Every year we look forward to seeing our friends from Mission Fishin’ and spending time on the water with them. We just had the honor of hosting this wonderful organization again last week. For those unfamiliar, Mission Fishin’ is a fantastic organization founded by Mr. Tony Davis with the help of marine artist and fishing enthusiast Mr. RJ Boyle. Tony started the organization to put a smile on the faces of foster children, children with special needs, their caretakers, and their families. One way to do this is to take them out on the water to fish, snorkel, or cruise for a fun and relaxing adventure.

Since Mission Fishin is based in South Florida, the Florida Keys is naturally an excellent choice for them to venture down with families.

Every year, Tony Davis and RJ Boyle put together a schedule of outings that includes fishing trips. Main Attraction Sportfishing hosts an annual fishing outing for Mission Fishin in October, right before the busy season begins.

Tony Davis (left) and RJ Boyle (right) know how good for the soul a fun day out on the water can be.

On October 22, 2023, the Mission Fishin’ crew and families showed up at our new Marathon Sailfish Marina location. It was a lovely day; the sun was shining, the wind was just right, and the kids were excited to get out on the water and go fishing.

RJ and Tony divided the families into the four Main Attraction Vessels, introduced everyone, and started to untie the lines. Captain Marty put RJ and Tony’s fishing rap songs on to get the party started. The families and our crews were dancing, laughing, and having fun already! Each vessel pulled away from the dock and they were officially underway, anticipating what the day had in store.

Team Main Attraction heading out of the cut with the Mission Fishin’ groups.

Within an hour, our boats were out on the reef catching various species with the families. The families caught Yellowtail Snapper, various Mackerel, Mangrove Snapper, Black Grouper, Yellow Jacks, and blue Parrotfish.

Ally and her brother Braydon having a fun day aboard the Main One.

We had a kid aboard one of our vessels named Cade, whom we dubbed the Yellowtail Slayer! He was catching them left and right and having such a good time.

Once all of our boats returned to the marina, we displayed their catch on the racks and filet tables for photo ops. The groups all told stories and compared what types of fish they caught. The mates started to clean the boats, and Captains filleted the catch.

Cade, the Yellowtail Slayer, was interested in learning how to filet his catch. Main Attraction Captain Jonathan pulled up a cooler for Cade to stand on and showed him how to handle and filet a Yellowtail Snapper. It was evident Cade was having a great time; he was over the moon! Lots of delicious fish were sent home with each group to enjoy for many meals.

Cade “The Yellowtail Slayer” with some great catches.

The smile on these kids’ faces was a priceless reward. We have met some terrific families along the way through Mission Fishin‘ and look forward to our next outing with them.

While RJ, Tony, and Katie Lewis were all in the same place, the videographer interviewed them as an opportunity to put a video together and raise awareness of the organization (the video above).

Main Attraction Co-Owner Katie Lewis is also the founder of the Marathon Premier Sailfish tournament, a non-profit organization that raises funds for organizations that help children. Her first annual event last year raised $10,000 for Mission Fishin. So, they also shot some content to help promote that important 2023 event.

If you would like to be involved with Mission Fishin’ or the 2nd annual Marathon Premier Sailfish Tournament, feel free to reach us at (305) 289-0071 or visit our contact page.