Jean C Fisheries was established in 1950 and is currently run by Kevin Bennett, who bought the Jean C after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Ed Chevalier built the boat, named after his wife, and fished out of Washington and Alaska for over 65 years until Kevin bought it.

Kevin has been operating Jean C Fisheries since April 2014. He fishes for ling cod, salmon, and tuna. His start/stop dates, limits, and restrictions are governed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the federal government. It’s a one-man operation and Kevin will go out to fish for up to five days at a time on the ocean. His boat is equipped to have multiple fishing lines out at a time and accommodates his living needs while he’s gone for multiple days.

Kevin says that “it’s fishing,” so he never knows exactly how many fish he will bring in after a trip. When I met him, he was unloading 96 tuna fish from his boat. He can catch up to 4,000 pounds at a time.

When asked about how he sells his freshly caught fish Kevin says, “I have a limited seller permit that allows dockside sales to the ultimate consumer whole fish sales.” His tuna is either sold from the boat or to a plant; salmon is almost always to the Pacific Sea food plant; ling cod to local fish shops or dockside sales.”