By Jane Smith
July 22, 2008 12:28 am
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Mark Szitas of Meadville has been fishing since he was 6 years old when his father, the late Sheldon (Buzz) Szitas, took him fishing. He fell in love with the sport and has never tired of it.
Szitas, 48, participated in last year’s annual United Way Bass Classic Team Tournament, a benefit for the United Way of Western Crawford County, where he was one of the amateur fishermen competing with professionals.
He came in second.
Although Sandy Rossi, United Way executive director, said Szitas was “very close” to winning, Szitas said “it wasn’t that close,” noting his fish was probably a couple of pounds lighter than the winner.
Szitas is joining dozens of other fishermen Friday for the fourth annual Bass Classic Tournament where 26 professionals are registered already. “We are matching amateurs with pros this week,” said Rossi.
Channellock is sponsor of the event with The Meadville Tribune as the weigh-in sponsor.
Fishing boats will leave the docks at the Iroquois Boating and Fishing Club at Conneaut Lake at 7 a.m. to spend six hours on Pennsylvania’s largest natural lake — hoping to win the bragging rights as well as the money for reeling in the biggest fish.
While fishermen are doing it for the enjoyment and the chance to win some cash, the big winner will be the United Way.
The tournament, suggested four years ago by Phil Ness and Randy Ferguson, is the agency’s top single fund-raiser (other than the phone-a-thon which involves confirming pledges), said Rossi.
The two men had been in tournaments and suggested it as a new way to raise funds for the United Way. This year’s goal is $19,000. That represents 4.47 percent of the annual campaign goal of $425,000.
Rossi said the two men believed it was “something we could do to raise money.
We had the natural resources.” After contacting the Crawford County Bass Masters for assistance, the event was planned.
Participants will be fishing for both small- and large-mouth bass. Funds are raised through sponsors, who then are allowed to enter amateurs in the tournament.
Although participants take their boats on the lake to fish, provisions are made to provide them with snacks and beverages throughout the event. David Thomas delivers the items via a pontoon boat throughout the six hours.
The event raises quite a bit of public interest as well as money, according to Rossi. People love to go and watch the weigh-in, which begins at 1 p.m. Last year, Conneaut Lake Regional Police Department members provided traffic control for parking. “There were 200 to 300 people,” she added, noting people were parking all over the place.
While Szitas will compete, it’s the love of fishing that has drawn him to participate. He attributed his near-win last year to “42 years of hard-core fishing,” he laughed. “I love to fish and I really, really like to fish tournaments,” he said, noting he used to fish in a lot of tournaments.
“My granddad and my dad,” he said of how he got involved in fishing. “They took me to French Creek when I was 6 years old. I’m 48 now,” he said, noting he still “loved it as much as when I was 6. There’s some kind of magic about being out on the water with no interruptions.”
“It’s almost divine,” he said. “Jesus surrounded himself with fishermen,” he continued.
While he enjoys being in a boat to fish, he also enjoys just fishing in a creek in “shorts and flip-flops.”
He has all types of lures he uses to attract the fish’s attention. “I have enough lures to outfit a small tackle shop,” he laughed. His favorite is a “jig.”
“I miss fishing with my dad,” he said, but added he now has passed on the family’s love of fishing to his two sons, Jeremy, 15, and Chuck, 17.
Szitas, who works for the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue in the Erie office, has scheduled a vacation day to participate in Friday’s tournament. Asked why he would “waste a vacation day,” he quickly explains, “It’s not wasted.”
For him and the dozens like him, a day spent fishing is never wasted.
And, the chance to help raise money for the United Way makes it an even nicer event.
“Bring sun screen or rain parka,” Rossi advises fishermen (and women). The event is a go — rain or shine.
Proceeds will benefit all the agencies served by the United Way.
Jane Smith can be reached at 724-6370 or by e-mail at jsmith@meadvilletribune.com.
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