Fish story

The children spent most of the afternoon getting used to holding the fishing rod and baiting the hook with the slippery worms.

Then, Antwon Malone did something few of them had ever done - he caught a fish.

For the next five minutes, Antwon, 10, heard the cheers from his friends as he stuggled to reel in what turned out to be a 10-pound catfish.

"My arms started to get tired," Antwon said as he put another worm on his hook.

Moments after the big catch, Daryle Finey put the festivities into perspective when asked about the pond.

"It's real quiet," he said. "People can get some sleep out here. I have to put a pillow over my head sometimes to sleep."

Daryle, 9, said his lack of sleep is a result of the periodic gunshots and the subsequent police sirens that fill the night in his neighborhood.

Antwon, Daryle and about 12 other children from urban Augusta were taken on a fishing trip by Miracle Making Ministries of Augusta.

The organization routinely puts on events to help expose the children to a world other than the one where they grow up. Future trips include a day out at First Tee of Augusta golf course and a five-day football camp at Evans High School.

Thursday's trip was sponsored by Clyde McCaslin, who owns a couple of acres of property that includes a pond stocked with fish.

McCaslin said he agreed to have the children over after being told most of them had never fished before.

"I grew up fishing," he said. "The thought of children who have never fished disturbed me."

Michelle Eslick, the administrative coordinator for Miracle Making Ministries, said along with showing the children a different way of life, the trips give her organization the chance to talk to them about God.

She said most of the children are from downtown Augusta and live between Eighth and 10th streets.

"Our main focus is the gospel," she said. "Today we can tell them about how God created the fishes."

For the children though, the highlight of the event will be the 10-pounder. After Antwon pulled it out of the water - with the help of McCaslin - the children took turns getting a closer look, then ran away when the fish flopped around.

"This will be a day they will always remember," Eslick said. "They get to see that there is peace in the world."