“Catfish Extravagan
Nacogdoches, Texas- The First-Annual Willie P. Richardson Catfish Catchin’, Cookin’ and Eatin’ Extravaganza will be held beginning at6pm on Saturday, May 10, 2014, at the Mill Room behind Banita Creek Hall in Nacogdoches. All ticket sales proceeds will benefit the East Texas Foster Family Association and will help local area children.
The event will begin at 6pm with the weigh-in for the biggest catfish caught and delivered to the event. The winner will be declared the “2014 Willie P. Richardson Catfish Catchin’ Champion” and will receive a large trophy. Cook teams also will begin preparing catfish, hushpuppies and fries at 6pm. A trophy will be awarded for the “2014 Willie P. Richardson Catfish Cookin’ Champion.” An all-you-can eat catfish dinner will be served from6:30-7:30pm. The “Miss Catfish Queen Pageant” will begin at approximately 7:45pm and will be hosted by nationally-known comedian, Willie P. Richardson. Musical entertainment will be provided by Brad Maule, who starred as “Dr. Tony Jones” on television’s General Hospital for 22 years, Kim Crisp, also known as “Camo Elvis,” and Stephen and Jane Pate’s Rockin’ P Band.
Willie P. Richardson’s comedy recordings are aired on thousands of radio stations, including SiriusXM, and have sold more than 1.25 million albums since 1995. He has performed his clean, family-friendly concerts throughout America for many years and has appeared on stage with Ray Price, Mel Tillis, Percy Sledge, The Platters, The Temptations, The Supremes, Gene Watson, Don Williams and many more entertainers. Mr. Richardson’s favorite sport has always been “catfishin’” and he has always enjoyed taking his sons, as well as many other youngsters and friends on fishing trips. “This event is the best of both worlds for me. Highlighting the sport of catfishing and helping children and foster families meet needs for clothing, school supplies, food and other expenses. I hope that this event can become huge and that it will continue on after I’m gone,” Richardson said. He also holds the Sam Rayburn Lake Rod & Reel Record Channel Catfish, which he caught in 2001 using a bait his company manufactures.
The East Texas Foster Family Association is a group of foster parents from Nacogdoches, Shelby, San Augustine and Sabine counties who take children in foster care into our home to love, care for, education and advocate for their best interests. The children are treated as family members and the foster parent is their legal guardian regarding education, healthcare and legal issues until the court makes a decision regarding their future. That could be a return to the parents, placed with grandparents or other family member, or termination of parental rights and placed for adoption.
The responsibilities of the foster parent are varied, and include trips to doctors, specialists in Houston, Dallas or Shreveport; counseling sessions, visits with parents (at CPS offices), school meetings, educational or physical therapy and dealing with the emotional or health issues of the children on a daily basis. Many of the children are eventually adopted by their foster parents if it is not safe for them to return to their birth family.
A foster parent knows that in most cases, the child or children will be leaving the foster home, and that is always an emotional and difficult day. If it does not hurt to see them go, we have not properly done our job. It takes very special people with a lot of love and dedication to do this, and thankfully east Texas has them. Never enough – we are always short of safe homes, and many homes close because of the emotional toll that fostering takes on them. Information on becoming a foster parent is available online, from a foster parent, or from a CPS caseworker.
Only 200 tickets are available for the event. Tickets priced at $20 each and are available at Boot Barn (Formerly Baskin’s) in Nacogdoches and Lufkin. For more information, to enter cook off or participate in the Catfish Queen Pageant, please visit WilliePRichardson.com or phone Julia Martin Jones, Director of East Texas Foster Family Association at 936.205.4405.