Ansil is a fifth-generation resident of the Bahamas and followed his ancestors’ footsteps into boat building. He was inspired to become a guide by a local fishing legend, Bonefish Sam. 

Sanders was no stranger to the fight for equality. As a child, he ate expensive foods, like conch and lobster, for free, catching them in local waters. But as a black man, he could not get served at the Bimini Big Game Club.  One afternoon he stopped at the club for lunch and sat for an hour without being served. He returned every day for forty-one days, each time ignored, and left to fish the remainder of the day on an empty stomach. Then, he learned the owner had invited officials from Nassau to the club for dinner. He convinced his friends to join him that evening, and they sat down to eat. To save embarrassment in front of the guests, the club served them. Ansil recalled, "They fed us like the King of England."  From that day forward, they were always welcome. 

Reverend King and his followers inspired Ansil and others on the island. By following his actions and listening to his speeches and sermons, they learned to think big. Ansil became chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party. His goal was to even the playing field in the Bahamas. Blacks were second class and had limited access to many things, including a quality education. Ansil's college was guiding fishermen. Many of his clients were well-educated professionals, and he learned by talking with and listening to them. In turn, he helped educate people and prepare them for independence. 

Reverend King returned to Bimini in early 1968 to write the speech he would give in Memphis in April. Ansil took his friend to Bimini Creek, where King reflected and wrote. When he learned of King's death just a few days later, he was devastated but continued his activism.  In 1969 he started the Boys and Girls club on Bimini to help educate young children, and in 1973 Ansil helped Bimini move into independence. 

Ansil guided many famous people, including President Richard Nixon and Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath. He met Queen Elizabeth twice. But it's the time spent with Martin Luther King the fisherman treasures most and is the subject of a short film, Mighty Waters. Simms, Costa, and the American Museum of Fly Fishing produced the film last year. On February 1, in honor of Black History Month, the film was made available to the public on their platforms and YouTube. 

Ansil helped land the world record bonefish in 1971 and was recently inducted into the fly-fishing hall of fame. He is less known for a psalm he wrote and shared with King during the Reverend's 1964 visit. The island's beauty resonated with King, and he wondered how anyone could look at all the life around them and not believe in God. Ansil recited his psalm for King. The Reverend was moved and inspired by the fisherman’s words. 

Over the years, Ansil returned to Bonefish Creek with his boat tours and would recite his creation psalm for people. The verse describes God through his handiwork reflected in the nature surrounding them. 

Mighty Waters and its story of Ansil Saunders and his relationship with Martin Luther King is only seventeen minutes long. Still, its lesson spans decades through the lives of an iconic leader and a boat-building fly fisherman. Neither of whom lost faith or gave up hope.