Family Fishing Trips in Minnesota--Tom Chang

Kate Flick, interviewer (KF): Do you just want to introduce yourself?

Tom Chang (TC): Yea, my name is tom. What kind of questions do you have for me?

KF: So you are out here fishing today, do you want to talk a little bit about why you are fishing? TC: you know, it’s just a nice day out. It’s been a long kind of winter. It’s been off and on with the weather. So, we finally have a nice day, just taking the kids out and showing them some fishing and teaching them about outdoors, nature.

KF: Why do you think it is important to do that?

TC: Um, you know keeping the kids educated, you know about wildlife resources, I think it is important because, you know, we need the natural resources, and we want to keep it this way for the future as well. KF: What do you think waters role in that is?

TC: Water’s role is everything. Everything needs water. I think with water everything, everybody needs water. It’s a natural resource, it is something we use a lot of, you know, we use it to catch fish to eat, we use it for transporting, we use the river system for just about everything – fun and work.

KF: Yea, I know it’s pretty awesome living in this place that has a lot of water. So why have you come to this particular spot?

TC: I’ve come here because ever since I was a kid, just like how kids are today that are here, my brother used to take me here. He used to work with the DNR department and he knows a lot of lakes and rivers and he likes to show everybody the lake systems and how to take care of the place, don’t leave your trash out, keep the place clean because for future people everyone wants to use it too.

KF: Yea, that is an important perspective, I bet he is doing good work. So you have come here for how many years now, would you say? TC: I would say the last 12 years, I’ve been here fishing pretty much around the lakes and rivers.

KF: Have any good fishing stories?

TC: No, I don’t, sorry, I don’t, but it’s an experience. You come out here and enjoy nature how it’s supposed to be.

KF: What do you think that means for future generations?

TC: I think it will be good for kids and the future generations to learn. It is important because if nobody cared and everything just wasn’t as nice as it used to be, we would lose all of the natural resources. That’s important - we have to keep it that way.

KF: Yea, you are developing a young fisherman here. One of the questions that I have been asking people that has very interesting answers has been, if you could give any message to water, what message do you think you would give to her or it?

TC: I would say thank you for everything you are doing.

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