About Catfish Keno

With the launch of Catfish Keno, Georgia's sportsmen now have a way to fund programs they wish to support, and to win a little something for themselves.

The idea is very simple; buy a hook, win half the pot. With the help of our sponsor at SPRO, GONetwork has created a 200-hook trotline. Each of these 200 hooks will be sold, and once all hooks are sold, GONetwork is going fishing. The hook that catches the largest catfish wins the cash. Hooks may be purchased from GONetwork members or this website. The cost for each hook is the same for any given Catfish Keno game.

The cost of the hooks in a game will depend on the purpose for which the funds will be used. And sportsmen like you, members of the GONetwork, will pick the price and choose how the funds will be spent. The first game is set at $100 per ticket, the game is open now, and the funds will be used to sup-port GONetwork's new, statewide Sportsman's Pantry pro-gram to donate venison to the hungry in Georgia.

Once all the hooks in a game are sold, GONetwork Goes Fishing. All hooks will carry the same bait. Once the line is set and the hooks are baited, we do what all good trotline catfisher-men do...we wait. When we run the trotline, the hook that has caught the largest catfish will win the game and the pot.

The proceeds of each game will be used to support the many programs of GONetwork both locally and statewide. How much money can you win? As much as $10,000. The odds of winning any game are one in 200. After we fish, we sell tickets for a new Catfish Keno game.

"GONetwork is many things,"said GONetwork President Steve Burch, "but first among what we do is serve our members and their local communities. We have been looking for a unique way to fund our programs and services that is fun, effective and beneficial to our members, our community and to our wildlife."

Catfish Keno will be used to fund programs like GONetwork's support of the Archery In Schools program. It takes about $1,600 to purchase the bows, arrows, tar-gets, backstops and other gear to establish an archery program in a Georgia school. The state uses federal funds to grant half of the funds to a school that wishes to be a part of the program. That leaves the school about $800 short. GONetwork has been matching the state funds at a a number of schools to facilitate the purchase of the archery equipment and get the program rolling.

Now, with Catfish Keno, any local group of sports-men can hold a Catfish Keno game and use those pro-ceeds to put archery in a school near you. Other programs include GONetwork "Scholarships" for kids to things like dove fields or hunts or fishing trips or the FFA camp. A simple $10 Catfish Keno game would raise money for several kids to spend an afternoon on a good dove field in your area.

GONetwork just donated $1,000 for travel expens-es to the Fayette County 4-H Shotgun Club to defray their travel costs to the National Championship in Grand Island, Nebraska. GONetwork is funding positive change in people, in facilities, and in habitat to improve our present and our future. Now, with Catfish Keno, there is a simple way for every sportsman with the vision to raise the money to accomplish something in his community. So far, GONetwork members have funded the Archery In Schools programs in more than 15 schools. Maybe you want to fund your 4-H or SCTP pro-gram for shooting sports.

Many counties have or are establishing their own water-supply reservoirs. There is NEVER enough public money to improve these waters for waterfowl, and duck boxes are expensive. Yet GONetwork volunteers have established more than 300 wood-duck boxes in the past three years and invited kids to help build the boxes.

So far, GONetwork has contributed more than 21,000 pounds of venison to food banks around the state. Under its new program, deer processors affiliated with Sportsman's Pantry accept donated deer, grind it and provide it to local food banks for $1 per pound of ground venison. If you assume a 60-lb. field-dressed doe will make 35-40 pounds of ground venison, then sports-men need about $400 for every 10 deer donated; $4,000 for 100 deer per year in your community. A Catfish Keno game

at the $50-ticket level will win someone $5,000 and process more than 100 deer for your community.

If you would like to hold a Catfish Keno Game, let us know.

Our first winner is going to win $10,000. Could it be you?