WHAT MYSTERY? York's Fritz Dauth thinks he knows where all the stripers have gone so far this year. "This guy's been eating them all," said Fritz, shown here holding up a 50-pound, 47-inch monster striped bass that he hauled out of the York River on Aug. 14. Fritz was fishing off the town dock at the Route 103 bridge on the incoming tide using chunked herring and 15-pound test line. He fought the fish for half an hour before finally pulling him up onto the dock. "He was exhausted by then; at the end I just reached into the water with two hands and lifted him out." Fritz had gone out with two friends after having read about this season's strange fishing pattern in the feature story of the Aug. 8 issue of The York Independent. The catch was the biggest fish ever for Fritz, who fishes only off the local docks and bridges. Meanwhile, the Dauth family has been eating well since Fritz's catch.  The fish yielded some 15 steaks and Fritz says they have been just "awesome."
Courtesy photo

PAYING IT FORWARD. One More Referral's York Chapter has adopted the nonprofit organization Fair Tide to help raise funds for this transitional housing program, located in Kittery. The mission of Fair Tide is to provide safe, dignified affordable housing and comprehensive support services to formerly homeless individuals and families, while One More Referral, founded by Melissa Lesniak of Keller-Williams, provides a place for business professionals to develop personal relationships with other qualified professionals. The York Chapter was just started in May, and the organization has already raised more than $125 for Fair Tide from free-will donations at its meetings. Seen here are Lesniak and Nancy Merrill of One More Referral presenting a check to Fair Tide's Executive Director Joseph Galli and Store Manager Anne Hunter. Behind them are just a few of the members of One More Referral's York Chapter attending a morning meeting at Mainiax Café. Galli said the support of One More Referral is very much appreciated by everyone at Fair Tide. For more information about the Fair Tide Transitional Housing Program, contact Galli at 439-6376. For more about One More Referral, visit http://www.onemorereferral.com/.
Photo by Jennifer L. Saunders