Santee Blind Fishing Event

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An Unforgettable Experience

For over 30 years the blind and visually impaired have looked with eager anticipation to a special experience: the Santee Blind Fishing Event. Now managed by LVS, this memorable weekend is an all-inclusive day-long trip to the Santee Cooper Lakes region including transportation, meals, fishing supplies, and water access for registered attendees who are blind or visually impaired and their caregivers.

For participants the Santee Blind Fishing Tournament is more than a weekend by the water, it is an exciting change to a sometimes mundane routine and a chance to meet new people or reconnect with friends.

This event is the result of our shared commitment to improving vision health for all South Carolinians and to creating a healthier world where the blind and visually impaired know no limits. The event is open to any blind or visually impaired person (and their caregiver) in South Carolina. LVS is currently only able to provide transportation assistance from the Charleston area to the event.

2027 Event Information

The 2027 Santee Blind Fishing Tournament will be held at Camp Woodie on Saturday, April 10, 2027. Registration will open in January 2027. Please check back regularly for updates. LVS staff will be communicating logistics to all registered attendees, volunteers, and guests in early April.

You can pledge your support now with Sponsorship Forms.

Please check back regularly for updates.

2026 Event Recap

This year 29 attendees participated in the Santee Blind Fishing Tournament at Camp Woodie. Roughly 80 total individuals were present at the event.

Participants represented a geographically diverse groups of attendees, with fishers coming from Aiken, Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Greenwood, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland, Sumter, and York counties.

This year’s awards included:

3rd Place: Anna Vacho, York County (45 Points)

2nd Place: Brian Clarke, Lexington County (85 points)

1st Place: Chip Hanzlik, Sumter County (89 Points)

V.I.P. Fisher of the Year: William Shaw, Orangeburg County

Costs for this year’s event were roughly $12,000. Your philanthropic support can help defray the costs of next year’s Tournament and help us as we expand the event. Give online or text “blindfishing” to 44321. It costs roughly $250 to sponsor one blind or visually impaired person’s expenses for the weekend.

We could not have done this event without extensive help from volunteers, whose names are too numerous to mention. However, we would like to especially thank the Manning Lions Club and the Lions Clubs of Zone 2 in District 32-C for taking a leadership role in this year’s event. Thank you all!

Prizes

LVS will provide a sponsorship valued at $500 to the first and second place winners of the Catawba and Santee Blind Fishing Tournaments to attend the International V.I.P. Fishing Tournament in the Outer Banks of North Carolina in the fall. While individuals may participate in both tournaments, a participant can only receive prizes in one of the tournaments. The North Carolina Tournament typically takes place in late October, therefore the winners of the Catawba Tournament will be eligible to go to North Carolina in the calendar year after their win. The winners of the Santee Tournament may go to North Carolina in the same calendar year they win. If a first or second place winner is unable to go to North Carolina, the next highest ranked participant will be invited to receive the sponsorship. Prizes are nontransferable once a participant accepts their award.

Past Tournament Winners

V.I.P. Fisher of the Year

The V.I.P. Fisher of the Year is a special award given based on sportsmanship, character, attitude, and service. It embodies the ethos of the event.

2026: William Shaw, Orangeburg County

2025: Jerry Johnson, Richland County

2024: Anna Vacho, York County

2023: Christian and Gwen Ladson, Charleston County

2022: Rita Williams, Berkeley County