FOR JOURNALISTS.
Tony's story is what reporters call human-interest with hard numbers. Navy veteran. Ten years at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Over 25 years on the Columbia. A discount business model that runs on a phone call. Everything below is what you'd need to write it.
Or email below
STORY ANGLES.
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№ 01
A lifetime serving veterans — now from a 23-ft boat on the Columbia
Tony Owsian is a Navy veteran who spent ten years at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center after he separated. His Gresham fishing-guide business runs 95% of its weekly trips at a discounted veteran rate, and he volunteers year-round for The Fallen Outdoors (TFO) — sturgeon derbies for sailors coming off the ships, kokanee events at Yale Lake, and on call when TFO needs a boat.
Outlet fit · Local Gresham / Portland metro outlets · Stars & Stripes · American Legion Magazine
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№ 02
A working-class Oregon guide who still answers his own phone
In an industry built around online booking platforms and middlemen taking 20% cuts, Tony Owsian runs his guide service the old way — direct, by phone, paid at the boat ramp. He's been doing it that way since he launched Tony O Guided Adventure in 2018, and it works.
Outlet fit · Small-business and outdoor-industry trade press
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№ 03
10 years inside Veterans Affairs — now putting veterans on the water for $50 off (and free, when it counts)
Tony's day job for ten years was at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center. His retirement business is the same idea with a fishing rod. The veteran rate isn't marketing — it's how the business operates. And when The Fallen Outdoors needs a boat, Tony's free.
Outlet fit · Veteran-service and outdoor-recreation publications
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№ 04
Why the Buoy 10 salmon run still books out by July (and the guides who run it)
Six weeks at the Columbia River estuary. Hundreds of thousands of fall Chinook. A handful of guides who've been running it for decades. Tony is one of them.
Outlet fit · Pacific Northwest outdoor magazines · regional fishing trade
FACT SHEET.
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Business name
Tony O Guided Adventure
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Owner / guide
Tony Owsian
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Founded
2018
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Years fishing the Columbia
25+
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Service area
Columbia River · Willamette River · Buoy 10 · Eastern Oregon walleye pools
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Based in
Gresham, Oregon
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Phone
(503) 381-0868
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Email
tony@tonyoguidedadventure.com
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Website
tonyoguidedadventure.com
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Boat
23-ft 2018 Alumaweld Columbia (6 passengers)
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Owner credentials
U.S. Navy veteran · 10 years at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center · Volunteer guide for The Fallen Outdoors (TFO) · Oregon licensed outfitter and guide · Coast Guard safety standards · CPR & First Aid certified
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Veteran rate
$200/person (vs. $250 standard) — applies to veterans, active-duty military, retired military, first responders, and dependents
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Google rating
5.0 stars
IMAGE LIBRARY.
Right-click · save · use freely
All photos are originals from Tony's guided trips, real clients on real days. Free for editorial use covering Tony O Guided Adventure or Tony Owsian personally. Credit appreciated but not required.
BOILERPLATE BIO.
Tony Owsian is a Navy veteran who spent ten years at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center. He's been fishing the Columbia River for over 25 years and founded Tony O Guided Adventure in 2018 out of Gresham, Oregon, when he purchased a boat (a 23-ft Alumaweld Columbia) to launch the business. His business operates on a built-in discount for veterans, active-duty military, retired military, first responders, and their dependents — 95% of his weekly trips run at the veteran rate. He also volunteers for The Fallen Outdoors (TFO). Reach him at (503) 381-0868.
Press contact
TALK TO TONY DIRECTLY.
Tony answers his own phone — and yes, he'll talk to a reporter. Email is fine too: tony@tonyoguidedadventure.com.