Edward Parten of Kingwood, owner of a construction firm, has been selected as the 2013 inductee into the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame.
He will be formally inducted into the Hall of Fame at a banquet at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens on June 1.
Parten was a charter member of Texas Black Bass Unlimited and held several offices in that organization, including president, board member and political liaison. In the latter capacity he represented the interests of Texas anglers numerous times in testimony before the Texas Legislature.
Parten was also a member and officer in the Texas Association of Bass Clubs and was founder and president of the Sensible Management of Aquatic Resources Team, which advocated the use of mechanical control of nuisance aquatic vegetation instead of the use of chemicals. He also served as environmental director of the Texas B.A.S.S. Federation Nation, tournament director for the East Texas chapter of the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation and tournament director for Angler’s Choice, and is a committee member of the Texas State Bass Tournament, the oldest bass tournament in the world.
Parten has long been an adviser to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), serving several terms on that organization’s Freshwater Advisory Board. He worked with TPWD on such issues as possession limits, the freshwater fishing stamp and grass carp control. He also worked on fish habitat improvement projects on a number of Texas reservoirs and helped raise funds for projects at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center.
Honors Parten has received for his efforts include being named to the Texas State Bass Tournament Hall of Fame and Conservationist of the Year Award from the Texas B.A.S.S. Federation Nation.
“I am extremely honored and humbled at receiving this prestigious award,” Parten said of his selection for induction into the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. “It has been my great pleasure to be allowed to work with some of the greatest fisheries people in the country to help protect our environment, air and water quality, preservation of habitat, fisheries and leave behind a legacy for those generations of people who will follow us.”
Philip Durocher, retired director of the Inland Fisheries Division of TPWD and chair of the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame Committee, worked with Parten many times over the course of their careers. “I don’t believe I ever went to a meeting anywhere in Texas to discuss important fisheries issues that Ed wasn’t there,” Durocher said. “We could always count on his help with a project or with the legislature. ?Big Ed’ is certainly deserving of this honor.”
The Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame is housed at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens. Its mission is to “recognize and honor those who have made a lasting contribution to freshwater fishing in Texas, and to foster a sense of appreciation, awareness and participation in the sport of fishing.”
In addition to the Hall of Fame, the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center includes a visitor center, production hatchery, stocked casting pond, wetlands trail, fishing museum and dive theater. It is the home of the Toyota ShareLunker program, which uses selective breeding to increase the number and size of trophy bass in Texas public waters.By: “>Larry D. Hodge, TPWD
