DAY AT THE MARINA 2026: FISHING, BOATING, AND LOTS OF SMILING!
The sun was shining ☀️ the fish were biting🎣and the Bigs and Littles were smiling! 😎
We had a wonderful time closing the summer season with our annual Day at the Marina Match Activity at Hope Springs Marina! This may have been the most active year of fishing, with Littles catching multiple fish off tday-at-the-marina-2026-fishing-boating-and-lots-of-smilinghe dock. It became a highly competitive fishing tournament, resulting in Maleek winning the First Fish trophy, Jaden winning the Biggest Fish award, and Josdiel winning the Most Fish trophy. Littles were then treated to boat rides, canoeing, and a classic summer lunch of hamburgers and hotdogs.
One of our Little Sisters had one of the biggest days of growth and learning! The Little Sister approached the dock slightly shaking, nervous about the open water underneath. With her Big by her side, she persevered through her fear to join in on the fishing fun. When she caught her first fish, she exclaimed, “I actually liked that!” with a smile on her face.
She decided to opt out of the boat rides but still wanted to overcome her fear of open water through the canoeing activity provided by Virginia Outdoor Center & VA Canoeing Association. She sat in a canoe with volunteers, Kelsey and Woody, who patiently coached her through being on the water and cheered her on as she followed through with her goal. Her Big Sister reinforced, “This is what it’s all about! Getting them out of their comfort zone just enough to open their eyes to the possibilities.”
With the support of her Big Sister and fellow volunteers (#ItTakesAVillage!), this Little Sister was able to realize her own potential, strength, and ability to overcome the obstacle of fear! 💚
BIG THANK YOU to Hope Springs Marina for hosting our most anticipated match activity and gifting fishing poles to our Littles! We'd also like to thank Virginia Outdoor Center for providing the canoes for our Littles, Kelsey and Woody with the American Canoe Association for providing instruction on canoe safety, Boat Captains for giving our Bigs & Littles a fun boat ride, and father/son volunteer duo Will & Tim Bloom who manned the grills. These "little" acts of service made a BIG impact on this fun summer day! 💚
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