Acclaimed Wisconsin anglers Steve Heiting of Minocqua and Tom Keenan of Hatley are among the 2022 class slated for induction in the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward.
The other inductees will be Steve Jones of Michigan, Dave Kumlein of Montana, John Prochnow of Iowa and Chris Wood of Washington, D.C.
The 2022 selections were announced Oct. 3.
The Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame and Museum bills itself as the “international headquarters for education, recognition and promotion of fresh water sportfishing.”
The organization preserves historical artifacts, maintains fishing records and institutes programs to foster, maintain and improve the environment for future generations through promotion and education.
And each year it conducts a hall of fame program to recognize people who have “made significant and lasting contributions to the sport and heritage of fresh water fishing.”
Steve Heiting is an accomplished author and musky guide
Heiting, 61, grew up in West Bend, earned a communications degree in the early 1980s from UW-Stevens Point and began his career at the Ashland Daily Press, where his roles included night editor and sports editor.
Along the way he produced an outdoors page for the paper, and worked as a part-time fishing guide.
His talents got noticed by Krause Publications in Iola and Heiting was hired away, eventually becoming editor of Wisconsin Outdoor Journal.
In 1996 he made another move, this time to Musky Hunter magazine, headquartered in St. Germain. Heiting has served as managing editor of the publication ever since.
And it’s in the musky fishing world that Heiting has earned his greatest recognition.
He’s authored three books, produced five musky fishing DVDs and written more than 500 magazine articles. His work has appeared in In-Fisherman, Field & Stream, Outdoor Life and Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World.
Heiting and his guests have caught nearly 2,000 muskies from waters in six states and Ontario. He guided from 1988 through the 1999 seasons and continues to hold his guiding license.
Together with Jim Saric, Heiting also established the University of Esox, a series of musky fishing schools and seminars.
And each August Heiting serves as master of ceremonies for the National Championship Musky Open in Eagle River, the world’s largest musky tournament.
Tom Keenan is one of the most successful pro walleye anglers
Keenan cut his teeth fishing on Little Bay de Noc in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and set his sights on tournament angling.
He got his start in 1989 and, teaming with his brother Mark, placed second in his first tourney, a Masters Walleye Circuit event. It started a 30-year run as one of the most successful pro walleye anglers in North America.
Keenan won Team of the Year twice with the MWC, was a three-time RCL/FLW Angler of the Year and won the National Walleye Trail (NWT) Angler of the Year title in 2019.
In 2016 he surpassed $1 million in career earnings in fishing tournaments.
Off the water, Keenan worked for Gander Mountain for 27 years, including as a store manager, and continues to perform seminars and speaking events throughout the Midwest.
Jones is best-known as a Michigan-based tournament fisherman and Great Lakes charter captain.
Kumlein is a Janesville native who moved to Montana and became a fishing guide, fly shop owner and executive director of the Whirling Disease Foundation.
Prochnow is a chemist and researcher in Iowa who helped develop soft plastics such as Berkley Gulp, Power Baits and MaxScent.
Wood is president and CEO of Trout Unlimited. Over a 20-year career with TU, Wood has helped the organization grow from a $7 million annual budget and a staff of 32 people to $78 million and 260 employees. Wood has helped TU champion issues like the Clean Water Act, dam removal and preserving Bristol Bay.
For more information on the hall and its programs, visit www.freshwater-fishing.org.
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