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Vermont Families Afield Bill Clears House of Representatives

U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance

Vermont --(AmmoLand.com)- On March 17, the Vermont House of Representatives passed Apprentice Hunting legislation aimed at reducing barriers to new hunters entering the field. House Bill 243 now moves to the Senate for further consideration.

It is part of the national Families Afield effort by the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA), the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) and the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF).

The measure, sponsored by Rep. Steve Adams (R- Hartland), will allow newcomers to try hunting under the close supervision of an experienced mentor prior to the completion of hunter education.

“We’re proud that Representative Adams and the House of Representatives have taken the first step to ensure the future of Vermont’s hunting heritage,” said Evan Heusinkveld, U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) director of state services. “Vermont sportsmen should continue voicing their support for this bill by calling their state senators.”

The Families Afield initiative was established by the USSA, NSSF and NWTF in 2004 in order to bring a new generation of sportsmen to the field. Since the program’s inception, Families Afield legislation has been passed in 29 states with over 300,000 apprentice licenses sold to date. Other groups giving key support to the Vermont effort include the National Rifle Association, Vermont Traditions Coalition, and Ducks Unlimited.

Take Action!
Vermont sportsmen are encouraged to contact their state senators and urge them to support HB 243. Tell them that this bill is an important step to protect conservation efforts by reducing barriers for the next generation of Vermont hunters to take to the field. To find your state senator’s contact information, visit the USSA Legislative Action Center at www.ussportsmen.org/lac.

About:
The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance is a national association of sportsmen and sportsmen’s organizations that protects the rights of hunters, anglers and trappers in the courts, legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress and through public education programs. For more information about the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and its work, call (614) 888-4868 or visit its website, www.ussportsmen.org.

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Renewed Partnership Will Benefit South Dakota Wildlife

(Pictured L to R): Dean Schueler, outgoing president of the National Wild Turkey Federation's South Dakota State Chapter; James Earl Kennamer, Ph.D., NWTF chief conservation officer; and Jeff Vonk, secretary of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks, signed a cooperative agreement to benefit wildlife and conservation in South Dakota. Photo: Michael G. Brown Photography

National Wild Turkey Federation

EDGEFIELD, S.C. – -(AmmoLand.com)- South Dakota’s wildlife and sportsmen will benefit from a new cooperative agreement between the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) and the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (SDGFP).

The three-year agreement helps support the NWTF’s on-the-ground work to promote partnerships and complete projects that will benefit wild turkeys, other wildlife and important habitats in South Dakota.

James Earl Kennamer, Ph.D., NWTF’s chief conservation officer, signed the agreement during South Dakota’s NWTF state convention along with Jeff Vonk, secretary of SDGFP, and Dean Schueler, outgoing president of the NWTF’s South Dakota State Chapter.

“This agreement is an extension of an already beneficial relationship with South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks,” Kennamer said. “With a regional biologist who knows the needs of South Dakota’s wildlife and sportsmen, we can plan mutually beneficial projects that will benefit wild turkeys and all manners of other wildlife including pheasants and sensitive species such as bald eagles.”

Cooperative projects may include, but are not limited to, restoring riparian areas — or areas near rivers and streams — in South Dakota through the NWTF’s Northern Plains Riparian Restoration Initiative , planting mast-producing shrubs, helping provide standing grain, assisting ranchers who winter large numbers of turkeys on their property through the NWTF’s Operation Big Sky program, and promoting access to private land for increased hunting opportunities.

The NWTF is a nonprofit conservation organization that works daily to further its mission of conserving the wild turkey and preserving our hunting heritage. Through dynamic partnerships with state, federal and provincial wildlife agencies, the NWTF and its more members have helped restore wild turkey populations across the country, spending more than $306 million to conserve 14 million acres of habitat for all types of wildlife.

For more information about the NWTF, call (800) THE-NWTF or visit www.nwtf.org.

About the NWTF:
The National Wild Turkey Federation is a nonprofit conservation organization that works daily to further its mission of conserving the wild turkey and preserving our hunting heritage.

Through dynamic partnerships with state, federal and provincial wildlife agencies, the NWTF and its more than 350,000 members have helped restore wild turkey populations across the country, spending more than $306 million to conserve 14 million acres of habitat for all types of wildlife.

The Federation works to increase interest in the outdoors by bringing new hunters and conservationists into the fold through outdoor education events and its outreach programs – Women in the Outdoors, Wheelin’ Sportsmen, JAKES and Xtreme JAKES.

The NWTF was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Edgefield, S.C. According to many state and federal agencies, the comeback of the wild turkey is arguably the greatest conservation success story in North America’s wildlife history.

Visit www.nwtf.org or call (800) THE-NWTF for details.

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