A Fathers Road to “Healing”
Deep in the woods of Western Maine there is a beautiful river. The river is called Rapid River and it runs between Lower Richardson Lake and Umbagog Lake. The river is full of trout and landlocked salmon, which attract fly fishermen and women from all over the world. Parallel to the river there is a road called the Carry Road. Near the beginning of the Carry Road is where I live, in a place called Forest Lodge.
Forest Lodge is a magical place. It was formally the home of Louise Dickinson Rich, who wrote many factual accounts of her life in the woods with her family. Through these books during World War II, she became famous. Her main title, “We Took to the Woods,” was sent by the US Government to soldiers overseas to give them a remembrance of home and a sense of what they were fighting for. I have preserved Forest Lodge and it is now listed as a historical site. From this site I run a small fly fishing business and lodge.
It was a beautiful summer day and I was wandering around the Lodge doing the daily chores. I looked up the Carry Road to see a man and a woman approaching. They stopped at my little fly shop where I sell flies and equipment to those who fish the river. We got involved in conversation and spoke of many things, pertaining to the fishing and the area. They were staying at a camp upriver. They were Mr. and Mrs. Larry Mace, from Virginia.
Larry noticed a large sign I have describing Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing and its mission. I related to him what it was all about and that for three years now I had hosted groups of disabled veterans for fly-fishing. I was happy to tell him what wonderful rehabilitative events can do to help the recovering veterans and how much I enjoyed being a part of the program. We ended the conversation and parted.
Larry returned the next day because he wanted to make a donation to Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing. He was excited and impressed with the program and my involvement with it. He relayed to me that his son, Stephan, had been deployed to Afghanistan and that he felt a kinship to the program. He told me Stephan loved to fly fish. He had decided to bring Stephan to Forest Lodge next summer upon his rotation back to the states for a fly-fishing adventure. He left, saying he would be in touch with me to make a reservation and most important, he was going to look into getting involved with Project Healing Waters in his area.
A couple of months passed and I received a voice message from Larry asking me to get back to him. I had to think to recall the name and who he was. A couple of days later, I returned the call while on my way driving to Togus, Maine Veterans Hospital. He asked if I remembered him and our conversations. I did and recounted our discussions about Project Healing Waters and bringing his son, Stephan, for a fishing trip next summer.
I asked Larry if he was calling to set up his reservation for next summer. His response was staggering to me. Larry said, “I’ve become involved with Project Healing Waters.” I said, “Great, that’s a nice thing to do. So how have you become involved?” He said, “I got an interview with CNN and I mentioned that any donations should go to Project Healing Waters.” Being a little confused, I asked him how and why he managed to get an interview with CNN.
Larry proceeded to tell me, “All the flags down here in Virginia are at half mast. Do you know about the eight soldiers that were just killed in Afghanistan?” I told him I had heard about it. He said, “Well, my son was one of the eight. His body just arrived home and I got to thinking about you, the Rapid River and Project Healing Waters.” He said, “I think I am still in shock, but wanted to call you.”
I told Larry how sorry I was to hear about his son. He told me how he was even more committed to becoming involved with Project Healing Waters. He said he had already been in contact with the regional coordinator for his area. I asked him if he would like to come to Forest Lodge next summer when the veterans for Project Healing Waters come. He said he would like that very much and was hoping that he could do some other things to help the program. After the call ended, it took me the better part of an hour before I was able to continue driving. This was so sad!
Shortly after receiving the call, I received an email from Larry with links to the local stories and the CNN story about Stephan and his seven brothers in arms. What a shame someone so young, as well as all the others that have been killed in action, died defending their countries beliefs. The ultimate sacrifices paid by so many should not go without notice.
I deeply look forward to having Larry join the Project Healing Waters veterans and wounded warriors at Rapid River next year. My belief is; in helping soldiers heal, maybe we can also help a parent heal. Not only did Steve give the ultimate in sacrifice to his country, but a “DAD and MOTHER” also did.
GOD BLESS
