Page 2 « The Good News - Wednesday, March 25, 1992
The President enjoys visiting with BASS competition contestants.
BUSH
From Page 1
turned to the lake alive fol-
lowing the tournament.)
The Eakers were invit-
ed to accompany Bush via
limousine back to Air Force
One for a personal tour.
Enroute, the President
signed autographs for their
children and pointed out
such features as the 3" bul-
letproof glass surrounding
them.
Once aboard Air Force
One, room after room at-
tested to the sheer vastness
of the two level plane.
"They have a dining
room that seats 100 people
at a time," Pat remembers.
"And the President's room
was huge."
It was here Bush's per-
sonal physician compli-
mented Eaker on the fine
job he had done removing
the hook from Bush's
thumb.
Guy and Pat Eaker are
more than familiar with the
professional bass fishing
tournaments and the enjoy-
able lifestyle it can afford.
Since Guy began fishing
professionally year round in
1979, they have traveled
the United States and be-
yond, participating in 12
national tournaments and a
variety of celebrity tourna-
ments each year.
VALNASAMAAASAAAABRBAAZAALY
The dedication has
paid off. Guy Eaker is well-
known as a top competitor
in the field he has chosen,
securing such sponsors as
-OMC/Evinrude, which pro-
vides Eaker with two boat
and motor combinations
yearly, among other bene-
fits. Other sponsorships
have allowed him to partici-
pate in a variety of promo-
tionals for different prod-
ucts as well, and he teaches
college seminars on such
topics as the utilization of
electronics in the field. He
is set to emcee a tourna-
ment in South Carolina this
year.
Cherryville mayor
Ralph Beam, appreciative
of the positive attention
Eaker continues to create
for his home town, is plan-
ning the first Guy Eaker
Day to be held the fourth of
July weekend.
"All of Guy's sponsors
will be coming in for this
fishing day celebration,”
Pat explains. "There will be
booth operations displaying
their products, a huge fish
tank the size of a freight
truck trailer with different
fishermen doing seminars
on that."
"They hope to have a
children's fishing pond,"
she continues, "for the chil-
dren to fish. Then they're
going to have a band in the
afternoon, and another in
the evening. Fireworks in-
cluded."
(Left to right) Ray Scott, the President and Guy Eaker prepare to resume the afternoon competition.
Pat is quick to admit that
she had reservations when
her husband began consid-
ering touring the profes-
sional fishing circuit as a
means of making a living.
"There are times when
you have to go on faith,"
she remembers. "I had to
have faith and trust the
Lord in it."
Today she looks back
with thankfulness at the
way God touched their en-
tire family through the
"business" of fishing profes-
sionally.
"They have a minister
who travels with them on
the tournament trail and
Guy was saved several
years ago," she recounts.
"Then, at one point,
the minister from the cir-
cuit was traveling through
Belmont where our son
works at the Century 21 of-
fice there and he stopped to
see him. He was saved that
day." That was three years
ago.
"The Lord just contin-
ues to bless us," she says,
adding that the family has
had countless opportunities
through their professional
affiliations that would not
have happened otherwise.
The most recent, of
course, being the opportuni-
ty to meet and spend time
with President Bush.
"Last year, they threw
darts at a picture of
Saddam Hussein to see who
would fish with the
year, they drew the names,
and when the team's name
was drawn, they would
draw the name of a sponsor
(or the President's) from a
bowl of ping pong balls."
By the time Eaker's
team was drawn -- last --
there was only one ping
pong ball remaining in the
bowl -- Bush's.
"We felt honored that
The President watches the morning lake competition from shore while
cameramen film:his activities.
they called and asked Guy
to be one of the 20 fisher-
men," she said. "Then for
him to have won it last year
was great. This year to fish
with the President he's
even a bigger winner."
"The Lord has really
blessed us. We praise the
Lord every day for what he
has done. He has changed
our lives."