After The Banquet a few things stuck in my mind. One, we have a lot of very good people in our club. The other that hit me a little harder after talking to several people…we need more money for fish. More money = more food for baby muskies. Hey, we all want our local waters stocked with fish. No sense in complaining and yacking at each other. When it comes down to it we need more funding. $35 isn't going to cover it. I'm not a rich guy, hell I’m just starting my career, saving for a house, but i think over 365 days i could save a dollar each day. No, I'm not saying the club needs 365 dollars from everyone. But think of the possibilities of what $25,000 a year would do for us. You say, wow that’s a lot of money…yea, but there is 100 or more people in this club. If 100 people donated $250 a year, that would give the club $25,000… Stop saying that's too much money or that's unrealistic. $25,000 …can you imagine the stocking possibilities.. Fish would get all the food in the hatchery they would need, we would be planting nice big healthy fish that could thrive. I understand everyone wants fish stocked in their own local lake. Some lakes are more of a priority than others. But saying that, there could be some kind of annual plan, or get fish every other year. For $250 we could ensure that our fishery has a chance to blossom and grow over the next 20-or who knows 40 years. This idea comes out of the blue, and I don't have all the answers, but I ask you in the club to brainstorm. Ways we can get more money, and the easiest way it comes down to is donation. if you save a dollar or 2 a day, simple as that, empty a change jar…that kind of stuff.
I understand about budgets, raising kids, debt, price of gas, but has this stopped you from fishing or buying lures you dont need, Don't think of the cost, think of the potential for great fisheries.
This is just an idea, so don't write back bashing …write back with good idea's…no bickering, we need to brainstorm, all are welcome to serve up thoughts on this…positive ones !
There was also an idea I really liked where people could have $5 (or $X) of their pay check automatically sent to MMA. As noted if you save or send in small amounts you really won't notice it but at the end of the year it really adds up. $5 from 50 people 24-26 times a year would mean $6000-6500 a year, that's as much as the banquet nets…
Well said B. Pennies can really add up.
This is especially true now that Wolf Lake has increased (finally, some may say) the amount of pellets being given to early fry. As Martha noted at the banquet, we have dropped well below the $1 in minnow feed per 1 fall musky fingerling produced barrier…pretty substantial improvement over where we were a few years ago. And light years ahead of say Minnesota Muskie Farm's all natural diet which ultimately equates to about $4 per fall fingerling. Nowadays your dollar can really make an impact, so let's all try consciously setting aside musky bucks in 2007 and see what the heck we can do!
Think of this as an investment in the future of your fishing. Do you want to see a few fish, maybe catch one or 2 dinks… do you wanna see a couple, or none..maybe boat 2 a year, or do you want a fishery that could possibly rival WN or MN…yea, those are pretty impressive muskie states. I understand that. Think of what bigger donations can lead to. Guys, think of all the crap we buy each year we don't need. Hell I can think of a lot of stuff… Even Ladies in the club, have you bought a few items in the past year you haven't even used?..well we are all guilty of that kind of stuff, our nature. But if we all hold on to some of those pennies we buy things we don't really need to spend extra money on, we can accomplish our goals. Will's idea is good also. Pete is right on the money…no one knows that stuff better. 10 years will pass pretty quick…sadly…the last 10 went pretty quick after turning 18. So if we invest now(not right now)but this year, saving your 2007 pennies…the potential is awesome… 
Michelle and I will continuse to support and donate as we have in the past. This year our donations brought $ 245.00 into the clubs treasury not to mention what we spent at the banquet and our on line auctiuons. In 2004 just one set of Planer boards brought $ 275.00 into the club. Michelle and I will continue this, Mike and Michelle
A few more things I’d like to add to this topic.
First of all I thank everyone for the donations they have already made, we still need more for the future of the sport. This isn’t a peeing contest so people don’t need to put every cent they have contributed to the club down to show they have pitched in. I’m just saying, I would hate to have people single others out who have made larger or smaller donations.. Each of us know whether we have contributed. And yes there are other ways to give besides just certain dollar amounts, although those are best. This is a contribution, not mandatory…but every penny keeps more fish coming to our waters.
When I wrote this topic, it was with a good hearted sense. About the end of my fishing season in late December I was fishing with a fellow midlander, I was discussing whether or not I was going to continue being part of the MMA. See, I rubbed some people the wrong way, and was also treated poorly by a few. I’m a guy, so by nature I am pig-headed and tend to be stubborn, but time and time again, loving the sport kept me in the club, Because there are lots of great folks out there. If I never became a member I wouldn’t have met people like Pete, Duke, Ron, Rob, Jeff, Scott, the other midland Brian, Greg M., and others who I have seen on my local waters. I was kind of in dismay over lots of things with the website. I was more than P.O.’ed that Sanford continues to get screwed out of fish. The Iowa thing put it over the top, we went from thinking we would be on the verge of a trophy fishery to zilch…no fish. A lot of stuff was out of the MMA’s hands but it was part of a long list that made me ponder leaving the club. I mean I figured why should I give money if I don’t see anything in return on my waters. Well…then Ron became treasurer, and we began talking, thinking of ways to get fish to Sanford, and yes…other lakes too. Some think the midland guys all are whiners cause we talk about no fish in Sanford. If you were in our spot I bet you would be unhappy also. I said, bottom line we need more money. I was ignorant on most aspects of how we obtain fish, what the money goes to and why and all the questions. With the Iowa program gone and the DNR cuts… We need to act and ban together. I will say again, we AREN”T asking for money right now… Save this year, 2007.
I am a full time worker who is final year of college, I’m no rich guy, big truck payment and boat payment, rent, insurance and compulsive addictive muskie lure buying behavior ….but in a year I could save $250 for the club and make that go toward fish food, stocking purposes. Some are more fortunate than others, some less. Don’t set yourself back, at the end of the year donate what you can, or if you want to give more, go for it. Every penny counts. I said $250 cause x 100 members it gives us $25,000 and if we get $100 from 100 members we get $10,000 for stocking. A lot or just enough, to a little can make all the difference in our fishery. Know, after saying all this to a few others, it made me want to become as active in the club as I can. I want a great fishery for the future. Dollar a day..all it takes…start tomorrow
Bryan 😀 😀
From Martha's talk at the banquet, I think it was ~78 cents of minnows per fall fingerling, which is a great improvement over past years. They are really getting up to speed down there, with more improvements in place for this year. She hinted at a reduced stocking budget in the future, along with an increased feed cost…so they may need our help!
I know Will's under the weather right now, but he'll likely chime in with some more "what our funds can do"-comments.
When I mentioned how much the fish cost, i was referring to the cost from Minnesota, which is for a 12 inch fish. Our stockings are 100% Michigan fish, from netted fish in the spring, right??? What is the cost to rear them to a 12 inch release size??? per fish cost? And, when MMA has all these bazzillion fish and is looking for places to put them, can property owners stop these fish from being planted in 'their' lake??? Mona Lake last had small skis planted in the 90's. It once was a part of the tiger muskie program, back in the 80's. I heard residents tried to keep a lid on the tiger plantings, not to bring added traffic to their home waters. Can a public outcry stop plantings?
Guilt is no way to put money in our pockets and our members have been more than generous over the past 5+ years. Give what and how you can and every penny is greatly appreciated!
How can our money help at the hatchery? See the new thread I started: <url url="[Permission to view this media is denied]
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We have put our education efforts on the back burner because the Iowa program used up such a big portion of our revenue. Education across Michigan is vitally important. Restoration and Preservation, where reproduction exists, should be primary to the put and take hatchery maintained fisheries. I'm not saying that MMA should abandon the hatchery, they know we're in this for the long haul and will help with as many dollars as possible.
2 fold on GUN.Yes uneducated public,but the DNR admitted putting to many skis in there.They kind of went off total acres of the lake,instead
of total sutable acres for muskie.There is alot of shallow dead water in gun.From what I understand,the muskie went to a few "good" areas in the lake, and well,kinda cleaned house.The locals took note,and it was open
season on muskie."Wanted dead or alive".They still spear chuck out there.
Every once in a while you will hear,or see a pic of a big girl that managed
to survive out there.Its a real shame,skis and eyes can co-exist, and
GUN could have been real trophy water.
I even ask the people at the local bait shop on gun about ever getting
the interest back in muskies.A resounding NO is what I get.
So from what I gather,Lake Associations are quite powerefull.I hope we
never piss off the Murray lake people.
Ya thats true.Sandy shallow flat area maybe.
Big Will you use to fish Gun,whats your take on the demize of that lake.
I know there are some muskie that will always be in there(hopefully)
But man they got a bad rap out there.
And,if you were really board,would you ever try muskie fishing there just to see what comes up?
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