Daniel is an entrepreneur, fly-fishing enthusiast, and the creator of Coffee & Caddis. The venture is the expression of his essential values: family, faith, giving, and purposeful seeking.
Some of Daniel’s very first memories in life are of fishing with his dad and siblings along the Tennessee Dam—idyllic days that would powerfully shape his character and life path. Through Coffee & Caddis, Daniel hopes to combine the best qualities of his childhood memories and the peaceful beauty of river days with a sense of giving back, of grace.
Poignantly, Daniel was first introduced to fishing as a child, and only after much time passed, rediscovered the art of fishing when he became a father. What vicarious joy and wonder he felt as he watched his son, Elijah, learn the ways of the river, until one day-- almost in disbelief—he caught his first fish. These joyful moments sparked an entirely new life direction, ultimately leading to the creation of Coffee & Caddis. Daniel hopes that Coffee & Caddis will encourage families to draw close—whether on the river or over a cup of coffee—and realize firsthand this beautiful sense of communion and closeness.
Tyler has been with Coffee and Caddis since conception. His faith, love for family, fishing, numbers and budgeting make him the perfect fit. He is a huge reason that Daniel started fishing again. .
Tyler likes to say he had a huge part in getting this thing started. He has been great friends with Daniel for over 10 years. Tyler has a huge love for the outdoors and finally one day convinced Daniel to go camping, where they did a little fishing. That ignited an obsession for Daniel and now here they are! Tyler has been on the water in some form since before he can remember. He lost time to fish for a while, as the water was too far away and life got busy, but he never lost the love for the outdoors and fishing. Nowadays he is busier, but the water is closer. Plus, he has instilled the love for the water in his family, so part of the busy is taking them fishing as often as they ask. Tyler's love for numbers and budgeting help him fit into the business, although, he would be involved no matter what to help. He is already more than just the numbers guy; in fact, we call him the multi-tool. While Tyler has been on the water most of his life, fly-fishing is new to him and he is a student of every fly-fisher he comes across. Tyler is excited about where this business is going. What better combination, coffee and fishing, where people of all walks of life can come to meander around and share fishing stories. He hopes to help grow Coffee and Caddis into something that both his and Daniel’s kiddos can someday enjoy together. An oasis where they can escape their busy lives to share fishing stories over a cup of coffee. Or, fueling their day’s adventure with a morning cup of coffee by the fireside before sharing time in the water, adding to their fishing stories.
Russell Husted brings to his role of Director of Business Operations both a rich retail background and the deep skill gleaned over decades of leadership experience within the fly-fishing community.
As an educator, leader, conservationist, and as a fly-fisherman at heart, Russell has been a fixture within the fly-fishing world at large and especially the Southwest-- his devotion to the art form unwavering, his contributions inestimable. Russell’s decades of experience both on the river and in educational and leadership positions make him perfectly poised to serve as a Coffee & Caddis fly-fishing guide and mentor, imparting his wisdom to anglers young and old.
Russell’s fly-fishing résumé is as rich as they come. As the Founder and Past President of Texas Council Fly Fishers International, Russ crafted a unified voice for Texas fly-fishers and a repository of fly-fishing knowledge spanning everything from technique to conversation issues. Russell presently serves on the Texas Council FFI as Communications and Conservation Director and oversees Social Media Operations. He is also the former President of Fort Worth Fly Fishers, which serves its community of 300 fly-fishers with educational resources, conservation efforts, and organized outings.
Having served as a Whole Foods Store Team Leader and as a Senior Executive Team Leader of Food at Target, Russell brings great retail experience and insight to his Directorial role at Coffee and Caddis. Ever generous with his wisdom and experience, Russell regularly contributes to fly-fishing podcasts. His community involvement is vibrant as ever, as he has been instrumental in such events as TRWD Flyfest and other TRWD efforts. Russell’s conservation efforts are essential to his fly-fishing approach, as evidenced in his commitment to the Keep Ft. Worth Beautiful organization and The Trinity Coalition. Russell is fiercely protective of Texas’ beautiful natural assets, and always keeps an eye on conserving and improving the rivers and areas that offer such bounty and enjoyment to others. This sense of stewardship and responsibility spills over into his roles as a fly guide, founder, and fisherman, and is integral to his vision.
Few have been more generous with their knowledge or have given back more to fly-fishing than Russell, whose efforts exemplify the principles of sowing and reaping—of a persistent cultivation over time that reaps incredible dividends. His steady presence within the fly-fishing community and tireless devotion to natural landscapes demonstrates his commitment to current and future fly-fishing generations. Russell embodies Coffee & Caddis’s signature blend of business acumen, responsible stewardship, and community-mindedness. Be sure to attend one of his guided fly-fishing adventures, or simply connect with him over a cup of coffee—we promise you’ll learn more about fly-fishing and be inspired to view the river, the community, and the art form in an entirely new light.
McKenzie is a writer, floral designer, and wedding coordinator who loves to express and interpret beauty through language and other art forms.
Along with her family, she has spent the past few years renovating and transforming a 100-year-old- estate home, Van Buren House, into a luxury bed and breakfast that occasionally hosts fine art weddings and events. Her academic background in English Literature instilled in her the deepest respect for the care and craft taken with the written word, and she is honored to have been a winner of the North American Conference on British Studies Research award, as well as a winner of Norton Anthology’s recitation contest. Her love of writing has naturally led her to blogging and freelance writing, including authoring wedding planning and advice columns, real wedding features, and a long-form, comprehensive Floral Guide on behalf of Style Me Pretty. Meanwhile, her artistic, expressive floral design work has attracted features in publications such as Green Wedding Shoes and Brides of North Texas. She chronicles her creative work via her blog, Meadow Journal, a sustained reflection on what it means to live a life of faith, artistry, sensitivity, and givenness. Whether writing or designing, she hopes to offer others a pure and refreshing encounter with beauty.
Cole Risinger draws on his rich experience fly-fishing in Colorado and Texas—especially the Brazos River, his river of rivers– as one of Coffee & Caddis’s fly guides.
A fly-fisherman through and
through, Cole is also a skilled teacher, with a gift for revealing the beauty of fly-fishing to other people.
The beginning of his fly-fishing story reads very much like a scene from A River Runs Through It, as he learned at his grandfather’s side and developed a special obsession with trout. Those early Colorado memories would profoundly shape him, and fly-fishing would become his life’s passion and most persistent theme. Cole found himself drawn not only to the art of fly-fishing, but also to its incredible tendency to spark stories and connections. He would hone his craft and settle into his role as teacher as a guide in Crested Butte and later the stretch of the Brazos River below Lake Whitney.
He refers to the latter as his “office” and it’s clear that this stretch of river is, for Cole, a kind of home. Great fly-fishermen develop a wordless connection with their waters; a kind of symbiotic relationship that involves both action and stillness, and a quality of deep listening. Cole has this kind of relationship with the Brazos. “When I moved back to Texas,” explains Cole, “I realized I could target all species with a fly rod in hand.” It was an immediate, perfect fit: “I never picked up another rod again.” Fishing the Brazos, he
devoted “countless hours exploring and learning the river, targeting bass, bluegill, striper, carp” and more. Soon, he was inspired to launch out with his own independent guide service, and attracted
great success, as well as interest from and collaborations with other Texas guide services. His life and locations have taken several turns, but for Cole, fly fishing has been “the constant.” The relationships he makes with others are his rocket fuel, the thing that draws him to the river every
morning. With Cole as your guide, you’ll see the river in a new light, learning not only practical techniques but discovering a new way to connect with family and friends. Cole is that mentor you’ve been looking for, whose wisdom will lead you deeper in your fly-fishing experience. Follow him at
@wacoonthefly on Instagram for all the fly-fishing inspo and catches of the day.
Jared Lindsay, our in-house photographer, captures the essence of Coffee & Caddis. Through his work, Jared conveys a love of the outdoors and a devotion to visual storytelling—honest storytelling that doesn’t shy away from what’s real or what’s hard.
Only a rugged outdoorsman could look so unflinchingly at life and art. Consider him the Hemingway of photography—intrepid, honest, adventurous-- and a great fly-fisherman, at that.
A photojournalist at heart, Jared likes to get to the facts on the ground and document events straightforwardly, strengths that served him as a contributor to the Weatherford Telegram and
Weatherford Democrat newspapers. To this day, documentary photography is what drives him. “‘Unobtrusive’ is the creed I live by,” he explains. “No need to fake anything. It’s all fine being left alone.”
Jared’s work reveals a love for nature, as he is passionately drawn outdoors on dove hunting trips, canoeing, camping, and fly-fishing excursions. His fly-fishing photography has an insight and accuracy that can only come from hands-on experience. These photos can be dynamic, as he catches a fly-fisher mid- cast, or quiet, as he compresses his focus onto a river rock, fish scale, or vibrant fly. A father of three, Jared often thinks of his work in terms of the legacy he creates, and views guide photography as an opportunity enrich family life, leaving clients “with a visual record of their trip to look back on for many years to come, and be able to pass down to their kids and grandkids.”
Jared tells the kinds of stories, through photos, that we live out on the river—and return to the coffee shop to talk about the next morning. Find him boldly capturing the action outdoors, and at
the coffee shop, editing photos.
