The Gulf Coast Council has annually honored those members and clubs for outstanding contributions to our mission. This year, we recognize five individuals and one club for their promotion and advancement of fly fishing, fly tying, conservation and community within the GCC region.
Awards Chairman Rex White and other members of the Awards Committee are proud to announce the following honorees. Each has received a personalized mug with their name (or club name) and award. The mug features artwork of award-winning fly fishing artist James Lady.
Fly Fisher of the Year – Bill Morrison
Previously Man of the Year / Woman of the Year, this award recognizes individual(s) who have made significant contributions to the FFI, the GCC, individual clubs, the fly fishing community, or the sport in general.
Bill has been instrumental in making Kisatchie Fly Fishers one of the largest and most active clubs in the Gulf Coast Council (now with over 90 members). He created the club’s “Mixed Bag Contest” now in it’s 4th year and the blueprint for similiar year-long, CPR fly fishing contests. Both an excellent fly caster and fly tier, he has helped numerous beginners to learn to tie flies and to fly cast. In March 2020, Bill earned his certification as an FFI Casting Instructor.
In April 2020, with the Corona virus lockdown in place, Bill initiated “Virtual Tying Tuesday”, a biweekly Zoom fly tying session. VTT was then expanded to include members of other clubs, and simulcasted via the KFF YouTube Channel (which Bill also created) to the public at large. His expertise in organizing online meetings led him to produce several instructional videos on Zoom meetings, shared to other clubs nationwide.
Fly Tying Achievement Award
This year, we’re proud to recognize two icons of fly tying on the northern Gulf Coast. For both, it’s a long overdue honor!
Tom Herrington is a retired marine biologist and founding member of the Historic Ocean Springs Saltwater Fly Fishing Club which he originated over 26 years ago. He fly fishes over 250 days a year, and has held Mississippi state fly records such as cobia (43 lbs 13 oz). In addition, he has taught countless anglers how to fly cast, tie flies, and fish.
Over the years, Tom has created or tweaked established patterns for inshore and offshore using a variety of colorss and new materials. His flies have been used to take numerous cobia, mackeral, mahi-mahi, pompano, redfish and other species. One of his creations, the Chandeleur Special, is a must-have for speckled trout in darker waters or dark days, especially in winter. Many of his and other tiers patterns can be found in his publication, “Effective Flies Routinely Used in Mississippi Inshore, Nearshore and Offshore Waters”.
In February 2019, Tom began a weekly tying session for HOSSFLY and other FFI members, teaching techniques, patterns and applications. While suspended in early 2020 due to Covid, Tom continued to share tying articles, thoughts, new materials and other useful information with his students. It even led to the creation of “Herrington Fly Tying Guild” t-shirts!
Ted Cabali has spent a lifetime teaching fly tying, having learned from some of the greats of our sport, and making his own contributions, whether it be innovative flies, new tying techniques, or application of cutting-edge materials, In 1984, he and Tom Jindra co-founded the New Orleans Fly Fishers and immediately offered free tying lessons to all members.
Over the last 30 years, he has conducted tying clinics at local fly shops or sporting goods stores. He has appeared at numerous regional events, demonstrating his unique creations such as the Sqwirm Jig, the Cabali Worm, poppers made of various materials and shapes, bluegill and bass streamers and jigs. Prior to the formation of the Gulf Coast Council, Ted was recognized by the Southeastern Council as Educator of the Year.
In his book, “Tying Bugs: The Complete Book of Poppers, Sliders, and Divers”, author and master tier Kirk Dietrich states “The most influential person in teaching me how to have fun making and coloring bugs was Ted Cabali. Ted is fanatical about bug making… he rarely follows the rules, resulting in some pretty eccentric creations.” Kirk also describes Ted as “an encyclopedia of fly tying knowledge”.
Education Excellence Award – Dr. Tom Dempsey
A native of North Carolina, and resident of Mobile, Tom has been an avid fly angler for nearly 40 years. He has fished from Quebec to the Amazon, from British Columbia to Patagonia, but his favorite waters are the Gulf Coast where he loves sight-casting to redfish.
In 2010, Tom became an FFI Certified Casting Instructor and later a Master Certified Instructor. He has taught more than 500 students and mentored over 30 aspiring certified casting instructors. He has also coached dozens of students through the FFI’s Casting Skills Challenge Award levels. He has been an active member and/or officer of the Eastern Shore Fly Fishers, Fly Fishers of Northwest Florida, and Historic Ocean Springs Saltwater clubs.
Tom is devoted to improving student skills. He teaches proper techniques in a personal and motivating way, taking the time to make a personal connection with his students. His teaching style is very visual. He also maintains detailed student logs and follows up with practical instruction and improvement plans via email. When not teaching casting, he is furthering his learning or teaching other skills, such as fly tying, skiff poling, and all aspects of fly fishing. Finally, he a tireless champion for fly fishing on the Gulf Coast, promoting it nationally and internationally.
Club Fellowship Award – Panhandle Fly Fishers
Panhandle Fly Fishers of Destin is affiliated with the Eglin Air Base VAMC Project Healing Waters Chapter. PHWFF is dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled active military service personnel and disabled veterans through fly fishing and associated activities including education and outings.
During the pandemic, PFF held virtual meetings, both for the club and for Project Healing Waters monthly fly tying sessions. In October, the club restarted it’s in-person fly tying sessions. In November, their PHW Chapter held a rod-buiding clinic and contest with assistance from veteran club rod builders. Some first-time rod builders turned out some beautiful rods. In April, the club conducted a very successful “Introduction to Fly Fishing” public seminar.
President’s Award – Jeff Ferguson
This award is selected by the Council president, to recognize that individual who has made outstanding contributions to the Council, to the board, or to it’s individual members and clubs, or both.
As Casting Co-Director for the GCC, Jeff has been active in assisting clubs with teaching casting, both basic and advanced, as well as giving presentations. On a national level, Jeff has organized one of the largest FFI Casting Instructor Certification testing events in Lake Charles. Jeff completed peer performance requirements for the Examiner Development Pathway (EDP) program and travels across the country participating in workshops and training sessions. In July, Jeff was appointed to the FFI Casting Board of Governors for a five year term.
At our upcoming Sweetwater Classic on March 11th and 12th, we’ll have a raffle and silent auction on that Saturday with many great items. Among those will be rods, reels, boxes of flies, fly fishing vests, artwork, fly lines, inflatable personal floatation devices (PFDs), sunglasses, and much more. The purpose of this fundraiser will be to raise money for our education, conservation and outreach programs. But you must be present at the Classic to win. 
