Boy raising money to bring joy of fishing to children in hospitals

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — One Oklahoma boy wants children in the hospital to get the chance to catch moments of joy by fishing. He's raising money to bring tanks of fish to the patients and could use your help.

"Those kids don't really get the chance to fish," said Alex Turner.

Turner is10 years old. At age three, he was diagnosed with autism. His father said he was non-verbal, but you'd never be able to tell that now.

"Where do you think all the fish are?" Turner asked his father while fishing. "Maybe a few of them are excited for an upcoming holiday, 'Fish New Year.'"

"Keep the rod tip up. I got to remember that," he told himself.

Turner's father, Neil, said school was a struggle. So, they made the switch to home schooling, while sharing their real-life experiences on their YouTube Channel.

"If you took him out into the real world to see different things, he was just this avid anxious learner," said Neil Turner.

One of those adventures was with an organization called Cast for Kids.

"Which is an organization that helps special needs kids go out on the lake for a day of fishing," said Turner's father.

Alex was instantly hooked, setting ambitious goals.

"I made a joke of, 'Imagine if we caught a fish in all the counties in Oklahoma,'" said Turner.

He met his goal. He caught a fish in all 77 counties.

Turner was eventually made an ambassador for Cast for Kids and was asked to host an event. The organization will bring in tanks full of fish for children living at the hospital to reel one in.

The exact date of the event is not set. They're thinking sometime in late May or early June.

However, Turner still needs to reach his goal of $8,000.

"These people never had the chance with the donation. You could help out. You can give them the actual chance," said Turner.

Here is a link to the GoFundMe Page if you'd like to help.

This new goal is truly a lesson in resilience, kindness, and making difference. Hook, line, and sinker.