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Did you know that back issues of River Views, the monthly newsletter of the HRFA, are available for all to enjoy on our website? Click here, or the River Views banner, to go directly there and catch up on your reading.

Past HRFA President Danny Harrison shared this text message he got from John's son Chris Vargo - “My father passed this morning he was not alone. We were listening to Moby Dick”

"John was an expert for all things that related to the Hudson River. He was a friend and moreover, he was a resource. He loved the Hudson, and all its characters and history. His knowledge was unbounded. He will be missed by all of us at the HRFA and by the Hudson itself. RIP John!" - Gil Hawkins, Past President HRFA

"John told me many times how much he liked our organization. He said “No other group does what the HRFA does as far as getting people up and down the river fishing." He was always impressed with the volunteers that helped kids fish. He always knew someone that could help us and was happy to make that introduction. Because of John we now have quite a few events from Manhattan to Troy, NY." - Dan Harrison, Past President HRFA

"John Vargo was an amazing historian, who provided valuable knowledge to everyone about the Hudson River. His well-spoken words and experiences he shared are a treasured gift to me. John had a peaceful, gentle spirit that will be missed by everyone. May his family be blessed with peace and serenity." - Janice Soto

"So sorry to hear that John passed away. From the short time I spoke and emailed him, I could tell John was very creative and detailed. Beneficially traits to what he successfully established over the years. Prayers for him and his family." - Chris Palmer

A special day to honor a life well-lived was, unfortunately, the same day as the HRFA's Annual Awards Dinner. Nonetheless, two Past Presidents of the HRFA, both very good friends of John's, attended. In the photo from left to right is Peter Bardunias, John's son Chris Vargo, Dan Harrison and Gil Hawkins. Below is Peter's tribute to his good friend, posted to FaceBook.

NOTE: The link above no longer works. The episode must be purchased. - The Editor

Be sure to also check out the H.R.F.A. Events Calendar below for this month's member birthday notices, holidays and events.

The cash prizes are higher than before. Everyone in the Derby, whether they enter a fish or not, is eligible to win Grand prizes with participants' names drawn at the conclusion of the contest. The drawing will be held during the Awards Ceremony May 18th at the Croton Yacht Club. Food, drink, raffles, 50:50 drawing and additional prizes will be awarded to those who attend in person. W will try and announce all the winners LIVE on Social Media.

1st Place - 42.50" | Angler No: 102 | Boat

2nd Place - 42.42" | Angler No: 222 | Boat

3rd Place - 41.08" | Angler No: 479 | Shore

4th Place - 40.75" | Angler No: 850 | Boat

5th Place - 39.25" | Angler No: 940 | Boat

6th Place - 37.50" | Angler No: 966 | Boat

1st Place - 45 stripers | Angler No. 940

2nd Place - 8 stripers | Angler No. 850

3rd Place - 7 stripers | Angler No. 802

4th Place - 6 stripers | Angler No. 811

5th Place - 1 striper | Angler No. 604

5th Place - 1 striper | Angler No. 452

Meet up: Sandy Hook, NJ – Lot C – 8:00 AM for a quick rundown of rules and answers to questions if you have any. And last minutes sign ups.

Awards: 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place prizes

For your entry fee of $350.00 per boat. Gray FishTag Research will supply tagging sticks, tagging supplies and two custom-made study shirts to all participating boats. (Extra shirts will be available for purchase) The top tagging team will be awarded a Striped Bass mount courtesy of Gray Taxidermy and other great prizes.

On Wednesday night, May 17, 2023, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, Ross Brewing Company located in Port Monmouth, New Jersey will host our Captain’s Meeting. You will need to be present to register your team, receive your boat number, study shirts and tagging supplies. We will discuss our study efforts, introduce sponsors, and offer an incredible RAFFLE for incredible prizes. Beer, soft drinks, and pizza will be served.

On Thursday, May 18, 2023, we will depart from Bahr’s Landing in Highlands, New Jersey (lines in at 7:00 a.m. lines out at 3:00 p.m.) for a day of “competition with a cause” as we GFR green spaghetti tag as many Striped Bass as possible. All tag data cards will be turned in at the end of the day at Bahr’s Landing from 3:00 p.m. to 6 p.m.

NJ Fish & Wildlife's Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center is offering two overnight programs this summer for students interested in exploring the salt marsh through hands-on activities.

We had a different kind of meeting this past month. There was not a single invited guest speaker - there were seven! From all accounts the meeting was a rousing success. There was even talk about taking the show on the road. Possibly, as a seminar at an upcoming outdoors show in 2024. Wouldn't that be cool.

Here is some of the ZOOM session.

The problematic beginning and end with the audio issues are clipped.

(Thank you Michael Sardinas for editing the clip!)

Click the arrow above to watch a portion of the meeting.

Aside from the fact that the weather could have been a little less cloudy, windy and cold the day was otherwise perfect. It was so gratifying to see so many members volunteer their time and talents to make this annual event the success it was. Kudos, once again, to Peter Musse who chaired the event rallying all of us to "get 'er done". The HRFA is blessed to have such great selfless members willing to do good things for others.

From L. to R.: Carl Bruger (with 4 wins), Tim Burden, Dan Harrison, Mona Mak, Stephanie Hess, Jerry Crean and Aram Setian. Thats Scott Havner between Jerry and Aram. Scott is the Fishing Contest Chairman. With each certificate came a gift card from Art's Tackle & Fly Shop in Nanuet, NY.

PS. Jerry Crean also was named "Angler of the Year".

PSS. There was $100 gift card "Bucket Prize" drawn from the names of everyone who entered a fish in 2022. The lucky angler was John Francesconi.

This year we introduced another award. It recognizes a member who has given a lifetime of service to the HRFA. A quorum of past winners of the club's most prestigious Pete Barrett Achievement Award voted unanimously to accept the nomination of Arnie Ulrich to be honored as the first recipient of the new award. There are others who deserved, and got, serious consideration. Even they agreed Arnie was top gun. Heck, he was Membership Chair of the club even before it became known as the New Jersey Chapter of the Hudson River Fishermen's Association. Presenting the award to Arnie is current HRFA President Joseph Albanese.

This year we presented the DeMarchis family with our Friend of the Hudson River Award. Our little way of saying "thank you" for all of the support they have shown us and the river over the years. Their family business, Westerly Marina in Westchester, continues to serve the Hudson River boating community for over 60 years. Each year they generously donate a 2.5hp Mercury outboard motor, allow us to use their space as a weigh station during our Catfish Chaos Derby and much more. We are delighted that they could be with us at the dinner. At the dinner they even presented us with a sizable check made out to the HRFA to honor the memory of John Vargo.

Accepting the award, presented by Scott Havner and Dan Harrison, are

DeMarchis family members.

The team of Dave Mercer & Janice Soto went home with the year's top award. Ever since joining the HRFA, a few short years ago, they have been two of our most active members. The following list includes some of their many accomplishments. We suspect these two dedicated volunteers aren't about to "rest on their laurels" either. We can only hope to find one or more new members like these two special people. We can use the help.

Our YAP volunteers made some children from the Bergen County Special Needs School very happy. Giving these children a chance to be outdoors and fish puts a smile on everyone's face - children, caregivers and volunteers alike. A terrific morning spent at Darlington County Park in Mahwah, NJ. Being with friends doing something for others less fortunate is very worthwhile and just makes everyone feel wonderful. Give it a try and you'll agree.

Yes, the new rod & reel combos for freshwater lakes, purchased with your dues & donations, were just the ticket for bringing in more than a few bluegills and sunnies. I think every child caught at least one. Well done!

We return to work with these special kids at Darlington Park on the following dates. Call Wayne Geider (201-384-8046) if you want to see if you enjoy volunteering to make these kids' happy for a few hours and possibly create memories that will last a lifetime.

Carl Bruger has been a writer for this newsletter educating and entertaining us who read River Views for a long time. Here is (are) his latest gem(s).

The only half/valued remedy to all this gutter uttering is to tone down and vary our responses. Instead of the ubiquitous “s---“, strive to say fecal matter. I know this doesn’t roll off the tongue and satisfy the same way but I taught this to my toughest general classes over the years and the principal even complemented me on not hearing the usual profanity in

the halls and chuckled at the erudite new terms he was hearing when something pissed off an angry kid. Other options like gosh darn for GD and freaking great for the profane option show prose latitude better employed in mixed company. I leave it to the reader to make the “right choices” while you continue to catch fish.

New Members this month are Christopher Ciongoli, Mahwah, NJ, Anthony Garofolo, Marlboro, NY, Jermaine Bethers, Irvington, NJ, John Anthony DiMaria, Hoboken, NJ, John Kis, Valhala, NY, Barry Gonnelli, Berkkley Heights, NJ, Ilir Camaj, Pomona, NY, Laura Cooper, New Hampton, NY, John Kalaigian, Cliffside Park, NJ, Alek Kalishion, Sparkill, NJ,

 Fight For the Hudson

If anyone would like a current JCAA newsletter please click here > https://jcaa.org/JCNL2212/Mainpage.htm

What is HRFA Free Money? Are you a paid member.?

 At every HRFA in person meeting, half of the HRFA portion of the 50/50 money goes into a virtual jar. At the end of the meeting, a paid HRFA members name is picked (from a jar of all paid HRFA members) to receive the money. The name is announced three times. If the HRFA paid member is not present, the money goes back into the jar for the next months meeting. The process continues and is repeated at the next HRFA meeting.

The generous grace period ended for renewals on March 31st. Those not renewed are on the stale list and are removed from the membership rolls. Note , If you do not have a 2023 or life time membership card , you are not a HRFA member.

For those people who join(ed) the HRFA in October (or later) of a given year, their new or renewal membership also is covered for the following new year. There is also a generous grace period (3 months) for those who are unable to update their membership in January, however paying your dues late puts a strain on the records maintenance and consequently the ability of the executive board’s planning of activities and events.

If you have any questions, suggestions, or want to help (time, skills, or financially) on any particular club projects or events, feel free to email me, Arnie Ulrich (kavester@aol.com) or call me at 1-201-304-4691.

Hudson River Fishing and Boating Public Access <--- click here

So how old is your fish? <--- click here

Become a committee member for one our more our Special Projects. We now have three (3) big ticket ($$$) projects. The first two have been discussed for years already and we hope to make some headway on each in the coming years. To offer your time and talents contact Dan Harrison at dharrison@cdtresources.com. Here are the BIG three:

Please make your selection from the list below and make a reservation by emailing Michael Sardinas at Vicepresident@thehrfa.org  If the title is available, you will receive a confirmation and book will be ready for pickup at the following General Meeting. 

By Wayne Geider

The HRFA hosts an annual fishing contest which runs from January through December and is open to all HRFA members. You have 30 days from the day you catch a fish to send in your entries. So, the deadline for submissions is January. As a member of the HRFA you and your immediate family are eligible to enter fish in any of our categories. Various divisions are available for prizes presented at our Annual Awards Dinner in March of the following year. Website updated daily. River Views newsletter updates below are done around the first the month. * indicates a new club record.

To be posted on Instagram, photos of your catch should be emailed or texted to Alex Spindelman: (845) 548-0003, a.spindelman@gmail.com