Correction – Highest Jr. Memberships
WTU inadvertently made an error while figuring the numbers for the 2010-2011 Chapter Awards Program which was listed in the Fall 2011 issue. First place for the #1 Chapter Award – Highest Jr. Memberships should have gone to the Loud Thunder Chapter of Illinois with total paid junior memberships of 75. We apologize for this error.
Vogt Named Field Director of the Year
Dan Vogt has been named as the Field Director of the Year for the fiscal year 2010-2011. Vogt conducts events in Missouri, Louisiana, and Arkansas, and was honored based on chapter performance, service to local chapters, and internal performance benchmarks. “Dan always does an outstanding job for Whitetails Unlimited, and that translates to doing an outstanding job for the WTU chapters in his territory,” said Dave Hawkey, vice president of field operations for Whitetails Unlimited. Vogt grew up in Columbia, Missouri, and now lives in Centralia, Missouri, with his wife, Michelle, and their eight-year old son, Jacob. He is an accomplished deer and turkey hunter, and enjoys spending time at home when not on the road. “I’m very proud to bring this award to the Show Me state,” said Vogt, “but the recognition really belongs to my incredible group of chapters and volunteers who really deserve all the credit.” According to Hawkey, Vogt set a new record of 18 points (lower score is better), beating the previous record of 21 set three years ago. Tim Powers of Iowa came in second, and Wisconsin’s Jamie Merckx placed third. “It’s taken a little over five years to develop his territory and become WTU’s number one field director,” said WTU’s Executive Director Pete Gerl. “That in itself is an outstanding accomplishment. Dan is a true asset to Whitetails Unlimited.”
We’re Bringing You the Best
Joe Byers, one of Whitetails Unlimited Magazine’s Field Editors, was recognized by his peers twice this spring for material published here. Byers is pictured at right accepting a first place award from Alex Zidock of the Mason-Dixon Outdoor Writers Association in the “Best Published Magazine Article” category for his story titled “Yes You Can Take an Unguided Hunt.” Byers also took First Place in the “Big Game Hunting” photo category from the Outdoor Writers Association of America for a photo that accompanied his story in the “Beat the Heat for Bluebird Bucks” in the Fall 2010 issue of our magazine.
Deer Research Takes Wing
Whitetails Unlimited is helping fund a long-term deer mortality study being conducted by the Wisconsin DNR. This past winter deer were trapped and radio collared in three areas of the state. Near Shawano a helicopter was used to capture and transport the deer, although mechanical problems with the aircraft limited the number of deer that were tagged.
Welcome to New Sponsors
Weston and Stealth WTU is proud to welcome two new sponsors: Stealth Electric Vehicles and Weston Products. Both companies are sponsoring WTU National Drawings for the upcoming fiscal year. Stealth offers the most rugged and reliable off road electric vehicles on the market today, and can be found at
www.stealth4x4.com. Weston makes an extensive line of game and food processing equipment, and now offers a 10-piece line of Realtree Outfitters game processing gear. For complete information visit
realtree.westonproducts.com.
NASP in Hazel Green
Whitetails Unlimited national headquarters made a donation in order to bring archery training to the Southwestern Wisconsin Community School in Hazel Green. The school system raised money from a variety of organizations in order to purchase equipment for the National Archery in the Schools Program. Pictured are David Reese, volunteer
fundraiser; Justin Hahn, grade school physical education teacher; and Ann Lutes, high school physical education teacher.
National Hunt Winner
Lance Sebesta of Sugarland, Texas, was the winner of the Oklahoma Whitetail Hunt Giveaway from the Team Whitetails Special Offer, through the Whitetail Addictions TV Show. Lance was selected from 986 entries.
Wounded Warrior Hunt a Success
“The Wounded Warriors hunt near Huntsville, Alabama, was a smashing success and I deeply appreciate all you did to help make hunting more fun and enjoyable for those heroes. Four deer were harvested, two nice bucks and two doe, and there were two misses. The meat was processed and divided among the participants. You made a positive difference in some young men’s lives.” From J. Wayne Fears, member of the Semper Fi Community Task Force 2009 Heroes Deer Hunting Experience Committee.
#2 in the World
Howard McClanahan took this record gemsbok, scoring second in the world, during a safari with African Days, purchased through Whitetails Unlimited. The package was originally bought at auction by Brian Hoeing of Indiana who then transferred it to Howard. The African Days package is offered at many WTU events, and if you’d like more information, visit their WTU dedicated website at
www.africandayswtu.com and join their mailing list.
Hunting the Poachers
WTU donated a robotic white-tailed deer decoy to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks for game wardens to use in anti-poaching efforts. Game Warden Mat Strozewski wrote to say thanks, noting that they have already used the decoy dozens of times.
Powers Named Field Director of the Year–Again
It was another close race, but for the eighth time Iowa Field Director Tim Powers has come out on top to win the Field Director of the Year Award for 2009-2010. The field director of the year is determined with a scoring matrix based on performance in specific categories, and Tim came out with a score of 27. Dan Vogt was a very close second with a score of 29, followed by Jamie Merckx with a 37. Congratulations, Tim and keep up the good work!
Walleye Tastes Better at a Shore Lunch
This is the first group of WTU members to go fishing at Stokes Bay Resort in Rainy Lake, Ontario, getting ready for a shore lunch of freshly caught Canadian walleye. About 50 chapter events last year featured an auction trip to Stokes Bay, and the lucky winners who attended this summer had a great time on the fishing trip.
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