FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 14, 2016
Media contact: Lydia Saldaña
817.851.5729
lsaldana@tpwf.org
Thanks to a partnership with the Texas Youth Hunting Program, Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation (TPWF) has hosted the first public hunting opportunity on Powderhorn Ranch. The hunts took place Dec. 2-4 and Dec. 9-10, 2016. Fourteen youth from across Texas took part in the hunting activities, many participating in their very first hunt.
The 17,351-acre Powderhorn Ranch was acquired in 2014 by TPWF and will be turned over to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in a few years. The site will eventually become a state park and wildlife management area.
“Along with habitat restoration and some facility repairs, providing limited public access opportunities is a priority during this interim period,” said Anne Brown, executive director of Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation. “We’re grateful for the partnership with Texas Wildlife Association and the Texas Youth Hunting Program that has provided a high-quality hunting experience for these young Texans.”
The Texas Youth Hunting Program was established to increase the number of young people participating in educational, safe, mentored wildlife and hunting activities and to promote the hunting heritage in Texas. It is a program of the Texas Wildlife Association and is co-sponsored by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
“Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation and Texas Wildlife Association occupy a unique space in the conservation world and are able to create public/private partnerships to accomplish mutual goals,” said David Yeates, chief executive officer of Texas Wildlife Association. “Not only did these youth have the opportunity to experience a hunting trip, with some bringing a cooler full of meat home to their families, they got to do it in a very special part of Texas.”
Since the Texas Youth Hunting Program began in 1996, more than 21,000 kids have participated in nearly 2,500 hunts across the state. The program aims to increase participation in wildlife conservation and hunting activities and promote the highest ethical standards in hunting. The 14 youth who participated in the Powderhorn hunts were accompanied by a parent and a trained mentor.
“It was a great experience at an amazing place,” said Chris Kirby, whose 11-year-old son Bridger harvested a sambar deer after two long hunt days in cold, rainy weather. “The life lessons were far more important than the deer.”
The youth hunters harvested seven axis deer, five sambar deer, four white-tailed deer and three feral hogs. Managing wildlife numbers is an essential part of the habitat restoration plan for this property. Other public use options on Powderhorn Ranch, such as paddling and birding, are being explored for 2017.
See a video of Bridger’s first hunt.
A .pdf version of this press release is available.
All TPWF news releases available online: tpwf.org/media/press-releases
Since 1991, Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation (TPWF) has leveraged public funds with private philanthropy to advance Texas’ proud outdoor traditions and conserve our state’s wildlife, habitat, recreational areas, and natural resources. Since its inception, TPWF has raised more than $125 million to help ensure that all Texans, today and in the future, can enjoy the wild things and wild places in Texas.
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