C.A.S.T. for Kids at Lake Pleasant AZ

CFKLP is all about taking kids with special needs, ages 6 to whatever, fishing and boating. The next event at Lake Pleasant, AZ, our 25th, is on April 4, 2026. Online registration will open on January 15th and close on February 28th. An early closing date gives us time to order equipment and supplies (e.g. size-specific t-shirts for particiants), stuff tackle boxes ,and rig rods & reels.

C.A.S.T. for Kids events are locally planned, organized, funded, and carried out. It wouldn’t work without any one of those elements. But money makes the world go 'round, so let’s talk about Sponsors. In the automated panels below are the logos of our 49 Sponsors for 2024. Some have been with us for years — special thanks to them all! Some have been with us for just a few years — special thanks to them all! Some are brand new this year — special thanks to them all for their support this year! Hopefully they will help again next year!

A frequently-asked question is, "What’s in this for sponsors?" WIFMs drive the world! The answer is probably as varied as our Sponsors. I can’t cover them all here, so I will use two new ones as examples because they are unique, yet their values overlap with those of so many others. You just have look a little deeper sometimes.

Two Sponsors joined CFKLP for 2024: Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife Conservation (AZSFWC) and Arizona Council of Trout Unlimited (AZ-TU).

AZSFWC is a not-for-profit organization that has long been prominent in advocating on behalf of Arizona’s most precious natural treasures: its wildlife and wildlife habitats. Among the many things they do is a grants program that distributes funding generated by Arizona’s wildlife vanity license plate. The funded projects help Arizona stay Arizona: an amazing treasury of wildlife, plants, forests, and geologic features the public can enjoy. It’s a remarkable program. Some address other purposes: wildlife education, and hunting & angling recruitment/retention. Funds may not be used for "soft costs, such as administrative expenses (i.e. staff & labor)."Only non-profit nongovernmental organizations in "good standing" with the Arizona Corporation, with a chapter or other unit in Arizona,  are eligible for Stinson grants.

AZ-TU is also a well-known advocate for Arizona’s living legacy to future generations. Their name says trout but it reads more like "wildlife and natural wonders." Whether an issue involves trout fisheries, sportfisheries, native fish conservation, wild and scenic rivers, conservation education, or any of a thousand other invaluable natural resource topics, AZ-TU gets involved to advocate for "Sound Science, Best Governance," to steal a motto from a very good friend and colleague. 

These two organizations came into the CFKLP picture because we had an obvious budget need for 2024. To meet that need, I called a lifeline, the fellow whose motto I included above. Let’s call him Glen. He is not wealthy but he is legitimately and rightfully legendary for building wildlife conservation partnerships. With no prior warning, within an hour Glen put me in touch with two of the hundreds of people he has mentored. They happened to be AZSFWC and AZ-TU grant cooordinators. It made me wonder again why Glen is not YET in the Arizona Outdoor Hall of Fame.  His hard work and leadership magic have protected and enhanced HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of acres of habitat for Arizona wildlife. And clearly he "knows a guy…."

Long story made a little shorter, AZ-TU sponsored and helped write a grant application to AZSFWC for CFKLP for 2024. We met the application deadline by a whisker. In February, AZSFWC approved the grant and the hole was filled. The March 3 event at Lake Pleasant unfolded as planned and made 43 Special Needs kids very happy.

Back to the WIFM question: what’s in it for them? Why should my need have become a crisis for AZ-TU and AZSFWCC? It's an organizational WIFM. As I said, AZSFWC and AZ-TU are in some ways unique among our Sponsors, but they share something: they value kids. The formal WIFM for these two is four-fold: (1) CFKLP serves a segment of humanity in need, kids who need a break; (2) children (and their families) who are exposed to the outdoors through activities like C.A.S.T. for Kids at Lake Pleasant learn to care about lakes, rivers, fish, and volunteerism — maybe they will become better stewards of our natural treasures than if their childhoods passed in front of gaming/video screens; (3) giving each participating child who is 10 years old or older a fishing license valid for one year, and paying their entry into Pleasant Harbor for our event, might encourage their families to take the kids fishing again and again; and (4) as strong advocates for the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Recruitment, Retention, and Reactivation Program, AZSFWC and AZ-TU know that kids who go fishing often are hooked for life. More anglers and hunters means more support for conservation of Arizona’s diverse wildlife populations and habitats.

It’s a case of win-win-win-win-win-win! If you’re counting wins. the fifth one is the kids.