Bozeman, Montana – On Wednesday, the company Simms Fishing Products presented Warriors and Quiet Waters with a sizeable grant at its headquarters in Bozeman. The donation is intended to help the non-profit organization with the provision of services to veterans.
“It means a lot to me because Warriors and Quiet Waters changed my life. I was injured in Afghanistan in 2017. One of my friends is a program director and he got me into the program. And it was—I mean it literally changed my life,” says Veteran Sean Gifford.
Gifford is an experienced fishing guide who works for both Warriors and Quiet Waters. He earned the rank of Green Beret during his 21 years of service in the armed forces. After Gifford was injured in an explosion, he required direction to discover what he should be doing with his life. Warriors and Quiet Waters assisted him in accomplishing this goal.
“Now I try to guide mostly for Warriors and Quiet Waters. I also go fishing for Grey Cliffs Ranch out at Three Forks—a great organization, they also support Warriors and Quiet Waters,” says Gifford.
The total amount of the grant check that was given to Warriors and Quiet Waters was $30,000. Brian Gilman, who serves as Chief Executive Officer of Warriors and Quiet Waters, is excited to see how this grant will continue to benefit the charitable organization in the years to come.
“This specific gift was provided by the Vista Outdoor Foundation to really help Warriors and Quiet Waters build our program to do more for veterans,” says Gilman.
According to Gilman, the charitable organization intends to put this money to use by beginning a new program in the following year.
“The program that we’re launching next year will really combine the power of nature and fly fishing with a self-discovery process that will go on over a period of many months,” says Gilman.
Gifford claims that Simms played a significant role in enabling him to start a new career and afford the gear he needed to do so after serving in the armed forces. He has high hopes that the new program, the launch of which will be assisted by this grant, will improve the lives of veterans just like himself.
“It’s gonna be able to run at least one or two F X’s and get guys that were in my position to be able to come through this program and hopefully it has the same profound effect on them,” says Gifford.
