NWTF Chapters Earn Partnership Award at National Convention
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The NWTF presented Partnership Awards to local chapters that collaborated with individuals, companies, agencies or nongovernmental organizations to host hunting heritage events, including JAKES, Wheelin’ Sportsmen or Women in the Outdoors events. Representatives from NWTF chapters in Minnesota and Missouri each received the NWTF Partnership Award during the 49th annual NWTF Convention and Sport Show, sponsored by Mossy Oak, for hosting successful collaborative events.
This year’s winners received the Partnership Award for the following:
Sand Dunes Gobblers – Sherburne Refuge Mentor Hunt
The annual Minnesota youth mentored hunt held at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge is an orchestrated event for the entire spring turkey season. With 120 participants, 42 kids went into the field and harvested 27 birds. The group gathered at a local gun club where hunting rules and safety were discussed, and then a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officer discussed information about the refuge. Mentees were given box calls and went into the field with a mentor. First turkey pins and certificates were mailed to mentees who harvest a bird to keep their excitement for hunting fueled. Recipes were shared in hopes to get kids excited for hunting.
“The refuge is gracious and lets us go out there with these kids,” Chapter President Nancy McLaughlin said. “We’re a small-but-mighty chapter. Winning this award is humbling and exciting. We’ve got good committee members and good outreach, and we’ve been molding this event, so it’s good to see its success year after year. I encourage chapters to get out there and engage with the community, especially with the youth, because they are our future. We have to seize the opportunity to recruit them. It’s a part of what we do. We want to retain, educate, reinvigorate and get those kids out there.”
Minnesota State Board – Minnesota State High School Clay Target League
The Minnesota State Board holds a yearly high school clay target league event at the Alexandria Shooting Range. The first annual event took place in 2008, with three teams, three coaches and only 30 athletes. Today, the clay target league sees nearly 12,000 student athletes participate.
The NWTF has been an annual platinum-level sponsor that provides money, equipment, materials and education to the event each year. This past year, over 8,000 high school students and 20,000 attendees participated in this event to quality for the State Trap Shoot, making it the largest shooting sport event in the world. In Minnesota, over 2,500 new students join the league annually, which is critical given the decades-long trend of declining hunter participation.
“This event lasts for nine days and close to 10,000 kids attend,” said Ralph Warzecha, Minnesota NWTF State Chapter president. “It’s pretty cool — getting to talk turkey every day and having kids come in and show their pictures. We get to show them all the different ways to call turkeys and share stories through the mentor program. It’s an event we always look forward to carrying out with the public. This award is a big one to win for this event.”
Partners included the NWTF, Sportsmen’s Guide, Outdoor News, Scheels, Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, Ducks Unlimited, NRA and the U.S. Army.
Missouri State Chapter – Governor’s Mentored Deer Hunt
The Governor’s Mentored Deer Hunt came as the result of a new antlerless deer season in early October. This weekend-long event provides access to properties for new hunters with the intention of addressing partner R3 goals, while also assisting larger landowners achieve their management goals. The Missouri State Department of Conservation held its first deer hunt for 25 first-time hunters in October 2023, and, in 2024, the second annual event was held with 35 hunters.
John Burk, NWTF district biologist for the state, said these events are a great opportunity for new hunters. Participants were given an orientation, a hunter safety course, and target practice before spending Saturday afternoon and Sunday hunting with volunteer mentors at this event.
“It’s awesome [to win the Partnership Achievement Award],” he said. “We’re pretty proud of this event, and we’re happy to get recognition for it.”
In addition to the NWTF, partners included the Missouri Sportsmen’s Caucus, Missouri Back Country Hunters and Anglers, KC Safari Club International, Missouri Department of Conservation, Conservation Federation of Missouri, Missouri Disabled Sportsmen Association, Missouri Hunting Heritage Federation, Whitetails Unlimited, National Deer Association, ALPS OutdoorZ, Friends of the NRA, and Missouri Woods and Wildlife.
“From our landscape-scale conservation projects to our education and outreach events, partnerships are vital to delivering our mission on a scale that pushes the needle forward,” NWTF co-CEO Kurt Dyroff said. “We are proud to honor our chapters that go above and beyond and partner with other agencies and organizations for the greater good.”
About the National Wild Turkey Federation
Since 1973, the National Wild Turkey Federation has invested over half a billion dollars into wildlife conservation and has positively impacted over 24 million acres of critical wildlife habitat. The NWTF has also invested over $10 million into wild turkey research to guide the management of the wild turkey population and to ensure sustainable populations into perpetuity. The organization continues to deliver its mission by working across boundaries on a landscape scale through its Four Shared Values: clean and abundant water, healthy forests and wildlife habitat, resilient communities, and robust recreational opportunities. With the help of its dedicated members, partners and staff, the NWTF continues its work to provide Healthy Habitats. and Healthy Harvests. for future generations.