The river just knows: Healing waters flow for Arctic Warriors

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Jack Sanders
  • JBER PAO
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON Alaska --  In the morning the waters of the Kenai River lapped gently against the bow of boats. The sky broke with sunlight as the fishermen prepared for the day.

The fishing day for Alaska's section of project Healing Waters, an organization dedicated to inspir¬ing and helping veterans wounded physically or mentally, began Sunday on the anniversary of 9/11.

Healing Waters is a fly fishing program founded in 2005 by retired Navy Capt. Ed Nicholson when he was recovering at a Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

"Project Healing waters is an organization dedicated to the emotional and physical rehabilita¬tion of wounded Soldiers, Airmen and veterans through fly fishing, fly tying, and fly fishing related activities," said Healing Waters Alaska section program director, Air Force Staff Sgt. Mike Henrie, U.S. Air Force Band of the Pacific.

"I get a common question," Henrie said. "A lot of people say, 'I don't really qualify for that pro-gram because I'm not wounded.'

In fact I had one guy who had shrapnel in his leg and was walk¬ing around on crutches and he told me he didn't think he qualified for it, and I said why, why do you say that? What that you think that you need in order to qualify?

"Then he said, 'Well I was just walking to the chow hall and I was just hit by a mortar.' And he didn't think that he qualified for the program. To me you don't have to have shrapnel in your leg, you don't have to have taken a bullet, you don't have to have been rewarded for your war accomplish¬ments to feel like you can benefit from standing in the water learning a skill, learning to fly fish.

"Having said that, the program is designed and geared toward helping people heal emotionally and sometimes physically, so, I don't want to get overrun with everybody who ever wanted to learn to go fly fishing, but at the same time I don't want to close it off to only certain people."

The group meets every second and fourth Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. in the 673d Medical Group Joint Venture Hospital physical therapy wing for a fly tying workshop and a casting class every third Wednes¬day in the Physical Fitness Center.

"The main purpose is to give these guys the skill to fly fish so that they can do it on their own," Henrie said. "It's not a onetime fishing opportunity. I'm not just going to take everyone fishing once a year. We want to have a relation¬ship with the guys and teach them a skill so that they can use that skill on their own. It's all about giving them chances to have their own experiences."

The participants who come through Healing Waters go through several fly-tying and casting class¬es before their fishing trips. The trips are for the wounded warriors, but participants are welcome to bring their families as well.

"We want the experience to be a healing one, and bringing the families with them is only going to add to that," Henrie said. "This trip was unique, as it was the only one where we didn't have any family with us."

The people who come through Healing Waters have the unique experience of meeting with other individuals who share similar in¬terests to their own. The organiza¬tion is a small group of volunteers who interact one on one with the recipients.

"This is a small program, and I would like to sort of keep it that way," sergeant Henrie said. "It's a very personal experience, there were 10 people fishing today. That experience is a completely dif¬ferent experience than what you would get at the Combat Fishing Tournament in Seward with over 400 people."

Henrie said, he would like to take more people, but if the pro¬gram stayed right where it's at he wouldn't be upset. Because the organization is smaller it allows for the volunteers to connect more with the recipients.

"We listen to their stories," Henrie said. "If you're just sitting at a table with a vice and you're wrapping thread around this hook, it's therapeutic just to do it, but you just start talking. You start talking about fishing, what you do for work, your families and you'd be surprised at how that will just open up a re¬lationship of trust really."

"It's like a social outlet rather than feeling like you'd have to go out and socialize by drinking," said Airman Josh Elordi, participant and 525th Fighter Squadron member.
Henrie said while you can talk, it's not required.

"You don't have to talk, you can just tie your flies and it feels good to just do that," Henrie said. "The same thing happens when you're out on the river. Standing in the river casting your flies it's just you. You don't have to have a conversation, but you can if you want to. At that point, when you're fishing, it just feels good to be in the water.

"One participant said, 'It's hard to be angry at God when you're standing in the water or on a boat like that with such beauty surrounding you.' To a lot of guys, let's face it, the military's a hard gig. A lot of guys get really an¬gry about it especially the guys who come back injured. They're frustrated, they're angry, they're looking for something that can give them some peace and I think this is great outlet to do that. Then when you catch the fish it's a huge adrenaline rush," Henrie said.

For other participants it might be just taking in the breathtaking scenery.
"Just look at the scenery on the beautiful Kenai River," said participant Spc. Shaun Vanderbo-gart, Medical Department Activity-Alaska. "Turquoise water with the background of beautiful pine trees just offsetting the river with a nice cool breeze and early in the morning when we first headed out on the river no one was out there it was all yours. Then you can see big ugly but beautiful fish jumping out of the water, just begging you to catch them."