By: Ellary TuckerWilliams, Inter-Mountain Western States Coordinator
Last weekend, members of the Arizona Legislators for Wildlife Caucus and New Mexico Sportsmen’s Caucus attended the National Outdoor Women’s Weekend (NOWW) hosted by the Valley of the Sun Quail Forever chapter in Phoenix, Arizona at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility.
Thanks to recruitment, retention and reactivation (R3) efforts nationwide, women are the fastest growing non-traditional demographic in the outdoor sporting community. NOWW was an event dedicated to encouraging the participation and inclusion of women in shooting sports & hunting. The event provided opportunities for individuals of all levels of experience to participate and gain valuable insight into hunting and the shooting sports. Weekend’s activities included recreational shooting clinics for all skill levels, sporting clays, an introduction to upland hunting, and seminars on gun safety, antler shed hunting, the American System of Conservation Funding, R3 efforts, dog training, wild game cooking, personal development coaching, and more.
Arizona Senate President Karen Fann and National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses Representative Regina Cobb spoke at the event, discussing policy as it pertains to sportsmen and women and highlighting the importance of female engagement. Both Senate President Fann and Representative Cobb are Co-Chairs of the Arizona Legislators for Wildlife Caucus. Also present at the event were New Mexico Sportsmen’s Caucus members Representative Kelly Fajardo and Representative Georgene Louis.
“I had a great weekend at the National Outdoor Women’s Weekend. This first-ever event was great for a newbie like me to help me improve my marksmanship and learn more about guns! I also made some great new friends,” said Rep. Fajardo.
NOWW featured seminars by personal development and career success coach, Deborah Dubree, certified firearm instructor; Tina Dokken, shotgun safety expert and shooting coach; Simone Schara, dog trainer and inventor of Dokken Deadfowl; Tim Dokken, world famous hunter and social media influencer; Tiffany Lakosky; Scott Lavin; and Recreation Branch Chief of Arizona Game and Fish Department, among others.
Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) Inter-Mountain Western States Coordinator Ellary TuckerWilliams and Western States Coordinator Aoibheann Cline were present at the weekend-long event and were able to interact with attendees informing them of sportsmen and women’s policy priorities, including R3 efforts.”
Studies conducted at both the state and federal level have found that the number of hunters and trappers have been on a generally declining trend over the past several decades. To increase recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) of hunters and trappers, which initiative do you think would have the greatest impact?
