Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 11, 1995 TAG: 9505110051
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: STEWART MACINNIS SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Martha Robertson is pleased by the activity and the progress that is being made. All the major work will be done by the time children begin gathering there Saturday for the first round of the 44th annual Ernest "Pig" Robertson Trout Fishing Rodeos, named for her late husband.
"Since this is my last rodeo, I want it to be the best ever," said Robertson, who has been the driving force behind the events for the 12 years since her husband died.
Last year, 1,500 children participated in the rodeos, as did about 100 nursing home residents. Large crowds are expected again this year.
The rodeos are scheduled for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday for children ages 3 to 8; 10 a.m. to noon Monday for handicapped children; 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday for nursing home residents; and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 20 for children ages 9 to 12. No advance registration is necessary; rain dates are the day following the scheduled rodeos.
"Children tell me this is their happiest day," Robertson said. "And when I see the expressions on their faces ... well, it just makes all the work worthwhile."
Her husband, then a member of the House of Delegates, organized the first rodeo because children could not fish safely along the Roanoke River. He convinced state officials to stock the two small ponds at the park, and he got businesses to donate prizes for the children.
The first event was so successful it became something people looked forward to every year. In fact, said Robertson, it has become a tradition for some families that spans three generations.
The state stocked the pond with fish only for the first year. Since then, rodeo organizers have depended on donations to buy fish. They also depend on donations of prizes and treats for the children and on volunteers to help run the event.
Robertson said cash and merchandise are still needed. People interested in contributing should contact the Salem Department of Parks and Recreation.
She said she enjoys organizing the event, calling on businesses for donations and finding volunteers to help. Health concerns, however, are forcing her to give it up.
"I hadn't planned on doing it this year," she said. "In fact, my doctors advised against it. But it's the best medicine I could ever have gotten. My whole heart is in this. I'm at my happiest when I'm doing this."
She has been working over a six-page list of more than 140 business that have made donations in the past. She has called them and arranged to have items picked up and stored until the rodeos. The work isn't hard; it's just time-consuming. And, she said, she has to depend on other people to go around to the businesses to pick up donations.
Charlie Hammersley, city parks and recreation director, said concrete walkways around the ponds will be complete by the time of the rodeos, allowing anglers, especially those who are handicapped, easier access to the pond. A new bridge between the two ponds also will be ready.
Other work on the park, primarily landscaping, will not be completed until midsummer. That won't affect the rodeos, though, he said.
"We'll be able to hold more people than in the past," he said. "Everywhere there is an open space, there will be a kid. And with $7,000 worth of trout, we've got enough for everyone."
Enough for children, that is. A city ordinance prohibits anyone older than 12 from fishing in the ponds. The only exception is the one day the nursing home residents cast their lines.
Robertson said the ponds are guarded between the rodeos to ensure no unauthorized fishing occurs.
"If we can keep adults from taking the fish, there are enough so kids can fish all summer," she said.
Among the special help Robertson says she needs are people with rods and reels to help the handicapped children and nursing home residents.
"I'd like to see every one of them go home with a trout," she said.
All the children have fun during the festive rodeos, she said. "We try to make it as much like Christmas as we can. Some of the people will get here at 6 a.m. or earlier and pick out their spot. And we have something going on all the time."
Prizes and giveaways keep activity at a high pitch throughout the rodeos. But Robertson is no less impressed by the support from the community to help make the event happen.
"It just blows my mind how much the community loves the rodeos and how much it supports them," she said. "It's just unbelievable. And, of course, this has all been such an important part of my life, too."
by CNB