There are always “plenty of fish in the sea”
But of everything she could have reached out to touch, she actually tried to touch a great white shark!
The encounter happened off Tybee Island during a tagging effort run by Knot Lucky Fishing. A veteran on a free fishing trip with a Savannah nonprofit reached over the side of a boat and touched a real great white shark with a hook in its mouth as it sat outside the rocking boat.
Moments later, the Shark seemed irritated, thrashed, and lunged at her arm! In a Facebook post describing the video, the organisation wrote:
“One Second, Jen, one of our veterans, is laying her hand on a wild white shark like it’s the family dog, and the next second that shark whips around and lunges toward her. Everybody on the boat felt that one in their chest”
The group’s founder and former Army Ranger Jimmy Armel said the woman was never in real danger. The crew kept the shark under control throughout, and it never got close enough to cause harm.
Posting the caption:
“She reached out to pet a great white shark. The great white had other plans. 
Watch that head swing. Right off Tybee Island, one second Jen, one of our veterans, is laying her hand on a wild white shark like it’s the family dog, and the next second that shark whips around and lunges toward her. Everybody on the boat felt that one in their chest. Now let me tell you the truth, because I always will. Jen was never in real danger. The crew had that shark under control the whole time, and it never got close enough to do any harm. But that reaction right there is a reminder of exactly what these animals are. Beautiful. Powerful. Wild. They deserve every ounce of respect we can give them. This is what our White Shark Tagging Program is all about. We catch, tag, and release great whites to collect real research on where they go and how they live, and every shark we tag carries the name of a fallen brother. Science and honor on the same deck. Huge thanks to Starbrite and Gray’s FishTag Research for standing with us and making this mission possible. This one didn’t get a tag, though. We never had a safe shot, and we will never force it. The shark’s safety and the crew’s safety come first, every single time, so we let that shark go to swim another day. And a big shout out to Ambio Life Sciences. Ambio is where I first physically felt God. In that moment I knew serving others was my life’s purpose, and three days later I started running Knot Lucky full time. Every trip, every tag, every veteran on this boat traces back to that day. Thank you for saving my life, and for every veteran you keep saving. Would you have had the guts to pet it? Tell me in the comments. All the love. His love. One love. 
“
Knot Lucky takes veterans who are suffering from PTSD out on the water for free off-shore fishing trips. Our direction is undoubtedly in the face of the problem. It is a comfortable position for war-hardened men. Whether it be addiction, mobility, post-traumatic stress from your career, or in any way if life gets you down, that’s what we’re here for.
Committed to the men that never let us down. Committed to them now and always, whether your healing can be done on the boat or not, we’ll have a good time with a plethora of resources and avenues for success.
– https://knotlucky.com/why-we-do-this/
The team names each tagged shark after a fallen Ranger or other service member so it can gather migration data while keeping those names in circulation. Armel has said the program has tagged 10 sharks so far, with more expected as the animals return to the area this winter. The Particular shark was released without a tag. Armel said the crew never had a safe window to complete the process and would not force it.
The moment reminds everyone that these powerful creatures deserve full respect, and the shark’s sudden reaction illustrated that point for everyone watching from the deck.
Although the animals might appear calm next to the boat, they are still wild.
