Tie-A-Thon and the Michigan TU Chapter Challenge

The Tie-A-Thon mission is “To provide quality flies tied by volunteers to non-profit groups and organizations that use fly fishing as therapy or education.” Tie-A-Thon is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that Tim Scott and Terry Wittorp co-founded in 2006.

The inspiration for Tie-A-Thon came when Tim and Terry attended a Kalamazoo Valley Chapter membership meeting. During the meeting, members were asked to contribute flies to be used by the campers at Michigan TU’s Youth Conservation and Trout Camp, hosted by KCVTU. A signup sheet was passed around so members could commit to the number of flies they would tie. When the sheet came to Tim, he saw some KVCTU members had volunteered to tie 10, 12, or maybe 20 flies.

On the drive home, Tim told Terry he might know a few guys willing to tie 100 flies each for the camp. Terry and Tim got to work convincing several fly tiers from around the area to tie as many flies as possible for the camp. That year 2500 flies were donated to the kids attending the Trout Camp. Tim and Terry hosted a culmination event at the Elkhart (Indiana) Conservation Club to collect the flies and wrap up the project. The day included many tiers coming together for good conversation, great food, and a little fly tying, and Tie-A-Thon was born.

What started as a couple of guys trying to get some flies for a kids’ camp has become an important fly-fishing organization. That first year all the tyers belonged to KVCTU or the St. Joe Valley Fly Fishers.

That changed quickly. During the last 17 years, Tie-A-Thon has received flies from all 50 states, five Canadian provinces, American Samoa, New Zealand, Australia, and Scotland. Volunteers have provided over 220,000 flies valued at over $600,000 to various fly fishing camps and organizations. Fifty-five tyers have donated over 1,000 flies each.

Along with keeping our Michigan TU Trout Camp supplied with flies all these years, Tie-A-Thon has supported several great organizations. Last year Tie-A-Thon donated 36,000 flies to Casting for Recovery of Indiana and Michigan. Casting for Recovery is an organization that uses fly fishing to work with women fighting or having survived breast cancer.

This year’s flies will be going to The Mayfly Project (themayflyproject. com), The Brotherhood of the Jungle Cock of New York (nybojc.org), and Reeling in Recovery (reelinginrecovery.org). The Mayfly Project is a national organization that uses fly fishing to mentor children in foster care. The Brotherhood of the Jungle Cock has provided a high-quality fly-fishing and conservation-based education for thousands of kids over 25 years. Reeling in Recovery offers free fly fishing retreats for people in active recovery from alcohol and drug abuse. These are all worthwhile groups that deserve our support.

Michigan TU Chapter Challenge

by Greg Potter

To help support the great work that Tie-A-Thon is doing this year, Michigan TU is hosting the first Tie-A-Thon Chapter Challenge for all Michigan chapters. The contest is simple. Members pick a pattern from the list provided, buy the hooks and materials they need, then tie at least 100 flies that are the same size and pattern. When finished, the tyers give the 100 flies along with their name, the name of their TU chapter, shirt size, and mailing address to their chapter representative or send them directly to Greg Potter, 906 S. Kalamazoo Ave, Marshall, MI 49068. Everyone that ties 100 flies will receive a free limited-edition Tie-A-Thon T-shirt. All flies must be turned in by March 31, 2023.

The chapter contributing the most flies and the chapter with the greatest number of tyers contributing flies as a percentage of the chapter’s membership will receive a framed Roberts Drake dry fly tied by Ray Schmidt. The Roberts Drake is a timeless Michigan dry fly that deserves a place in every Michigan angler’s fly box. The fly was originally tied to imitate those light-colored flies that come out after dark and keep us up late, but over time variations in different sizes and colors have made it a staple all season long. The Roberts Drake was designed by Ray Schmidt’s uncle Clarence Roberts, a former conservation officer that lived near Grayling. These classic Michigan flies, tied by one of our state’s most influential anglers and river conservationists, make them special pieces of Michigan fly fishing history that any fly tyer would want on the wall above their bench.

This is a great opportunity to have a little fun while supporting your chapter and these other great groups. So, pick your pattern and start tying.

For more information on the Tie-A-Thon, go to their website, tieathon.org, or like and follow the Tie-a-Thon Facebook page.