The Rogue River is a staple of the Rockford community. Running through the heart of downtown, it is a place the locals can gather. When it came time to help clean up the river, the community took action.
People from all over the Rockford area gathered to clean up the Rogue River on Saturday, September 15. Fifty people came to volunteer for four hours of the morning.
Among the group of volunteers were a few members of the Fly Fishing club: Keaton Raska, freshman Gibson Mears, and freshman Elijah Neumann.
The Fly Fishing club supervisor, Rich Youngberg, is very pleased of the work the club put in.
“It’s always great to see individuals invested in cleaning up our rivers,” Youngberg said.
The Fly Fishing club has made many connections over the years, working closely with various organizations, including Trout Unlimited, an organization whose mission is to protect and preserve waterways across the country, and Nomad Anglers, a fly fishing shop in Grand Rapids. These two organizations were both contributors to the Rogue River clean up, and were how the Fly Fishing club heard about the volunteer opportunity.
The club, which meets a few times a month, fishes in many local waters including the Rogue River, as well as Pere Marquette and the White River. Therefore keeping these waters clean is extremely important to them.
“The Fly Fishing club is always looking for ways to protect our waterways,” Youngberg said.
They have participated in many cleanups over the past couple of years. This work is both rewarding and disappointing, as they witness the negative impact humans can have on the environment.
“It’s a fun and enjoyable experience, that being said it is extremely frustrating removing trash others leave behind,” Youngberg said.
