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Bodin Fisheries honors Friends with unexpected catch
The Bodin family knows a thing or two about fishing on Lake Superior. Nils Adolf Bodin immigrated from Sweden in the late 1800s, marrying Elizabeth Johansson. Together, they had six children and began the family fishing legacy that continues to this day.
Lake Superior fishing tug – Jeff Rennicke photo
Running a successful fishing business takes both an understanding of and appreciation for the ways of the lake. So, when Bill Bodin recently received an unexpected opportunity to pick a local nonprofit to receive a donation, he immediately thought of Wave Watch and Friends of the Apostle Islands.
Bremer Bank Top Performers visit The Fish House – Click to enlarge – Bremer Bank photo
It began with a visit by a group of “top performers” of Bremer Bank, a chance for them to see the beauty and behind the scenes hard work that makes Bayfield special. The group of about thirty toured the Bodin Fishery, getting a look at the time-honored tradition of catching, processing, packaging, and delivering Lake Superior whitefish and trout, something the Bodin family has been doing for generations.
The group was so impressed with the professionalism and friendliness of the Bodin family that Bremer offered Bill Bodin an opportunity to pick a local nonprofit for a $2,000 donation as a kind of “thank you.”
Bill and Karen Bodin
“When Bremer notified me that they’d be making a donation on our behalf to a non-profit of our choosing for the time and resources we extended to their Annual Awards Recognition Trip participants,” Bill says, “I immediately thought about the Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and the Wave Watch program.”
Wave Watch, a partnership between Friends, the National Park Service, and the University of Wisconsin, includes the deployment of five solar-powered wave buoys strategically placed in important boating areas of Lake Superior within the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Those buoys, according to Friends Executive Director Jeff Rennicke, become a boater’s “eyes on the water” by providing real-time wave data including wave height, frequency, direction, even water temperature every thirty minutes 24 hours a day. All with just the scan of a QR code on your phone.
Wave Watch buoy and flag at sunrise – Jeff Rennicke photo
The Bodin family knows that safe boating is informed boating. “This real time knowledge of the waves and weather conditions helps all who work in and around the islands to be safe,” Bill Bodin said in presenting the donation to Friends for the Wave Watch program. “From pleasure boats (and party barges) to sailboats, kayaks and even commercial fish tugs, I believe this program is worthy of this donation.”
“All of us at Friends of the Apostle Islands are honored to receive this unexpected catch,” says Rennicke. “Thank you to the Bodin family for your support of Wave Watch and Friends of the Apostle Islands and to Bremer for the opportunity.”
For more information on Wave Watch and how you can support safe boating in the islands, click here.
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