every day.”
The kids are not the only ones who look forward to the event. Alabama Power Environmental Affairs Specialist Mike Clelland said it’s also a highlight for the volunteers.
This year, about 75 Alabama Power employees, including members of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO), joined other community volunteers to help the students angle for a fish. They served as coaches, showing students how to bait a hook and reel in their fish. Company employees then snapped photos of the students as they posed with their catch.
“When you see the smile on those children’s faces when they catch their first fish, it makes all the problems in your life just disappear,” said Clelland, who has led Alabama Power’s participation in the event for 15 years. “I know for a fact it does more for me personally than it does for any of these children.”
The students also took part in arts and crafts, listened to storytellers, learned about fish and wildlife, performed with local musicians and got tips on water safety, including the proper way to don a life jacket. Meanwhile, the volunteers were by their side every step of the way during the half-day event as the students moved from station to station.
Parker White said helping those youths learn to fish was a “great feeling.”
“I like working with kids,” said White, Southern Power engineering analyst and member of the Magic City APSO chapter’s Shelby board. “But it was also an opportunity for me to talk to my own kids (ages 5 and 2) about what I was doing. I was able to explain how everyone is different and some people need more help than others.”
The Alabama Power Foundation provided financial support for the event. The funds helped pay for the 1,500 to 3,000 catfish that were used to stock the lake.
“The event organizers section off a small area of the lake with a net so the fish are easier to catch,” said Clelland. “We want the fish to remain in one spot so they are readily available to the kids.”
Westbrook said Alabama Power was the first corporate sponsor that came on board when the fishing event began in 1995, and the company has been a major supporter to this day.
“We couldn’t have done it without Alabama Power,” said Westbrook. “The company has just gone above and beyond providing the fish, making sure there were T-shirts for the students and providing a volunteer base that has been exemplary.”
About 150 community volunteers were on site each of the three days, helping to make the event a success.
Westbrook said the event continues to grow and expand, allowing more people with disabilities to enjoy the outdoors. On May 15-17, adults and preschoolers served by the nonprofit United Ability, along with students from Vestavia Hills, Homewood and Mountain Brook schools, are taking part in a similar event at the park, getting the chance to try their hand at reeling in a fish.
“I’m so proud of the program – how it has grown and how it has affected so many lives,” Westbrook said. “It gives the teachers and the kids something to get excited about. This is a day where everybody can get out and have fun.”
