Hunt for kids with illnesses.
Wisconsin
I am a member of a group of mentors from Rusk County called Safe Hunters of Tomorrow. Next week we will be conducting our annual Hunt of a Lifetime which is a hunt for youths with life changing illnesses. This is without a doubt the favorite event of the year for our mentors and all the other volunteers and local hunters that help us pull this event off.
In the course of two days the hunters have a chance to hunt a buck and doe on one of the premier properties in northern Wisconsin and then hunt with hounds for a bear. We have been doing this hunt since 2003 and nearly always are able to help these hunters their two deer and a bear. It is so rewarding to help these youths and their families share an experience that they wouldn't otherwise be able to participate in. We have developed different adaptive equipment to overcome whatever physical limitations the hunters may have. We are lucky to have several local hound groups that are willing to put in a great deal of effort to get these hunters to treed bears. Often this means carrying the hunter in through some of the nastiest country this area has to offer.
This is what hunting should be all about and I thought I would share a picture from last year during our celebration dinner.
Joel, thank-you to you for being the volunteer you are. I know you have thought about what you are doing for these youth hunters and how you are changing their lives in a positive manner. You and the others give them something they will cherish, hold dear, and remember for a lifetime. There should be more people in the world who give of themselves as you do. Your efforts and those of your companions bring a little light into what otherwise may be challenging times. Again Sir, thank-you.
How does one donate or volunteer for these events?
There are a few events similar in the State. SHOT also puts on some mentored youth hunts, a Youth Outdoor Field Day, and hunter safety classes in Rusk County. We are also the RC Gobblers chapter of NWTF. You can contact me to learn more about our group.
Rick Verbsky, owner of Big Bear Lodge in Winter is involved in a bear hunt for disabled hunters.
Those are two that I know about. Anyone else feel free to mention other events they know about.
AWESOME! Thanks for passing this on. We need to get more of this information out into the eyes of the public so they know that hunters care about our fellow man.
Way to go!
Both of our hunters shot bucks tonight. Both are wheelchair bound and have limited use of their hands. Tomorrow morning we wilp be out bright and early after bears with hounds.
Finally a great positive post. Awesome!!!!
This is awesome. Very heartwarming.
Outstanding,,,,,, you guys are the heros, as far as I am concerned
That is awesome stuff. Kudos to all those involved.
Well done! We need to toot out own horns when we do things like this and get them out into the eyes of the public.
An awesome thing....
Well deserved toots, Mike! We should also get a list together of programs like this if it doesn't exist. I'm sure a lot of us, including myself, would donate time, money or resources to such a good cause.
+1 Reggie. Collin and I would be in.
Joel, do you need donated bear tags or does the DNR donate a few? It will be 3 or more years till I'm eligible again to draw but I've killed my share of bear and have more fun now freeing them and letting em go to run another day. So I'll be looking to donate my tag.
We get tags from the DNR, but thanks for the offer.
Very long day for our group today. We started on several bears and chased one till late afternoon. It was a pretty nice bear and several of us saw it but we never got it to tree.
I just got home and haven't heard how the other group did. We'll be back at it again tomorrow.
And people think using dogs is cheating. LOL
Tomorrow is another day.
Using dogs is NOT easy. If you've never done it you should try it sometime.....
Good luck and be safe!
Our hunter got his bear this morning. It was a 200# boar which is the size we are really looking for for this event. The country we are hunting in Sawyer County is pretty rough and we have found that the bigger bears tend to run much longer and tree much farther from access than is feasible for handicapped hunters.
The other hunter got his bear yesterday morning and I haven't heard all of the detail but it sounds like it was a pretty hard recovery. Pretty far from a road.
Both hunters shot does last night so they filled all their tags. Six big game animals in a day and a half for people with limited mobility is an incredible feat and it shows how hard the mentors work to put this all together. I will try and get some additional pictures up when I get some.
Thanks for all the nice words and support! This event is a great event and I am proud to be a part of it.
