Deep Sea Roundup: Fish, watch, eat
Bill Horn Memorial Fish Fry: Not just another excuse to go fishing
BY PHIL REYNOLDS SOUTH JETTY REPORTER

Some of the people involved in the beginnings of the Bill Horn Memorial Fish Fry insist that it wasn't just another excuse to go out and catch more fish. But you know how fishermen are.

"We were sitting around on the porch at Woody's - that was the old Woody's (Sports Center), not where it is today - and Bill said, 'Why don't we have a fish fry and raise some more money for scholarships?' So that's how it got started," recalled Ronnie Jackson, who's been a member of Port Aransas Boatmen Inc. nearly longer than anybody can remember.

The 73rd Deep Sea Roundup starts today, Thursday, July 3, with registration at 2 p.m. It concludes Sunday, July 6, with the fish fry that is open to the public.

Ginger Henley thumbed through her records at the Bill Ellis Memorial Library, where Port Aransas Boatmen Inc. archives are kept. Henley is the record-keeper for the Boatmen, who not only sponsor the Deep Sea Roundup but are a major contributor to Port Aransas High School scholarships and other community projects.

"In 1996 (the first year of the fish fry), we served 175 people and took in $876.25," she reported.

Friends Fishing buddies (from left) 'Doc' Gilmore, Bo Horn and Bill Horn at a Deep Sea Roundup banquet before Horn's death in 2001. COURTESY PHOTO

Today, the Bill Horn Memorial Fish Fry is a major fund raiser associated with the Deep Sea Roundup. Horn, who died in 2001, may never have known how much his front-porch idea has benefited PAHS seniors.

Last year, for the 72nd Deep Sea Roundup, 500 people walked away from the serving table on Sunday afternoon with the famous plate full of fish, and the fish fry raised $2,496 for scholarships.

"Bill went fishing every day," recalled his widow, Bo Horn. "He'd come back, fillet the fish and wrap them, and put them in the deep freeze to save for the fish fry."

In the early days, a handful of anglers contributed fish for the fry.

Horn's favorite spot was on the north jetty, a place he called "Tombstone Rock." His ashes are there, along with his jetty cart, the cart he used to carry fishing equipment along the jetty.

This year, more than $900 has been donated to help buy fish and other goodies.

STAFF PHOTO BY PHIL REYNOLDS Remembering Bill Bo Horn, Bill Horn's widow, holds a plaque commemorating him and his goal of contributing toward scholarships for deserving students. The plaque is displayed each year at the Bill Horn Memorial Fish Fry.

That's a far cry from the days when the Jetty Boat used to carry a bunch of fishermen to the north jetty, and check back on them every once in a while to see if they needed anything, according to Jackson.

Jackson also tells the story of how Nueces County Precinct 4 Constable Bobby Sherwood showed up at one of the fish frys where a health inspector was trying to close things down.

"He came in and told us we didn't have permits (food handlers' certificates), and we were going to have to close down," Jackson said.

"Shoot, we were just a bunch of volunteers frying fish. We didn't know anything about permits. But Bobby (Sherwood) came in and told the fellow he could either spend three hours at the fish fry, or three hours with him. That's the last we heard of him." Sherwood remembers the incident somewhat differently.

"I understand he was just there as a spectator," Sherwood said. "But (after he approached the volunteers) I did tell him I thought he was creating a disturbance, and we didn't allow that, so he needed to quiet down. And he did."

(Today, all the volunteers hold food handlers' certificates - a four- to sixhour course that Jackson calls "not very exciting.")

Sherwood himself is a supporter of the fish fry, calling it a great value for a meal whose entire proceeds go to scholarships.

"You just can't get a fish dinner with all the trimmings for that price anywhere else," he said.

In the early days, it was as much a get-together for fishermen as it was a fundraiser, apparently.

"Everybody was happy," Horn recalled. "They all laughed and had a good time.

"Everything Bill did was a joy," Henley said. "Bo never knew when there was going to be a party."

And the fish fry will always be that way, according to Horn.

"I want to keep it like it was," she said. "What's going to be different? I hope nothing."

Complete details and rules for the Roundup can be found in the program inserted in local editions of this week's South Jetty.
What
Bill Horn Memorial Fish Fry
When
Sunday, July 6, Noon
Where
Port Aransas Civic Center
710 W. Ave. A
Cost
$5 per person