My name is Edward John Butchas, a nomadic MacGyver of sorts who for the last 10 years has traveled the west coast moving from one lost cause to another helping as I am able and then moving on to the next. Most recently, having spent 3 1/2 years helping operate a not for profit tiger sanctuary I spent my days seeking out and securing anything and everything necessary to make life better for retired and disabled big wonderful cats and their volunteer handlers. It was a labor of love and one that I will sadly miss.

For much of the last decade I have traveled in my motorhome helping fellow disabled veterans either homeless or nearly there by making handicapped accessible their homes, building tiny homes for them to live in or repairing their own RVs or vehicles which were often their primary residence. I enjoyed passing along my knowledge and helping support them when they most needed a helping hand. Feeding them when they were hungry, housing them when they were cold and quite often simply being a friend when they were at their lowest. My life was a constant shuffle between those who needed something and to be completely open and genuinely honest I loved every moment. There is something very heartwarming knowing that you have impacted another and I strive to recreate that wherever it is that I travel.

Being that wandering nomad I spent a great deal of time (more than I can recall) spent camped out on rivers from the Canadian to the Mexican borders and even as far East as the Mississippi river. It was my love of water and being near it that moved me to follow the water when traveling as I always found it like home.

Having my own carp misadventure I experienced one jumping into my canoe while paddling a smaller tributary of the Mississippi a handful of years ago and I was surprised that even from the gentle dipping of my oar into the water I was able to provoke that ingrained fight or flight jumping response from it. As luck would have it I was uninjured but seeing others not so lucky receiving a carp to the face I have a vested interest in ensuring that it never happens to me when I return to the Mississippi. I realize that it will take many long and challenging years to reverse the damage caused by the carp but if the attempt is not made to bring ICARPs to the Mississippi we'll never know if they can affect a positive change.

As with my past experiences helping veterans along the roads of America it is my hope to hire skilled in their trade veterans and gift them a lifelong project that keeps their minds and bodies occupied in fulfilling and very rewarding ways. To build up team after team of fabricating vets and to create what I call "Container Careers" where each team member has their own personal shipping container fabrication workshop that they work out of on the ICARP fabrication field and that can travel around with them when we expand into other areas of the Midwest or when they move onto their new life career adventures.

I hope to find a family in the fabrication teams put together to build the ICARPs and a brotherhood in the fight for a carp free Mississippi and America. I realize that we won't ever get them all but have faith in the fact that we can at least reduce their population to more manageable numbers.

This is my current fight and mission in life. I hope that you can join me in the fight in whatever way you are able. While financial donations to the project would be wonderful I do very much realize that in this down economy that a cash donation might not be possible and in that case know that I too feel your pains. A simple share on your social media or with family or friends would be equally as important a donation for it will further the reach of my project and hopefully find others who can be generous financially. For either, I am immeasurably grateful.

I thank you for your time and interest more than you will know. It is most appreciated.