Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing

National Fly Rod Building Program and Competition; National Fly Fishing Casting Competition

Location: National

Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing (PHWFF) provides support, socialization, and camaraderie to wounded, ill, and injured service members and veterans. Activities such as casting, rod building and fly tying help participants improve their hand-eye coordination, adaptive muscle memory, and balance, all while improving cognitive focus and helping participants cope with stress-related issues brought on by Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress. PHWFF offers a community where individuals with similar experiences and disabilities can engage with one another, building lifelong relationships, all the while undergoing therapeutic recreational therapy. This grant is made possible through a partnership between the National Football League and the Bob Woodruff Foundation. This NFL-BWF Healthy Lifestyles and Creating Community (HLCC) grant will provide 950 veterans with mental and physical health benefits from building rods and competing for national artistic honors. This HLCC grant will also fund the Inaugural National Casting Competition, including local, regional, and national competition.  This opportunity encourages disabled service members and veterans, both new and expert at fly fishing, to persist in the physical and rehabilitative activity of casting. The 24 regional casting winners will compete in the national casting finals in Boise, Idaho during the Fly Fishers International (FFI) Fair, Aug. 8-11, 2018.