Northern Great Plains Region
May/June 2008
Brandon Mason , MDF Regional Director
Can you say ‘holy whirlwind Batman’? Well,that’s what has been happening in the Northern Great Plains over the start of banquet season (and I’m not talking about the fact that the wind doesn’t quit blowing up here either). There has been a lot going on in and out of mule deer country that is great to see.
February kicked off with the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City, Utah. This annual convention with Foundation for North American Wild Sheep and Sportsmen For Wildlife proved, once again, to be a great venue for sportsmen to show up, have fun, and most importantly, raise dollars for wildlife. Some of the premier wildlife auction tags went for record amounts, which means more money on the ground for habitat projects! It was great to see a large crowd attend the week’s events and it was great to see many of the exhibitors that were there, including Muley Crazy, King’s Outdoor World, Mossback Productions, etc.
After the convention, it was time to participate in several sport shows and banquets. The Black Hills Sports Show and Sale in Rapid City, S.D., once again showed there are a lot of people in South Dakota that are passionate about mule deer and mule deer hunting. I was able to talk to people of all ages about the MDF and also about helping out with the banquet in Rapid City on May 10, 2008. (see attached photo)
On February 23, the Northern Badlands Chapter in Bismarck, N.D., held their seventh Annual Banquet. Last year they had raised more money than ever before, netting over $15,000 and earning just over $1,900 in chapter rewards. This year they raised over $26,000, reached the 60% net/gross mark, and will be getting over $5,000 in chapter rewards dollars in 2008! Great job guys and gals.
Over the first weekend in March, the Lake Agassiz Chapter in Fargo, N.D., set up a booth at the Red River Valley Boat, Sport and Marine Show. What a great opportunity it was to inform people in the Fargo/Moorhead area about MDF and the chapter. Thanks to Corey Adolfs, Marshall Johnson, Arnie Olson, Barry Freed and Chad Kost for working at the show. (see attached photo)
The next weekend brought the first Annual Banquet of the West Dakota Chapter in Minot, N.D. During the early stages of planning for this banquet, the committee said they’d hoped to sell a couple of corporate tables and get around 100 people in attendance. I was hopeful for the same thing, but couldn’t have predicted how well it was going to go. They had just under 200 people in attendance, sold 16 corporate tables, netted over $16,000 and reached the 60% net/gross mark!!! This was due in part to the generous sponsors like Wal-Mart in Minot (see attached photo) and a great auctioneer like Kevin Beeter (see attached photo). Way to go to the committee for their hard work and foresight to make their first banquet a great one. Steve Zarr, Steve Fundingsland, Jake Hansen, Kim Fundingsland and George Malaktaris did a fantastic job and are already planning on other events for 2008. A special thank you to Mark Hamilton of Wild Things Gallery for his hospitality in letting the West Dakota Chapter hold their meetings at his art gallery and store in Minot and for allowing the use of his cabin for a fun banquet planning meeting/trap shoot the week before the banquet. (see attached photos)
In the middle of March, I was off to Gillette, Wyo., to help the newly established Thunder Basin Chapter plan for their banquet on April 5. Kim and Dan Hansel have done a wonderful job of stepping up to make the thought of a chapter in Gillette become a reality. They have had a lot of interest and the banquet in Gillette in early April promises to be a good one. Stay tuned for details in my next write up.
After leaving Gillette, I headed to Rapid City for another chapter banquet planning meeting. Thanks to the dozen or so individuals who showed up for the meeting, including Harvey Malon, Scott Phillips, Jim Light, Tom and Suzy Dennis, Parker and Kim Dennis, Bill Clendenen, Jason West, Dale and Hunter Johnson and Arlin Stratmeyer. The Black Hills Chapter is in the process of getting reorganized and, with these individuals on board as well as others, the future of the chapter looks brighter than ever!
Lastly, at the end of March I was able to attend the 73rd Annual North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference for the second year in a row. This conference was held in Phoenix, Ariz., and was focused on effective conservation through partnerships. It was great to see the partnerships in action and the planning that went on for future partnerships between different organizations. In fact, MDF President/CEO Miles Moretti signed a partnership MOU with the United States Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management that will help facilitate better communication between MDF and these two multiple use agencies. It is imperative that MDF has great working relationships with these and other entities so mule deer and sportsmen can benefit. (see attached photo)