It’s Memorial Day, a three-day weekend to kick off the unofficial start of summer, and the mad weekday rush back to the beaches and bays here at the Jersey Shore. But let us also remember that Monday, May 25th is a day of remembrance. A day set aside for mourning those U.S. military personnel who died while serving these United States. Having the day off to start this week is nice, but hopefully you’ve (we’ve) all taken a moment to recognize the day for what it is truly meant to be, one for honoring those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
The June printed monthly edition of The Fisherman Magazine has an article of mine titled “25th Manhattan Cup: Of Patriots & Purpose” which focused attention on Robert “Nico” Gil, a kid from Brooklyn who served in the U.S. Army in Iraq following the 9/11 attacks on our country. Nico returned from the Battle of Ramadi critically wounded by a suicide bomber driving an explosive-laden vehicle into the Army convoy. If you haven’t yet read that article on page 8 of the glossy June edition of The Fisherman, I would encourage you to do so, especially this week in honor of our vets.
Nico’s Delta Calvary unit lost nearly 500 brave Americans, with one in three wounded and hundreds of others receiving of Purple Hearts. While Nico Gil may have narrowly avoided death overseas, his return to the states with a Purple Heart pinned to his lapel was difficult. Yet through the Manhattan Cup, fishing literally helped save Nico’s life.
“It’s not just fishing, it’s fishing as force for good,” Nico said in that article.
Next week, the Manhattan Cup celebrates its 25th season; it’s also the 25th anniversary year of 9/11, and 250 years of these United States of America. If you’d like to do your part to honor the brave men and women willing to give the ultimate sacrifice, consider donating your boat to this year’s “cup” while carrying wounded warriors back and forth to the striper grounds.
Nico Gil is once again bringing in dozens of combat vets for a day of striper fishing, hoping to save a few more of these heroic man and women from the debilitating effects of post-traumatic stress disorder and other serious physical injuries from military conflict. And they could use your help, with a boat to fish on Friday, June 5th for the 25th Manhattan Cup out of Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City. Captains’ check-in is at 6:30 a.m. followed by a mandatory captain’s meeting inside Liberty Landing Restaurant. Boats will depart from the lower Hudson River between 8 and 9 a.m., then all boats must be back at port by 4 p.m. to return catch sheets for tracking the day’s awards.
To donate your boat and services for the day go to manhattancup.com and click on the Register Now button. There you’ll find a Captain Registration option where you can fill out all of the necessary forms. There is no charge when you check out. Includes slip, breakfast, box lunches and awards dinner. It might just be one of the most worthwhile on-water days you have ever experienced.
There are a wide range of sponsorship opportunities for various levels of monetary and/or product donations (tax deductible), and companies or individuals can support the Manhattan Cup. For more details you can reach out to Mike Dean at 917-873-6651 or mdean329@gmail.com or register. Dean recently joined us for a Next Cast segment to talk more about the Manhattan Cup and what it all means; you can find that episode #9 at The Fisherman’s YouTube channel.
Memorial Day is more than just a day off to start the summer season; it’s also a solemn occasion to honor the fallen. Take another day off next Friday, June 5th to celebrate and fish with those who returned.
