It Takes A Community

The Council Grove Outdoor Youth Event I blogged about last week is a perfect example of how a high-quality, successful Pass It On outdoor skills day should be conducted. The day is the brainchild of Council Grove area manager Brent Konen, who is professionally and personally invested in the effort. Brent knows such an event is important to the mission of the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism. We have to get youth involved in outdoor recreation for the sake of our outdoor heritage and our agency. Most KDWPT employees are involved with one or more of these events every year because they understand how important they are. And most employees have a personal commitment to these efforts because they understand how discovering a love for the outdoors impacted their own lives. Brent tells the young participants about a similar event he attended as a youngster in Nebraska. He's making sure youth in his area get the same opportunity. But Brent also knows he can't conduct such an event alone. Like every successful Pass It On event, help from the local community, conservation organizations and other KDWPT employees is necessary. Brent teaches Hunter Education locally, and several of his fellow volunteer Hunter Education Program instructors are there to help. Members of the Flint Hills Chapter of the Quail and Upland Wildlife Federation donated hotdogs, hamburgers, along with the fixings, and members showed up with a grill and cooked lunch for everyone. KDWPT employees included game wardens Randy Benteman and Jesse Gehrt, who ran the archery station; Hunter Education coordinator Kent Barrett, who ran the pellet gun range; myself and retired Hunter Education Program coordinator, Wayne Doyle, who ran the wingshooting stations; and of course Brent. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened a secluded, safe area for the event and provided picnic tables. It takes a community to make these events successful, and the benefits go much deeper than merely recruiting new hunters. I'll bet most of these kids will remember this day for a long time, and some will be inspired to go hunting this fall. And I'll bet a few discovered something that will impact the rest of their lives. One or two may even grow up to be a wildlife bioligist or game warden. Wanna bet?