Community Gears up for Annual Get Kidz Hooked on Fishing Event

ZANESVILLE, OH – An event aimed at mentoring children through the beauty of nature is returning for its fourth year.

The 4th Annual Get Kidz Hooked on Fishing will be on Sunday, March 1st, from 1 to 4PM at the Muskingum County Fairgrounds.

Solomon Curtis, the Director and CEO of Get Kidz Hooked, says the first year they hosted this event, only about 100 kids turned out but this year that number has jumped to 800.

“The event this year, I’m happy because when you mentor kids over the year, and when you see one of those kids start mentoring and giving back to this community, it just makes my heart full of joy.” Curtis said. “So this year the guest speaker is a kid that was struggling, and he’s going to tell you all about that, but I mentored him years ago and I continue to mentor him and stay in contact, he’s the keynote speaker. So he’s going to tell you about how fishing helped him overcome traumatic events in his life.”

Curtis says this free event will also feature a speaker from the Ohio Division of Wildlife to talk about the different species of fish they stock in our local waterways.

There will also be discussions on knot tying, casting, face painting, food, with music provided by DJ Adonis.

“The reason I do this is because these kids remind me of my why, of my purpose, and at an early age I knew that my purpose was to serve, to help kids.” Curtis said. “I was that kid before, that needed a positive mentor in my life and I thank God for my Uncle Greg, that introduced me to fishing because it changed my life, so they remind me of my why.”

For more information on Get Kidz Hooked on fishing, you can head to their Facebook Page.