Wyoming
Thunder Basin Banquet Photos
Gillette, Wyo., April 5, 2008
Thunder Basin Chapter Spotlight
April 2008
By Kim Phagan-Hansel
Starting a chapter of the Mule Deer Foundation isn't easy. There's a lot of time consuming work and a steep learning curve in the first year. But, as avid hunters and lovers of the outdoors, we believe in what MDF stands for.
We were first introduced to MDF while living in Colorado, where we attended the Northern Colorado Chapter banquets. At that time, we were just attendees and had little idea about what took place behind the scenes. After moving to Gillette, Wyo., in late 2006, we were surprised to learn that there was no active chapter in the area, despite being in the midst of prime mule deer country.
Sealed with the fate of an e-mail to MDF, we were put in contact with Regional Director Brandon Mason. I'd like to say the rest was history, but it was only the beginning. Apprehensive to tackle the chairman position due to other obligations and a young family, my husband Dan and I hoped that someone would step forward to start a chapter at the first meeting in December 2007. When no one did, it was a pivotal moment for us to either jump in or let Gillette remain without a chapter. That jump became scarier after several meetings yielded only three committee members: Dan, myself and my sister Laura Phagan. But once committed there was no turning back.
Our chapter quickly became a family affair getting my dad and mom, Bob and Ellen Phagan, involved with our small committee. We sparked the community's interest by attending several local events – the Winter Western and the WASATCH Gun Show. And like that, we were off and running. We even picked up a few additional committee members along the way: Dustin Harrison, Brad Loecker, Donnie and Stacy McKim and Tim Huus.
One of the keys to our success was our auctioneer, John Japp. Not only did he volunteer his services to the banquet, but he also was a huge asset to obtaining sponsors and selling tickets. But really, the overall efforts of the entire committee are what I would say made our first banquet on April 5, 2008, a success.
With stress high that day, at times it was difficult to stay focused on the important work we were doing on behalf of mule deer in our state. However, with some great team work and a few last minute scrambles, we managed to pull off our first event in a relatively smooth manner. Emcee Brandi Benson kept the crowd on their toes and the atmosphere light and fun for all. A large part of our success can be attributed to those “experts” who traveled to help us – John and Sheila Wilson from Montana and Corey from North Dakota.
With almost 250 people in attendance, our banquet was one of the largest first year banquets for any group in Gillette. We also received many compliments on the organization and variety of raffles and games that night.
Now that the event is over, and I've caught up on my sleep and my heart rate has returned to normal, I am pleased overall with how things turned out. Already Dan and I have found ourselves discussing next year. Our biggest hope is to gain more committee members prior to that and learn from our successes and failures of this first year. In the end, I hope we've made a difference to people in our community and mule deer throughout our state.
Kim Phagan-Hansel is the editor of Adoption Today and Fostering Families Today magazine. She and her husband, Dan are outdoor lovers and hunters. They have a three-year-old daughter, Brianna, who is practicing her “shooting” with the toy dart gun she won at the banquet.