It doesn’t take much to change a person’s life as long as the effort comes from the heart.
As children who were fortunate enough to grow up with a father, we have memories with them that we can say contributed to who we are today.
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Some of us were taught by our dads to drive. Some of us knew carpentry because we were assigned “tool maintenance”. And some of us knew how to play baseball because we played catch.
But for a Florida man, changing lives involved another father-son bonding activity.
William “Big Will” Dunn has a special mission in life. He wants to give other children the chance to do something with a “parent”.
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For Dunn, fishing has been an important part of his life. He grew up angling because his father would always take him on these trips. These special moments made him realize the effect of activities can have on children.
His calling started when we encountered Cameron Delong.
Delong didn’t quite fit in. He described the boy to FOX News as someone who was “frustrated and showed anger”. Soon enough, he found out that Delong doesn’t have a “father figure” to grow up to.
Relying on what he does best, Dunn asked Delong’s mom if he could take the boy out for fishing. This started a habit of fishing trips that spanned two or three days a week, not counting the weekend trips.
Since then, Dunn shared to FOX News that he saw an improvement in Delong. He shared that the boy started doing well in school and was much more loving to his mom. Dunn said that Delong was “becoming more of a man of the household.”
This encounter and its effect gave him an idea.
He thought that if he could change a kid’s life through fishing, he can do so much more if he bring other kids with him out in the blue yonder. He contacted different foster homes and started making trips with groups of 20 to 25 kids.
“We take them out, show them a good day and spend time with them and everything,” he said to FOX News. “Just to get out of the boat you see the difference in them.”
He also shared that fishing also instills a set of skills in children. These skills are things they can use not only in the classroom but out in the community as well such as patience, collaboration, and mindfulness.
At first, the trips were done out of his own money.
But since became a non-profit, Dunn and his organization can now take donations which will enable them to serve more children.
“My reward is … If I could be a light for one more kid, it’s worth it.” He said to CBS when asked why he kept on fishing with the kids.
According to FOX News, Dunn still goes out into the water with Delong. It only goes to show that family is not usually decided by blood. It’s decided by the urge to care.
Watch how this man’s hobby turned into a beacon of love for fatherless children.
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