The catfish did their part Friday when students from the Bethesda Home for Boys visited The Ford Plantation.

So did the 20 kids who made the trip from Savannah. The students caught about 300 pounds of catfish in about three hours of fishing, according to Fuzzy Davis.

“We kept 70 to 80 fish and threw back probably another 60 to 70 back in the pond,” said Davis, who is director of outdoor facilities at The Ford Plantation.

But the day was about more than just a chance to wet a hook on The Ford Plantation, Davis noted. Some of the students also got free rod and reels from Zebco and the Sierra Club.

“It’s part of a partnership between us to get kids outdoors,” said Harry Gregory of the South Carolina chapter of the Sierra Club. Delete - Merge U“The goal is to reach 100,000 kids this year. We want to include military bases so hopefully be doing more events like this here in the future.”

Beyond that, the day also was a chance for Bethesda students who participate in the school’s wildlife management program to see how wildlife management works.

“We talked about putting structure in the lakes and making fishing productive,” Davis said. “And catching fish is a part of it. The kids got to see the results of ponds that are well managed.”

For more, pick up a copy of the April 13 edition of the News.