The river that wound itself through Peter Stitcher’s life is full of twists and turns and unexpected blessings. He didn’t set out to become a store owner, community builder, or a man supporting over 500 people in Africa.
It started years before when he felt the call to be a missionary. And then again when he got a counseling degree. But in the end, the call of the river was so strong he decided to become a biologist to build trophy trout water based on a specific river's insects and etymology. He loved this work.
Then, the river of Pete’s life took a turn. Peter faced medical bills for his newborn daughter that his pay as a biologist and inadequate insurance couldn’t cover, and he needed a way to make ends meet.
The river provided. A friend asked for his expertise on which flies to use on a certain stretch of water. Having just studied that stretch of river, Peter built him a custom fly box based on what was currently hatching. Armed with the custom flies from Peter, his friend out-fished all his buddies and even the local guides.
As a side business to earn money for his daughter’s medical bills, Peter started curating and selling custom "biologist-crafted selections" of flies. His clients consistently out-fished everyone around them. Soon, he was making more in a weekend selling flies than in a month as a biologist, and Ascent Fly Fishing was born.
In 2014, he opened his first fly-tying factory in Nairobi, Kenya, where many of the big outfitters have factories. The British brought fly-tying to Kenya 70-80 years ago when the tea factories were off-season to make money year-round. Now, he employs over 55 fly tyers across two factories who have more than 500 dependents.
What started as a passion for the river has become a community, family, and a center for relationships. Ascent embodies the DNA of Peter and his relationship- first philosophy and belief that "what you need, the river becomes."
“For us, as we have grown, there is no taking the full blessing all for ourselves without sharing it equally with our community in Kenya,” Peter says. “With a country with over 75 percent unemployment, this is a blessing that is shaping a generation.”
For nine years, Peter operated Ascent out of his home to keep costs down. Last year, he opened his first retail store and the result has, again, brought unexpected blessings. Sometimes, that means simply meeting people where they are and hearing what they really need, not talking about fishing at all. That includes de-stressing, relationship help, community, quiet, or even allowing a long-time customer who just lost his fishing and camping golden retriever to take Cedar, Ascent’s shop dog, for a four-day fishing trip.
It isn’t about seeing how much Peter can sell to each customer who walks in the door. It is about spending 30 minutes with a child who has a heart for fishing and his $6 allowance, telling him where to go and helping him pick out flies. It’s about telling a young man to put the flies back that he doesn’t need, dropping a pin on a Google map to show him where he can fish with the flies he already has.
It is about looking into the heart of the river and the heart of the person standing in front of him and seeing how they fit together. The blessing is just a bonus that the river has provided.
What started as a passion for the river has become a community, family, and a center for relationships.