Islamorada, Florida Keys · Fully Funded · Veterans & First Responders
Earned. Not Given.
For most veterans and first responders, there is no saltwater flats program. No guide. No skiff. No week in the Florida Keys. We built one. And it's exactly as hard as it sounds.
Not a fishing trip. An objective.
Most veteran-serving organizations speak the language of gratitude — thank you for your service, here's something for you. We speak a different language.
The Silver King Project doesn't hand veterans a fishing trip. We invite them into something genuinely hard — and trust them to rise to it.
After an exhaustive search of every veteran and first responder fishing organization in the country, the saltwater flats experience doesn't exist in the nonprofit space. The Silver King Project exists to fill that gap — permanently, professionally, and at the level of quality that the people we serve have earned.
The mission clarity, the briefing before the day begins, the discipline of execution under pressure, the focus required to spend hours reading water for a shadow, a tail, nervous water — it resonates with veterans and first responders at a level that's hard to articulate but immediately felt.
— Rich Volpe, Founder · USMC · 27 Years Military & Federal Law Enforcement
The Program
A trip typically runs Sunday through Saturday — six participants, three guides, four full days on the water, with a half-day casting clinic to start. Based in Islamorada, with trips running wherever in the Keys the fishing is best that time of year. Every cost is covered, airfare to gear; participants pay nothing.
Our Story
In 2024, Rich Volpe — four years as a United States Marine, followed by twenty-three years in federal law enforcement — took a fully-funded fly fishing trip to Roatan, Honduras through Project Healing Waters.
He didn't catch a single fish. And he came home changed.
He looked for an organization that offered destination saltwater fly fishing for veterans and first responders. It didn't exist. So he's building it.
This organization is named after a fish. The Silver King is the tarpon — there are anglers who live for permit and anglers who live for bonefish, but there is only one silver king. That's the standard. It's the one we set for the people we serve.
The Silver King Project is in its founding period — preparing to run its first trips and building its founding community of donors, guides, and sponsors who believe the people who served deserve the best of what this sport has to offer.
Four years as a United States Marine, followed by twenty-three years in federal law enforcement. Saltwater fly angler. Charleston, SC.
Earned. Not given. Difficult. By design. Free. Because you've already paid.
The Most Direct Gift
One gift. One participant. Seven days in the Florida Keys — airfare, lodging, meals, guides, and gear. $5,000 covers every cost. No exceptions.
Every gift during our founding period — at any level — carries permanent Founding Supporter recognition. You know exactly what it does and who it serves.
Founding Leadership
Underwrite multiple trips, a full season, or help establish the foundation of this organization.
Start a conversation with Rich →Founding recognition closes on June 30, 2027.
501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt
The Silver King Project is a Delaware nonprofit corporation and a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. EIN 42-3695865.
The Founding Board
James Burns
Board Chair · Chief Executive Officer, Highland Consultancy
Has built and run companies across the military, law enforcement, and outdoor industries throughout his career, and now consults across the defense industry. That experience gives SKP its operating discipline.
Nathaniel Linville
Director · Owner, The Angling Company · Key West
Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished saltwater fly anglers in the world. His relationships across the Florida Keys guide community and the fly fishing industry are foundational to SKP's legitimacy and program delivery.
Brian Valenza
Director · Chief Executive Officer, VIRSIG
A U.S. Naval Academy graduate and former Navy SEAL officer who now leads a firm delivering mission-critical services across the federal government. His service background and operational leadership strengthen SKP's foundation.
Nick Murray
Treasurer · President and Chief Financial Officer, Urban Villages · Denver
Has spent nearly two decades in real estate development, overseeing finance, asset management, and risk. As Treasurer he brings the financial judgment and discipline to keep SKP's growth deliberate and its commitments sound.
From the Water
The follow that doesn't eat. The cast that spooks the fish. The days you see nothing. The wind and the rain. And the one perfect presentation that connects — all of it shared as a team on the boat. That's camaraderie.
Rich Volpe, Founder
The Destination
Tarpon, bonefish, permit, and backcountry snook — all four within reach of the same skiff, which is true almost nowhere else. Adjacent to Everglades National Park. The Sport Fishing Capital of the World — for a reason.
The densest concentration of elite flats guides in the world. Community-driven, technically serious, and hand-selected for the patience and temperament this mission demands.
These are not easy fish. A tailing permit at 40 feet in 20-knot wind requires everything you have. That's the point. The degree of difficulty makes the reward real.
Vast shallow flats. Mangrove islands. Endless sky. Crystal water. Being on a skiff at first light in the Florida Keys is itself restorative. The place matters.
Guide and angler functioning as a unit toward a shared objective. Defined roles. High stakes. Trust under pressure. This isn't new. It's familiar.
Elite-level saltwater fly fishing — the kind serious anglers save years to afford. Provided fully funded, at the highest level, as a statement about who you are and what you've earned.
Join the mission.
Fund a veteran's place on the water.
