Friends of Silver Lake proudly announces the results of their 2nd Annual Silver Lake Kids Carp Cull Contest, where over 200 nuisance carp were removed from the lake. Nineteen different kids participated this year and removed 202 carp from Silver Lake. The top Carp Cullers were Canton Williams, who submitted the greatest number of carp on a single Sunday with 35 carp culled on June 29, 2025, while Jace Baumann was the overall champion of the event, having submitted carp every Sunday in June and totaling 92 carp culled in 2025! The organization paid $2 per carp submitted along with a bonus of $50 to the kid with the largest weekly catch at each Sunday collection event in June. In addition to the cash prizes, participants received a Kids Carp Cull T-shirt, a certificate of appreciation, a carp bait recipe and bait cage to add to their fishing tackle and a coupon for food. The contest rules were simple: it is open only to kids 16 and under (fishing license not required), only nuisance carp qualify for reward payment, and the carp must be taken from Silver Lake in Mears. So participating kids could cull the carp throughout the week and bring their catch to the Golden Township Park at Silver Lake Sand Dunes each Sunday in June.
Friends of Silver Lake also wish to thank Oceana County Commissioner Tim Beggs for managing disposal of the culled carp, Terri Puffenberger from SLDAPO for help in promotion and The Bucket Bar for providing added incentives for participants.
Removing nuisance carp from Silver Lake helps promote the efforts to improve lake water quality, helps establish native aquatic plants and improves the overall lake fishery.
