Recapping A Successful Valdez Kid’s Pink Salmon Derby

The following is courtesy of Valdez Fish Derbies:

Valdez Fish Derbies’ 8- to 10-year-old winner 8-10 – Noah Peterson of Wasilla. (Valdez Fish Derbies)
11- to 13-year-old winner Grayson Narron of Copper Center.

VALDEZ – “The mission of the Valdez Fish Derbies non-profit organization is to, “Promote Sportfishing in Valdez”. “I think getting more than 400 kids age 5 to 16 to go fishing during our derby is definitely accomplishing our mission,” said Valdez Fish Derby Coordinator Dana Morales. “And these kids are having fun!”. Seeing all the smiling faces made all the work of putting on the event worth it according to Morales. “We saw a lot of groups this year,” Morales said. “Multiple families and friends all loaded up their kids in an RV and came to Valdez. It’s pretty awesome!”

Lilian Johnson, Valdez, 5- to 7-old division winner.
Neveah Opferman of North Pole was the $100 winner for 14- to 16-year-olds.

“In my family we have five and we have some more cousins, so three more and then I helped two other people – so I helped 10 people catch fish,” Eli Everson said. Eli is a 13-year-old from Fairbanks that caught three fish himself and said he really enjoyed helping others catch fish at Allison Point Saturday. His sister, 6-year-old Grace, was more than willing to give her older brother credit. “It was really hard for me to reel in, she said. “He told me to do it harder. He helped me pull the fish in. I catched it but then I took a picture with it”. Lea Everson, Grace’s Mom, said this was the first time Grace caught a fish. When asked what she liked about fishing, Grace responded “I could catch the pink salmon and I love it every time.” For 11-year-old Ben Everson, the outdoor experience is what he enjoyed. “Catching is super fun but being in Alaska, and the mountains and stuff, and having like the water right there and the smell of the salt, it’s just amazing, Ben Everson said.

The Valdez Kids Pink Salmon Derby started with kids picking up a free hat and then fishing from shore or a boat to catch pink salmon. Once they caught a fish, they took a picture with themselves, the fish and the hat. Four lucky kids were chosen at random to win $100 cash and eight other kids won fishing poles from the Valdez Prospector. 

KVAK Radio hosted a Kids Broadcasting Camp this summer and seven kids from that camp hit the airwaves Saturday evening to host a Kids Derby Show. The one-hour live radio show was “For Kids – By Kids” which meant that only kids age 5 to 16 could call in to win prizes. Several kids called in and won ice cream, but it was Erika Bayles, an 8-year-old from Fairbanks who won the grand prize of 10 pounds of jellybeans and a kids kayak. The Kids Broadcasting Camp was sponsored by Alyeska Pipeline and Prospector donated prizes for the program. 

The kids that won the $100 prize in their age division were Lilian Johnson of Valdez, Noah Peterson of Wasilla, Grayson Narron and Nevaeh Opferman. 

For more information about Valdez Fish Derbies or to see photos, visit www.valdezfishderbies.com

WINNERS OF THE 2022 VALDEZ 
KIDS PINK SALMON DERBY


5 to 7 Age Division 

$100 Winner
Lilian Johnson
Valdez, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
James Moore
North Pole, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
Addie Bradford
Eielson AFB, AK

8 to 10 Age Division


$100 Winner
Noah Peterson
Wasilla, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
Amelia Day
Valdez, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
Brecken Dameron
Fairbanks, AK


11 to 13 Age Division

$100 Winner
Grayson Narron, AK
Copper Center, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
Turner Greenwood
Fairbanks, AK

Fishing Pole Winner
Colt Skinner
Fairbanks, AK



14 to 16 Age Division

$100 Winner
Nevaeh Opferman
North Pole, AK

Fishing Pole Winner

Sakaia Fischer
Fairbanks, AK

Fishing Pole Winner

Carlie Vanbuskirk
Valdez, AK