Changing lives, one fish at a time.
ORH brings together local boaters & fisherman treating our nation's heroes to a weekend of fishing, fun, and friendship.
Operation Reel Heroes brings together local boaters/fisherman and our nation's heroes for a weekend of fishing, fun, and friendship. Since inception in 2015, Operation Reel Heroes has taken 800+ Veterans & Guests fishing.
Working closely with the Wounded Warrior Project, we host two events annually. Our Cape Cod Event takes place out of Bass River in Yarmouth, Massachusetts and our Long Island event takes place out of Huntington Harbor in Huntington, New York.
What Our Events Look Like
The weekend kicks off Friday evening with a Captains Meeting. Captains and mates are reminded of the event schedule and any safety matters are addressed. Following the Captain's Meeting, we host a meet and greet to introduce the Warriors to the Captain and mate taking them out the following day. All vessels have a minimum of one Captain and mate. Each boat takes out one veteran and a guest of their choice joining them for the weekend.
All Warriors are treated to the weekend in a local hotel and wake up bright and early Saturday ready to catch the first fish of the day. The Captains and mates all board their boats and meet at a central dock for loading the Warriors. Following loading the boats, the fleet makes their way out to the designated area for playing of the National Anthem. The entire fleet of boats idles around one another while some rules and safety items are reiterated. The National Anthem is played over the boats VHF radio's and a shotgun start signals the start of the fishing day. All of the boats of the boats take off and the day is officially underway...time to catch some fish!
It is at this point in the morning where the jitters are nearly behind us, everyone (hopefully) has shown up and all the boats have blasted off to their favorite spot hoping for the first or largest fish of the day. Taking a look around during the National Anthem and subsequent start really makes you appreciate all that has gone into the weekend and is the best opportunity to feel the energy the event brings to the collective group of participants.
Following a day on the water, the Warriors and guests are taken back to their hotel to wash up prior to a reception dinner. The reception is where we recap the day. We congratulate the Warrior-Captain pairs who caught the first fish and the largest of each species as well as thank all of our sponsors, captains, mates and most importantly our veterans. It is also at the reception where we have a plethora of raffle and silent auction items to help raise funds to pay for all the event costs.
With an incredible weekend in the books and possibly a few fish stories to take home, the Warriors are taken back to the hotel and finally get a chance to rest...dreaming of that big one that got away, solidifying the memories of the weekend, or perhaps reflecting on what we hope could have been a life changing experience.
The entire event is at no cost to the Warrior and the guest that they chose to bring with them. The Captains and mates donate their operating costs (fuel, bait, ice, rods, reel, tackle, etc.) and time for the day. All hotel, venue, catering, shirt, etc. costs are covered by our organization with some help from the Wounded Warrior Project. All in kind donations are utilized in either our Captains bags, Veteran bags, raffle or silent auction and funds generated go right back to the event. Financial contributions are also utilized in the same manner. We are a 100% volunteer crew and all funds go directly to the event.
Each event is truly special to us, throughout the weekend there are always events that make us sit back and see the larger picture as well as the the importance of the hours put in to make the weekend happen. None of the current event coordinators have served, but to us this is the least we could do to honor those who have afforded us our freedom.
Thank you for your interest in our event, if you would like to get involved please check out the “Get Involved” section of our website.
How It All Began
A term you may often hear us use is “Its all about the Veterans.” Operation Reel Heroes truly embodies that...for us, each event is an opportunity to show a deserving group of people an amazing day doing what we all love to do...fish!
In 2014 Arthur Johnson began this mission. Arthur and his family travel down from the Berkshires to the Cape Cod each summer weekend to enjoy their boating heaven. Fishing, boating and bonfires with friends are just part of the summer routine. Sitting around a beach campfire and enjoying the evening with his family and friends after a long day on the water would likely have been enough for most, but for those who know Arthur, nothing is about his own satisfaction. Why not share this with those who have afforded us these freedoms?
This idea quickly moved from just an idea into action. The plan evolved from taking a few local veterans out for a day on the water to a full weekend event involving many more veterans. The idea bounced from friend to friend and before long a list of captains jumping at the chance to donate their day was in short order. Following some winter prep work and soliciting the idea to local businesses eager to get involved, the groundwork was formed for an incredible inaugural event. With help from the Wounded Warrior Project, locally established businesses, local law enforcement, marinas, bait shops and people of all walks of life Operation Reel Heroes was officially born.
Following the inaugural event on Bass River in 2015 the traction for growth was evident. Every captain had a blast and was honored to participate. As the saying goes, good things don’t stay quiet for long. In our case, this would initiate a growth rate greater than we could have imagined. Moving from 15 boats in year one to over 25 in our second year was a great leap. Following another successful event in in 2016 the story continued to find new ears and 2017 proved even larger. Close to 45 boats getting well deserving veterans out on the water with little issue had us hook line and sinker...this event was not going anywhere.
Fast forward through years of amazing Cape Cod events and the idea has grown further. The Long Island event took off in 2019 and we are proud to offer a second amazing experience in a completely different location. Similar to the success of the Cape Cod event, the Long Island event has also quickly gained traction and grown exponentially.
The chance to take deserving veterans out on the water is an honor which we do not take lightly. Our captains and sponsors also could not agree more. The support of local businesses and our crew of volunteer captains and mates is the best around and they all play an integral role in making Operation Reel Heroes as successful as it has become.
For some, fishing may be a waste of time. To us and those who have joined us, it has become something that has the power to change the life of those who we owe so much. We are proud to organize each event and are even more humbled when we see the smiles on so many faces, hear of the new friends made, and most importantly of the lives that have been brought to brighter places through participating in our events. For that, we are ever grateful and honored to play a part in it.
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Stay in Touch
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