Casting to heal - Therapy is in session

Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. (PHWFF) began assisting wounded military personnel at Walter Reed Army Medical Center after battles in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2005. Since then, the PHWFF has grown to include Department of Defense hospitals, Warrior Transition Units, and Veterans Affairs medical centers and clinics around the country. 

Project Healing Waters provides a high-quality, full-spectrum fly fishing program to a growing number of handicapped active military service members throughout the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, military hospitals, and the Warrior Transition Command. They direct their resources where they are most needed and grow a network of partners in the process. PHWFF has established itself as a pioneer and role model in the field of therapeutic outdoor recreation for impaired people.

Last year, PHWFF and U.S. Air Force Vietnam veteran Tom Glynn addressed the Commandery on the healing benefits of fly fishing and Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing. This is what he said: 

"The practice of fly fishing is very suitable for the healing process for veterans. It fully engages the mind, the intellect, and the emotions, while at the same time placing you in an environment that is very intimately, I might say, almost in a holy way, connected to nature. I think it is both exciting and contemplative. It encourages social interaction and allows and respects solitude. So, I have found it to be a very salubrious practice.

I’ve learned a few things from Project Healing Waters that I’d like to share with you. The first thing I learned is that fishing is about a lot more than just catching fish. The second thing I learned is that there is a special, unique camaraderie between veterans and other veterans and military people, and this can be very, very useful in the healing process of healing from the internal wounds of war. The third thing I learned, and which is probably the most personal and most important to me, is that I am not alone, and that people really do care. "  Tom's words were so perfectly said, I had to quote him. 

Creating these healing occasions through fly fishing is what moved me to volunteer with PHWFF. Years ago, I was introduced to PHWFF via their Chief Operations Officer, David Folkerts, and over the years I have connected with veterans river side, assisting in catch and release, and witnessing the healing that comes to hand during these moments. It’s incredible and an honour to give back in this manner. 

Fly fishing is a religion for most of us fly fanatics, but giving back via this passion is the ultimate gift. 

You can learn more about this wonderful organization on their website, https://projecthealingwaters.org