This event could not have been a success without the cooperation of the land owner Mrs. Patty Smith of the J.W. Drake family, local farmer Mike Fullilove of Fullilove Farms, and Mr. and Mrs. Federer of Federer Feed and Seed all of Cullman county. Their cooperation in making this event possible is greatly appreciated. We hope that our success is shared by them and we can repeat this event for years to come. We also need to thank Mr. Gary Martin General Manager for the Cullman Super Wal-Mart Center for providing lunch to all the participants. Every event is special when volunteer instructor Mr. James King of Russelville brings his expertise in shooting trap. This event was no exception. The kids had a great time shooting clays before lunch and receiving personal instruction from Mr. King. I also want to thank my wife Pati for putting up with me and helping me put this event together. Thanks to all of you who made this event special and a special thanks to all the kids who participated.

Part of the hunting experience is after all about the kids and introducing new hunters to our world. We had two new hunters take their first dove, and another took his first crow. I give the days Sportsman Award to Luke Davis. This 13 year old whose dad, Gary Davis, helped develop the field and could not be there because of work killed his limit of dove but only found a portion of the birds. After only 2 hours in the field Luke came to me and told me he was putting his gun up for the day because he had killed his limit and then helped the other boys retrieve their birds.

I look forward to the next event and hope that more instructors can attend. Perhaps we will have another hurricane like Ivan but hopefully it will not dampen our spirits to come together, enjoy each others company, and a day in the field.   

Stuart R. Goldsby
Regional Hunter Education Coordinator
Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries

Contact: sgoldsby@bellsouth.net