Fishing tournament scheduled in honor of Logan Luft

By Thomas Nelson, tnelson@charlescitypress.com

A community came together to celebrate the life of Logan Luft, with a caravan of over 200 vehicles escorting his remains through Charles City to the funeral home and about 1,300 attending his funeral.

Jon Linde hopes to capture that same feeling with a fishing tournament on Aug. 19, where the proceeds will go entirely to the Luft family.

Luft, 15, died as a result of injuries received in an ATV accident July 4 in Charles City. His family has become actively involved in advocating for organ donation after Logan’s organs were used to save several people.

The fishing tournament is set to be catch and release, and the judging will be based on the weight of the fish caught.

Linde said he was inspired to do the tournament by the Luft family.

“They were just so strong in their faith in God and were more worried about what other people were feeling than (what) they were feeling,” Linde said. “It was amazing and humbling.”

“The kid just loved to fish. It was his No. 1 pastime,” Linde said. “Wrestling would be a close second.”

Linde said he knows the family through Logan’s mother, Wendy Luft, who is Linde’s real estate agent.

“She’s been awesome to us,” Linde said. “We’ve become really close and she comes to our church as well.”

The tournament will be open to all amateur anglers, according to the official tournament rules.

The Elks Lodge at 2111 Clark St. will host the event, rain or shine.

Several community groups have donated time and work to the event including members of Boy Scout Troop 4166, who will be cleaning up after the event is over.

There is a $15 registration fee for a single person participating in the event and $25 for a family of five or less.

“Everything that comes in is going straight to the Luft family,” Linde said.

The tournament is set to begin at noon and run until 5 p.m. and involve only shore fishing. No boats or wading will be allowed.

Only three of the fish caught during the time limit can entered for the weigh-in.

The first place prize will be a jon boat with a 20 hp Mercury motor and a Minn Kota trolling motor.

From there prizes will be handed out for first through 10 place and 45, 69, 77, 98, 109 and last place.

Last place will win $100 worth of fishing gear from Blindluck Fishing.

There will also be a drawing done every half hour, drawn by ID number.

There are currently 193 people signed up to participate on the Facebook page, and over 2,700 invited.

Some people have suggested that the Luft family use the money to establish a memorial scholarship, Linde said.

“I think they’re going to put the money toward organ donation,” Linde said. “They can do whatever they want with it. Anything to help Logan’s legacy.”