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2007 FFF Southern Council NominationTeacher of the YearAl BourisawNomination 1: As President of the Ozark Fly Fishers I am very proud and honored to second Bob Temper’s nomination of Al Bourisaw for Southern Council Teacher of the Year. As the Outings chair for the Ozark Fly Fishers for four years I worked very closely with Al on a lot of projects. He started many different classes on my outings for our beginners, such as classes on the water for nymphing, high sticking, dry fly presentations, casting, reading the water and many more very important aspects of fly-fishing. He has also put together fly tying classes for our members that address specific insects. He is very proficient on the entomology in side of fly-fishing and is eager to pass it along. His enthusiasm for teaching everything that has to do with fly-fishing was part of my drive to stay active in the club. He never left the beginner behind at any outing or seminar. I have seen him spend an entire two-day outing with members and others that have just a sparkle of knowledge in fly-fishing and never fishing himself. By the time he was done they had the basics down and were able to spend a day on the water catching fish by themselves. I know for a fact that there are many fly-fishers today that would not be if it weren't for Al. His patience and persistence with people in the fly-fishing world is incredible. I have witnessed others walk away from some hard-to-teach fly-fishermen and Al step in with the wonderful drive that only a real teacher has. He has never left anyone in trouble on the river with casting, fly choice, or technique. As the old saying goes “That man will give you his shirt right of his back”. I have seen Al pop off the only fly he had that was catching fish and help the guy who was about to give up on fly-fishing. He had beaten the water for a very long time and was very frustrated. I waited till Al came past and I asked him who that person was since I did not recognize him. He said just a guy wanting to learn how to fly fish. He said, as we stood there for a moment, “Watch Mike, there he is into one.” As the guy was hooting I turned to look at Al. He was walking down towards his car calling it a great day on the water. Al was not referring to the fish he caught that day. I have learned a lot from Al over the years as a fellow Ozark Fly Fisher. I am proud to call him my friend and am very lucky to have him as my education director. Mike Swederska President of the Ozark Fly Fishers Nomination 2: I am proud to nominate Al Bourisaw for the honor of Southern Council Teacher of the Year. Al is a devoted educator. He has brought the Education Director position within Ozark Fly Fishers to a new level. For many years Ozark Fly Fishers(OFF) has conducted fly fishing classes for the St. Louis County Parks “Gone Fishing“ program. Many of these classes were dependent upon the teaching skills of the volunteer instructor. Al convinced the OFF Board of Directors to invest in a computer and projection equipment for education purposes. Al then completely updated and revised these programs. He has done considerable research on each of the topics presented in the numerous classes and incorporated old and new information into informative and entertaining power point presentations. Each of the classes now has a handout as a take away for those attending to reinforce the information presented in the classroom. The power point presentations have also formed the basis for a notebook reference documentary he prepared for each of the classes to be passed on to future instructors which will assist in maintaining the continuity of the programs. In addition to the St. Louis County Parks classes, Al has spread the education opportunities to classes for St. Charles County and Eureka, the Missouri Department of Conservation at Weldon Springs Conservation Area, the Missouri Botanical Garden’s Shaw Nature Preserve, several area schools, and Cub Scout and Boy Scout Troops. All of these classes have been instrumental in attaining new members for OFF. Not only has he spread the opportunities throughout the community, he has introduced numerous classes specifically for Ozark fly Fishers in members only seminars. Al has invested considerable time and effort into furthering the sport of fly fishing with no thought of personal recognition or praise. These are just the highlights of why I think Al Bourisaw earned the honor of the Southern Council Teacher of the Year award. Al is the epitome of the Southern Council Tag line of “Conserving, restoring, educating, through fly fishing”... Thank you for your consideration. Bob Temper |
