WASHINGTON 鈥� Pro and semipro bass fishermen from across the country were in Stafford, Virginia on Saturday for a tournament where the main focus wasn鈥檛 on winning.聽 Instead, this tournament is about helping wounded veterans.
“This has been life changing,” says Nelson Zapata, a wounded veteran聽who says he’s dealing with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. “Before this, I pretty much stayed at home.”
It鈥檚 the fifth聽year for then the Potomac at Hope Springs Marina in Stafford. On聽Saturday, 82 wounded veterans聽were paired with a pro or semipro angler for a day of healing on the water.
The bass tournament is about more than catching fish, especially for people like聽Zapata, who participated in聽the tournament for the first time last year. This year, his service dog joined聽him.
Paul Elias, an elite pro bass angler, brought his boat in from Mississippi. It’s his聽second year doing the tournament. “Just to see the guys smiling and having fun, that鈥檚 a big deal.聽 To see them have fun that鈥檚 what it鈥檚 all about,”聽Elias says.
The anglers are all volunteers.
The Reel American Heroes Foundation, a nonprofit, was created聽in order to “provide recreational therapy for our warriors,” says founder聽Ron DeFreitas. The foundation is run by volunteers.
Nelson Martinez, president of Virginia operations with the foundation, says magic seemed to take place out there on the water.聽 It鈥檚 not all about competition, it鈥檚 about connecting and friendship.
