Bemidji’s ‘Casting with Cops’ Fishing Program Wins Award from Recreation Org.

Bemidji recently won an award from the Minnesota Recreation and Park Association for the city’s second annual Casting with Cops event, which took place last September.

The program connects local law enforcement with kids to teach them about fishing. It’s something that’s important to Bemidji Police Officer Gregory Zimbelman, who has had a love for fishing ever since he was a young child.

“There was a partnership that was had in another small town that actually offered the opportunity for youth to have a liaison to do things that youth weren’t able to do,” said Zimbelman. “With that, I was able to go fishing, and that’s when I really enjoyed started my hobby of fishing.”

Zimbelman wanted to extend his love for fishing to any youth who were possibly interested in learning the hobby, while also using his position as a police officer to build better relationships within the community.

“We’re surrounded by thousands of lakes, so I thought it was a great opportunity to kind of extend that olive branch a little bit further in the position that I am as being in law enforcement, to utilize that with our youth here,” he explained.

Thus, the Casting with Cops program was born. The Bemidji Police Department partners with Bemidji Parks and Recreation and the local Boys and Girls Club to take several kids fishing every other week.

“[We were] on a pontoon, and we had an absolute blast,” added Zimbelman. “There’s been a lot of resources that are saying, ‘Hey, how can we help?’ And the program has actually just exploded.”

The program became a community event, where over 100 kids flooded the docks on Diamond Point Park to cast their reels with Bemidji police officers.

“Every youth that came here walked away with a whole bag of of fishing lures, along with a brand new fishing rod, and there was no expense to any of the community,” said Zimbelman. “That’s just based off of the great support that we have here in lakes country.”

That support earned the Casting with Cops event an Award of Excellence from the Minnesota Recreation and Park Association for the event’s ability to raise awareness and appreciation for parks and rec services.

“Some of those reasons include the high level of collaboration amongst the two city departments, and also other community partners coming together to provide this community event for the children of Bemidji,” said Michelle Snider, executive director of Minnesota Recreation and Park Association.

She added, “You have a beautiful lake here, and it’s a great opportunity to get kids on the lake and near the lake, and providing an opportunity to have a lifelong sporting activity that they can enjoy in years to come.”

Officer Zimbelman, however, wasn’t aware of the impact that he was making on the community with this event.

“I was surprised because I didn’t realize that we’ve been making such an impact and is being recognized on a state level,” says Zimbelman, “It’s really a feeling of honor and accomplishment that we are doing well to better our community.”

The next Casting with Cops event is scheduled to take place on August 8th at Diamond Point Park in Bemidji.