To the Editor:

The fish have been caught, weighed and released. The trophies and prizes have been awarded. The pictures have been snapped.

Now it’s time for the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce to thank the many people who helped us make the 9th Annual St. Lawrence International Junior Carp Tournament a huge success.

First, though, our congratulations to all the winners, especially Grand Champion Mike Cummings of Madrid, and “Big Fish” winner Tyler Mitchell of Hogansburg, the 13-year-old first-timer who reeled in a monster 40-pound, 8-ounce carp.

These young anglers, and nearly 100 more from around the county and the country, were all outstanding and inspiring participants in this year’s contest.

The kids, their parents, and all of us from the chamber had a wonderful, fun few days on the St. Lawrence River.

In great part that’s because of the support we received from so many individuals and businesses.

Without their help, the Junior Carp Tournament couldn’t go on.

Thanks so much to our volunteer Marshals, who were on the river for two days helping make the event the best it could be: Louie Kiah, Chris Stevenson, Joel Hockey, Jay Foster, Grace Whitman, Terry Whitman, Phil Saunders, Steve Uppstrom, Steve Conger, Jason Moore, Hank Lago, Tim Lago, Bill Zecher, John Steen, Kevin Bateman, Mike Ripa, Theron Sherman, James Gurrolla, Jake Losey, Mike LaShomb, Amy Miller, Paul Gurrolla, Bob Giordano, Sheryl Evans, and Richard Cook.

Along with the Marshals, area members of the Amateur Radio Emergency Service provided invaluable assistance by transmitting details from the tournament locations as each fish was caught and weighed.

Thank you to Kerry Bickford, Fred Jarrett, Doug Leafe, Ted Champagne, Roger Ousterhout, George Hoover, David Jackson, Walt Brady, Phil White, Dan McGrath, Rick Sherman, Ben Gruda, Phil Duprea, Tom Dick, Mike Gibbons, Bob Corbett, Jean Jarrett, and Rose Jackson.

Thanks, too, to Don Meissner, our FISHCAP program coordinator and legendary local angler; Grand Marshal Connor Loomis; and Alicia Murphy and Karen St. Hilaire, our team at tournament headquarters.

We also appreciated the outstanding coverage of the tournament by local media, notably The Journal and Advance News, Courier-Observer, and YNN.

A special thank you to Mort Backus & Sons of Ogdensburg, for their continued support of the pre-tournament fishing school; and to our other generous sponsors: Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Time Warner Cable, Carp Anglers Group, Mike's Trophies, Waddington Chamber of Commerce, Pepsi Cola Ogdensburg Bottlers, North Country Savings Bank, Catch and Release Professional Tournament Series, Town of Louisville, NBT Bank, Cape Air, Great Northern Printing, MVP Health Care, Bion, SeaComm Federal Credit Union, Casella Waste, Sullivans Office Supply, City of Ogdensburg, Kunoco IGA, Stewart's Shops, Jreck Subs, Pizza Hut, Specialist Tackle, Mix 96.1, WMSA, 101.5 The Fox, Potsdam Specialty Paper, Ostranders Bed & Breakfast, Town of Waddington, Village of Waddington, FISHCAP, Madrid-Waddington Central School, JC's River Run, Seaway Diner & Smokehouse, Casio – Japan (Digital Imaging Division), Marukyu – Japan, Tsuribito – Japan, Alcoa, New York Power Authority, Massena Savings & Loan, ENV North Agency, SLIC Network Solutions, Ogdensburg Bridge & Port Authority, Big Carp Tackle, Nature’s Trophies, Wacker Bait & Tackle, Jim and Dot Locy, Off the Hook Bed and Breakfast, Fidelis Care, and P.J. Burns.

All of these businesses and individuals were instrumental in giving more than 100 boys and girls a fantastic fishing experience on our magnificent St. Lawrence River.

We hope to see you all at next year’s tournament, August 16-18, 2012. It will be the 10th anniversary of the event – and we’ll be putting together a celebration to remember.

Pat McKeown

Executive Director, St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce