Enter The Titan
JUST OFF COUNTY Road 33, a couple of miles north of the dusty little town of Boston, Ga., population 1,318, there it sits. Nestled between old quail plantations, fields of agriculture and the occasional double-wide trailer, Red Hills Fishery stands, unassuming, with nearby grazing cows standing sentinel. Four years ago, this plot of land was a dilapidated catfish farm. Now, and passersby would never know it, the new buildings erected here and the contents within feature one of the most state-of-the-art private hatcheries in the nation, a multimillion-dollar investment, with scientists and biologists solely focusing on the improvement of the largemouth bass. And the discoveries they are making may well reshape the national stocking landscape of the most popular sportfish in the country.
Red Hills Fishery was the brainchild 400 richest men in the U.S., Jones is No. 108, checking in with a net worth of $5.6 billion. Below him on that list are Ralph Lauren (Polo), George Lucas (), Mark Cuban (Dallas Mavericks) and about 300 other titans of industry. But perhaps unlike the other 399 uber-wealthy folks mentions, Jones is an avid outdoorsman (he is the former chairman of both the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the Everglades Foundation). His passion for hunting and fishing has steered his philanthropic focus toward improving resources for like-minded lovers of outdoor pursuits. That said, he did create the Robin Hood Foundation, which has raised $3 billion over the past 33 years to assist those in need throughout New York. But, his donations to waterfowl research, saving the black rhino and bringing indigenous wildlife species back to Costa Rica have been an important part of his philanthropic efforts. Now, he wants to use his vast resources to make bass fishing better for everyone.
