On April 24, the Marshfield Chapter of the Ruffed Grouse Society is having its annual RGS Youth Day. This event has been continually more successful, with last year introducing more than 300 kids to hunting and fishing. My hunting partner and I have been taking our daughters to the event for the last two years and have been so impressed with the event that we are going to be doing the flyfishing demonstration with our local flyfishing club. The events chairman first started it with the intent of introducing children of single parent families to hunting after discovering that they made up a high percentage of the local school system where the chairmans wife is employed. I think this is the forth or fifth year for the Youth Day. It started with just the chapters members with volunteers from the local NAVHDA group, a professional dog trainer, a professional flyfishing guide, a sporting clays womens champion, and the Wisc. DNR representatives and speakers on conservation, game and land management, and birds of prey, as well as numerous people and businesses who donated time, facilities, and prizes. Hands on activities included a session on hunter safety, introduction to shotgun shooting, archery, dog training, flycasting, and air rifle shooting. A speaker who was a reformed poacher gave a riveting presentation on the abuses he had taken of the earth and its animals, and of the grave mistakes he had made and how the children could learn from his error. The honesty of his talk capitivated the audience, young and old alike, and presented a deep impression on land and game ethics and their reprocussions, that I can't believe couldn't have affected everybody in the tent. As this event has evolved, more groups have been welcomed into the program. Two years ago Whitetails Unlimited, and the Quality Deer Management groups joined the program. Last year, the Wild Turkey Federation participated with a demonstration on calling, shooting and a had a video on hunting ethics. This year Ducks Unlimited, The Becoming An Outdoor Woman Program, the Fur Trappers Association, the NRA, and our local Central Wisc. Flyfishing Club are participating. The target market has also changed to include children and mothers of single parent families. The part of this ever increasing successful program that most impresses me, is that instead of this RGS chapter claiming its elitest superiority over other sportsmans groups and competing with them for market share of a limited population and resources, it has said what's the point? The point is to seek common ground and work together to introduce new people to hunting and fishing and maybe create some future hunters and fishers that will carry on our traditions. In the Sept.-Oct. 1998 issue of Q.U. magazine, authors Tom Mohrhauser and Roger Wells, Q.U. National Habitat Coordinator addressed this in an article called 'Fee Based Hunting', where they noted: "Even though the spectrum of conservation organizations continues to sponsor efforts on behalf of their chosen game bird, as of today, there is no mechanism that unites them in a chorus of voices representing the American hunter or our sport. Unfortunately, their often parochial nature finds them competing for the same membership, funding and other resources which is indirectly serving to compromise what they are all trying to ultimately accomplish on behalf of our upland game. While the species of game bird that each has chosen to patronize continues to benefit from their dedicated efforts, a fragmented approach to this crisis cannot even begin to deal with the enormity of complex issues and factors threatening wildlife populations today. Yes as most hunters do, the two of us gladly support two or three of these groups and applaud what they are all trying to achieve. By no means should we ever be critical of these organizations or their objectives". This RGS Chapter is providing that mechanism to unite these voices.
Support for all hunting groups
I think what your RGS chapter is trying to accomplish is wonderful. We are learning that in order for us to win the culture war that is being waged by opponents of hunting we must all work together. This means that all outdoor sports including the ones we may not be so fond of like trapping, foxhunting, etc. should be supported as well.
The English have learned this just in the nick of time and have the Countryside Alliance as the focal point for support of all country sports. The Wildlife Legislative Fund of America serves a similar role in the US.
Shooting Sportsman Bulletin Board - RGS Youth Day