A fishing family tackles a challenge to make sure everyone can still enjoy a day on the water.
Bed-ridden or not, everyone in this Breaux Bridge family is "gone fishin’."
"He was always talking about going fishing. He loves going fishing," said Leota Lester. Her husband, Willie Lester, is unable to walk or move much on his own.
"Oh yeah I’m always happy to go fishing," said 90-year-old Willie.
His disability is not stopping his family from making sure he can still catch some fish. Willie’s son, David, was sitting next to him, with his two grandchildren on his lap.
"We rolled it out!" yelled one of the grandkids. It was David’s son, Bo’s idea.
"We got a sheet of plywood then got him down here and then rolled him in the trailer put the sheet of plywood on the trailer gate and rolled him up in there," said David.
"And I think it’s a big project to get a man that can’t walk to go fishing, you know, and then they came up with putting the bed up there and that worked very good," said Leota.
The family loaded Willie’s bed onto the trailer and drove it to the nearby Vermilion River.
"It was nice. I thought it was a crazy idea at first but it worked out," laughed David. "I’m glad to see he could get out there. He hasn’t been able to get out the house much."
There, four generations fished together.
When asked if he was comfortable with his VIP treatment Willie laughed, "Yeah when I wasn’t bouncing around. They had some pretty rough spots."
And although the fish weren’t biting much. It was still a day well spent.
"Oh it was lovely couldn’t ask for a better day, I guess we’ll have to do it again," said his son.
"We had a good time," Willie agrees.
