WATCH: A Special Council & Visit to Washington DC
I’ve been to Washington DC several times, but never for something like this…
Earlier this year I shared that I am a member of Secretary Zinke’s Hunting & Shooting Sports Conservation Council (HSSCC), an advisory council to strengthen and grow our great American heritage for current sportsmen and women and our future generations. This week we had our first meeting, but before we kicked it off the Secretary himself gave us an amazing tour under the Lincoln Memorial.
The two women on the council, the lovely Eva Shockey and I are admittedly the least experienced when it comes to working in this “official” capacity, but we both shared how excited we are to learn and do what we can to help this effort. I felt so welcome and I can’t tell you how exciting it is for me as someone who started this journey picking up brass and pasting targets in upstate NY with her dad. The HSSCC is a who’s who of influential people at the top-tier of hunting and shooting sports organizations including the National Rifle Association and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.
Our first meeting focused on logistics and the breakdown of committees to best:
- Conserve and restore wetlands, agricultural lands, grasslands, forests and rangeland habitats
- Promote opportunities and expand access to hunting and shooting sports on public and private lands
- Encourage hunting and shooting safety by developing ranges on public lands
- Recruit and retain new shooters and hunters
- Increase public awareness of the importance of wildlife conservation and the social and economic benefits of hunting and shooting
- Encourage coordination among the public, hunting and shooting sports community, wildlife conservation groups, state, tribal, territorial, and the federal government
After the meeting adjourned I got a call from THE US Border Patrol and so I made the walk from the Department of Interior to the Ronald Reagan Building. I know several members of the Border Patrol’s shooting team including Bianchi Champion Rob Vadasz, but while I was there I learned so much more about the Border Patrol’s mission and received a wonderful tour. Huge thank you to them and all the agents protecting our borders.
I could type for days, but I also put together a vlog-style video. You can watch on Youtube or Facebook.
