Video was shot from atop Herbert Hoover Dike in Clewiston, near lock from canal into Lake Okeechobee, about two miles from where angler Nik Kayler was recovered. ED KILLER/TCPALM
LAKE OKEECHOBEE — A fisherman who was found dead in Lake Okeechobee several days after he vanished will have a public funeral Saturday, according to a post on social media by his wife.
Nik Kayler, a 38-year-old army veteran, was thrown from a fishing boat Jan. 4 on the first day of the Costa Fishing League Worldwide Series season opener.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission launched a week-long search that ended Jan. 11 when Kayler's body was spotted by a commercial fisherman near the Clewiston water tower.
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"We would be beyond blessed and thankful for all who can attend the beautiful service we have planned to honor my Best Friend and my ONE true love!!!" Kelly Kayler wrote on Facebook.
"My hope is to show our beautiful little girl how many people loved, respected, and have been forever touched by the godly man her Daddy was!"
The service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Journey Christian Church, 1965 S. Orange Blossom Trail, in Kayler's hometown of Apopka.
GoFundMe pages set up to support Kayler's family have raised more than $100,000, with money pouring in from 1,500 people across the world.
"Nik served our country in the army for 6 years. He loved fitness, fishing and most of all his family … Rest In Peace, Nik. We loved you and will never forget you," the founder of one of the pages wrote.
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Kayler was competing alongside Bill Kisiah, a boater from Slidell, Lousiana, when a wave overtook the boat and knocked Kayler out, according to a FWC report.
A search for the boaters was launched late Jan. 4 when they failed to meet at a weigh-in in the northwest part of the lake.
Kisiah drifted to shore near the Pahokee Marina inside his damaged 21-foot Ranger boat, and was found by Palm Beach County deputies about 11:30 p.m. Jan. 4 — about 15 hours after the incident occurred, said Kayler's brother, Anthony Llanos.
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Each day of a tournament, a pro and a co-angler are paired randomly — they fish from opposite ends of the same boat, but compete in separate divisions.
The early January competition was the first time Kayler and Kisiah were paired in a Fishing League Worldwide tournament, records showed.
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