ODFW Director Update

By Bob Oleson, Co-President and volunteer Policy Advocate

A special commission subcommittee has sent forward two candidates to this coming Friday’s full commission meeting in Salem. At this meeting questions submitted by this Tuesday will be posed to the candidates. After the public engagement portion of the meeting, the commission will go into executive session to make their decision, and then will reconvene to offer the Director position to their chosen candidate, either Debbie Colbert or Kaitlin Lovell. The open part of the meeting will be live streamed via the Agency’s YouTube channel.

These are two very different candidates. Deputy Director, Colbert has years of effective service with ODFW and the people it serves. In recent times her duties have included overseeing the fish and habitat programs of the agency. I believe she understands the potential the Agency has to move forward, and doing it without leaving the license buying stakeholders behind. Kaitlin Lovell has been an ongoing critic of the state’s hatchery system. She is an environmental lawyer with the city of Portland and a past co president of the Native Fish Society. As we know, there are these loud, impractical and misguided voices in such organizations which threaten the future evolution/role of hatcheries and our outdoor activities, especially fishing.

Several fish and wildlife groups are encouraging stakeholders to engage with questions and communicate with commissioners prior to the May 10 commission meeting. (Folks who want more background on the selection process can look at the agency’s related press release of April 29) Those of us who are concerned about this upcoming commission decision should also consider contacting any responsive local legislators and Geoff Huntington, who is the governor’s natural resources advisor. There’s not likely to be a more important state decision made this year that affects angling, wildlife and habitat.

If you contact ODFW Commission members, please remember to be respectful when expressing your concerns and asking for specific action. Email to the commissioners at ODFW.Commission@odfw.oregon.gov and copy your message to the Governor’s Senior Natural Resources Advisor, Geoffrey Huntington at geoff.huntington@oregon.gov.

Getting the Most Out of Being a Steelheader

By Norm Ritchie, Co-President of the Board

Reflecting back on my four decades of being a Steelheader, wondering how I got here, I realize that like most things “you get out of it what you put into it”. Like most of us, I joined to learn how to catch more fish.

Joining at the Sportsman Show, I got a call from Sandy River Chapter President Bill Beith who invited me to the next meeting. The speaker was a guide talking about winter steelhead fishing with spoons. I took what I learned down to Oxbow Park the following weekend. My first winter steelhead wasn’t the only one to get hooked that day.

But that wasn’t good enough for Bill. A while later he gave me another call to join the chapter board. That was the start of a whole new education. Being active opened up a new world of people, sport fishing issues, politics, and something called advocacy. My sons had moved on from Scouts and most of their school sports looking for jobs and girlfriends, so spending time with Dad had taken a back seat and I had more “me” time.

While working my way through the chapter leadership positions over the following few years and getting better at catching salmon and steelhead I also learned about what was limiting our opportunity and success. Bill Beith had also become the Association Treasurer and gave me a call about an opening on the Association board.

Gary Benson and Dennis VavRosky were Association Co-Presidents then, working on new international laws to limit the steelhead catch by high seas drift nets. With the success of that effort, Gary pulled the Steelheaders into the River Rights issue. We fought for our rights to the beds and banks of our rivers with legislation and in the courts. We won at the US Supreme Court and when legislation was passed making navigability determination cumbersome, Larry Beaver at the Sandy Chapter with help from a lawyer in the Tom Mcall chapter developed boiler plate for navigability  determination that has been used by everyone ever since, including Art Israelson who did the leg work on several. This all culminated in an Attorney General’s determination that affirmed our rights to use the beds and banks of our rivers.

I came to this organization as a truck design engineer with no fisheries, politics, or fish biology background but because of what I learned and because of my NW Steelheaders credentials, I was appointed by two governors to the Salmon Trout Advisory Committee and elected to the board of Save Our wild Salmon board representing the Steelheaders and to the National Wildlife Federation board representing all of Oregon, Washington, and Alaska. None of this would have happened without being active in the Steelheaders.

If you are a member at large, or at a chapter for just fishing instruction and friendships, that is great. The Steelheaders needs your support. But you may be missing out on a fuller life of participating in leadership or helping put on events. Years ago, distance and time limited people throughout the Northwest from being involved at the Association Level. Technology such as Zoom has removed that limitation. Association leadership and volunteers can come from anywhere and participate fully. I don’t know of anyone who has regretted being part of any of the Steelheaders’ successes. (My wife Joli who does not fish enjoys planning chapter picnics and working on the Association Banquet/Auction.) Reach out if you want to share in these experiences.

2024 NW Steelheaders Hall of Fame Set for Saturday, November 9th

Mark your calendars now! The Hall of Fame will be at the Gray Gables this year. The address, 3009 Chestnut St Portland, OR 97267, is just off McLaughlin Blvd (Hwy 99E) in Milwaukie. They are known for providing a great banquet.

So get this on your schedule now and look for more details - and an early bird registration discount - in the next newsletter!

Fred Meyers to Donate to NW Steelheaders – The Rest is Up to You!

By Norm Ritchie, Co-President of the Board

NW Steelheaders has enjoyed a good relationship with Fred Meyers for years having received grants for specific achievements from the Meyer Memorial Trust, but that does not help cover our overhead expenses. The Fred Meyer Community Rewards Program can help with that, but it requires your help.

Fred Meyer customers with an awards card or an awards account using their phone number enjoy  fuel discounts and grocery discounts not otherwise available. Linking your awards membership to  the Steelheaders does not reduce your customer awards in any way or cost you anything. Fred Meyers will simply donate quarterly to the Steelheaders based on the spending of the awards  members linked to the Steelheaders.

Please, PLEASE, take just a few minutes one time to add Steelheaders to your account:

1. Go to https://www.fredmeyer.com/i/community/community-rewards

2. select “2. Search for your organization here.”

3. It will take you to your log in page.

4. Once logged in it will take you to the Community Awards page where you can select your awards organization.

5. Simply type “Steelheaders” and select.

If you shop at Fred Meyers, but don’t have an awards membership, you can sign up and save some money, while helping the Steelheaders:

1. Rather than signing in, select “Create Account” from the Sign In drop down menu and follow instructions.

2. Use whatever phone number you would use at the store checkout to receive your awards as your “Alt ID”.

3. Once your profile is set up select Community Rewards to type and select Steelheaders.

Thank you for your support.

Chapter Meetings

A few chapters have resumed Monthly Chapter Meetings in-person, and we hope to get everyone meeting as soon as possible! To get more detailed meeting information please visit our Events Calendar. If you're having trouble finding a meeting you can attend, please reach out to us at office@anws.org and we'll help you out. As always, Chapter Meetings are free and open to the public. If you're new to Northwest Steelheaders, attending a meeting is a great first step to getting more involved with your local fishing community. 

Upcoming Meetings

•  Tualatin Valley Chapter - Thursday, May 9 @ 7 pm

•  Columbia River Chapter - Tuesday, May 14 @ 6:30 pm

•  McLoughlin Chapter - Tuesday, May 14 @ 7 pm

•  Salem Chapter - Tuesday, May 21 @ 7 pm

•  Emerald Empire Chapter - Tuesday, May 28 @ 6:30 pm

•  Mid-Valley Chapter - Wednesday, June 5 @ 6 pm

•  Sandy River Chapter - Thursday, June 6 @ 7 pm

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