Chandler man named Volunteer of the Year at Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center

Photo Courtesy of Larry D. Hodge, TPWD Gene Gordon

ATHENS, Texas-Gene Gordon of Chandler has been honored as Volunteer of the Year at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center.

Gordon has been serving as a volunteer one day a week at the center's Anglers Pavilion for the past year, assisting visitors with fishing in the casting pond.

It's a 180-degree turn from his 36-year career as an electrical engineer with Texas Instruments and Raytheon, where the pressure was always on. Even though Gordon may work with as many as 300 people a day who come to the center, he finds the job relaxing, rewarding and challenging all at the same time.

"I was always a workaholic," he says, "and I couldn't see staying at the house or fishing or traveling all the time. I had always enjoyed fishing, and I needed something to do. I really enjoy helping kids fish and passing on my passion for fishing to them. And I enjoy the comradeship with the employees here."

Gordon came to TFFC in a roundabout way. He joined the Texas Master Naturalists in Tyler, and one of the requirements was to do 40 hours of volunteer work every year. (He put in more than 250 hours at TFFC during the past year.) "I had visited TFFC two or three times and brought the grandkids here to fish, and it seemed like a fun thing to do," he explains.

Volunteering leaves Gordon and his wife, Debbie, plenty of time to pursue other interests. "Being here one day a week tends to tie us down in the spring, but the summers are free because TFFC has interns, and it's not so imperative for me to be here," Gordon says. "Being here in spring works out well, because it's a good time for me to go fishing and get the garden going and the yard ready for summer. We travel in winter and summer, so it's not a burden to us."

The Gordons moved to East Texas to escape the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and still be near their grandchildren. "We found a house close to the lake that had an RV barn and a big metal building for a shop. It was a nice fit for us," he says.

Volunteering at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center fills a need for Gordon that he feels he shares with many other retirees. "I think you have to have something to do that gives you satisfaction other than your own personal time," he says. "I love to fish, and I fish a lot, but that's not rewarding like this is. I think people should volunteer. There's a lot of us baby boomers retiring, and there are a lot of programs and people out there that need help. A lot of kids don't have parental di- rection, and hopefully we can give them some of that. Life's not over after you retire."

Other volunteers receiving recognition for over 1,000 hours of service at TFFC include: Ken Davis - 3,450 hours, Buck Dittfurth - 5,679 hours, Robert Farmer - 8,218 hours, W.D. Lewis - 3,790 hours, Hunter Wise - 2,787 hours and Clayton Worden - 1,522 hours.

The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center combines a visitor center, production hatchery, casting pond and educational programming on a 107-acre site four miles east of Athens. Multiple volunteer opportunities are available. Some involve working with the public, and some are behind-the-scenes. For more information, contact volunteer coordinator Mona Farmer at (903) 670-2228 or visit the web site at http:// www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/ visitorcenters/tffc/.