Nonprofit organizations across the nation rely heavily upon volunteer support; they live and die by their volunteers.  Such was the case at the 2008 CBAA Big Ten Championship which was contested in northern Indiana. As tournament day approached, the water level on Lake Maxinkuckee was high as unseasonably cool spring temperatures delayed the melting of winter snow and ice.

The piers were not scheduled to be put in until a few weeks later when the water level would be lower. The local marina understood the need to have piers in place for the Big Ten Championship, so they had their staff install four piers just for the weekend. The day after the tournament they removed the piers.  The marina volunteered the labor for both installation and removal so that CBAA anglers could use the piers over the tournament weekend.   On practice day the same marina volunteered to help a CBAA angler in need, an OSU boater who was having significant motor problems.

When the marina owner heard about the collegiate angler’s difficulty, he came in on his day off and did over $500 worth of work on the OSU boat, volunteering time, expertise, and parts.   For every event, there are as many behind-the-scenes stories like this one as there are volunteers.  "The CBAA volunteers – boaters, friends, relatives, businesses – donate their time and resources to support collegiate anglers, most of whom they have never met.  They do it because they believe in the future of angling and want to be part of developing champions on and off the water, " said Mark Heckaman, CBAA Deputy Commissioner.