KY Duck Calls - February 2013

KENTUCKY DUCK CALLS
A publication for Kentucky Ducks Unlimited volunteers
Neil’s Notes
First off, I absolutely have to
brag on Area Chairman Jesse
Hedge and his Madison County
Chapter, who with the help of
Mike Hough and Col. Brian
Rogers, hosted their second
annual Wounded Warrior hunt. Mike has written an article with
photos for this edition of Kentucky Duck Calls. Please thank
Jesse, Mike and the Madison County bunch for their efforts and
accomplishments.
We have about six weeks left to sell tickets on our state
drawing, which will be held at our state convention. Remember,
any chapter selling 100 or more tickets will receive a free gun
for their chapter's fundraising.
You will find information about our upcoming Kentucky State
Convention in this newsletter. This is YOUR convention! I would
like to personally extend an invitation to each and every Ducks
Unlimited volunteer in the state. For those who have never
attended a state convention, please consider coming; you won't
regret it! For those who usually do come, bring a friend. The
state convention will be held in Frankfort on March 22-24 at the
Capital Plaza Hotel. Please take a moment to review and share
this information with everyone on your local committees. It is
your opportunity to meet and share volunteers from across the
state. Planned activities for the state convention are Friday
Night at the Races, national leader presentations, State Awards
Luncheon, retriever demonstrations and the State Banquet
Gala. I can assure you it is an event you do not want to miss. See
you in Frankfort!
Introduce a child to the great outdoors,
Neil Riggs, State Chairman
February 2013—Vol. 6, Issue 2
In This Issue
Neil’s Notes
1
Featured Photo
2
State Facts
3
Conservation Corner
3
KY Photo Gallery
4-5
Cooking with Kenny
5
Upcoming Events
6
2013 KY State Convention
Registration
7
2013 State Convention
Thanks to Volunteers
8
Major Donor
9-10
Wounded Warrior
11-13
KY State Raffle
14-15
Duck Dynasty
16-17
The Last Shot
18
11
2
Kentucky State Contacts
State Chairman
Neil Riggs
859-983-3714
[email protected]
Treasurer
Rich Risinger
[email protected]
West Region Chairman
Kenny Vaughn
[email protected]
East Region Chairman
Tom Tate
[email protected]
Greenwing Chairman
Bruce Conely
[email protected]
Major Donor Chairman
Dr. Brian K. Priddle
[email protected]
Volunteer Recruitment Chairman
Jeff Adams
[email protected]
State Raffle Chairman
Richard Fowler
[email protected]
State Youth Hunt Chairman
Paul Burton
[email protected]
FEATURED PHOTO
Bourbon Chapter leaders posed with their Wood Duck Flight
Award at a recent kickoff meeting for the chapter’s 2013
banquet. This winning committee continues to set the pace
for top events in central Kentucky.
(L to R, seated) – Chad Ballard and Terry Waldridge; (L to R,
standing) Brian Newcomb, Clint Sanders, Daniel Newcomb
and Brent Willet. A great group for a great cause! The
Bourbon Chapter will hold their 2013 banquet on March 16 at
the Bishop Auction & Event Center in Bloomfield. Click here
to get your tickets now!
DID YOU KNOW?
A group of geese on the water is called a plump.
If the geese are airborne, they are called a skein.
And if the geese are on the ground, they are called a gaggle.
How many did you know?
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Regional Staff
North Regional Director
Joe Borders
[email protected]
Conservation Corner
Kentucky is located in the Mississippi Flyway and provides important habitat
for waterfowl produced in the Prairie Pothole Region and Great Lakes states.
West Sr. Regional Director
Ben Burnley
[email protected]
Kentucky has the potential to winter large numbers of mallards, black ducks
and wood ducks. Since 1988, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than
12,700 acres of waterfowl habitat in Kentucky. While impressive, this
South Regional Director
represents less than 1 percent of the Commonwealth’s original wetlands!
Charlie Lowery
[email protected]
In 2011, DU and the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources
Regional Biologist
Mark Flaspohler
[email protected]
(KDFWR) continued our strong partnership to enhance and restore wetland
habitat on public lands to benefit waterfowl and Kentucky waterfowl hunters!
Public lands projects included installation of new water control structures at
Doug Travis, Lake Cumberland and Ballard wildlife management areas. These
new structures are critical for management of more than 500 acres of moist-
KY State Facts
soil impoundments, providing high-quality foraging habitat for waterfowl and
opportunity for Commonwealth duck hunters!
Total Membership
8,680
Greenwings
780
Legacy Greenwings
116
Sponsor Members 995
Major Sponsors
153
2011 Grassroots Total
$503,926
Total Acres Conserved
11,647
4
Kentucky DU presented George Warren with a
special decoy on January 4 in appreciation of his
outstanding leadership and continued support.
Pictured from L-R are KDFW Director John Gassett,
West KY Regional Chairman Kenny Vaughn, George
Warren and KY State Chairman Neil Riggs.
West Kentucky District Chairmen Steve Kiester
and Charlie McKenney, after a day of successful
hunting at V. D. Scott Lodge at the Sloughs Wildlife
Management Area in Henderson. These “veteran
waterfowlers” had some good blind time together.
Neil has held several state leadership positions and is currently serving as the Kentucky
State Chairman.
Steve Kiester, District Chairman from Henderson,
and Neil Riggs, State Chairman from Stamping
Ground, display the results of a successful hunt on
January 6 at the Sloughs Wildlife Management Area
in Henderson.
Pictured (L-R) are Ryle Benke, Ryle’s Lab “Tough,”
Dr. Brian Priddle, Travis Priddle, Jimmy Kapps,
Kevin Wright and Keith Priddle after a successful
hunt on January 12 on the “Runway” at Cache’n In
Duck Club in McCrory, AR.
5
Pictured (L-R) are Regional Director Charlie Lowery,
“Blizzard” and Tennessee District Chairman Doug
Phillips, with limits of mallard and teal on a January
hunt in northeast Arkansas.
If there is one
thing we could
say about Charlie
Lowery it’s that
he loves to hunt
ducks. Pictured
are Charlie
Lowery and
“Luke” with a
stringer of
mallard drakes
on a cold January
morning. Thanks
for all you do for
the ducks,
Charlie! You are
an inspiration to
us all!
Cookin’ with Kenny Vaughn
Duck Creole Recipe
Bring duck breasts or a whole duck to boil in 2-3 quarts of water with an onion
and 2 or 3 stalks of celery. Simmer until the duck is tender. Allow duck to cool
in liquid, then remove skin and bones if necessary. Cut duck into small cubes.
Ingredients
2 cups or more cubed duck
½ cup minced celery
2 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 ½ Tbsp. flour
1 ½ cup chicken stock or stock from cooking duck
¼ cup minced onion
¼ tsp. mace
1 cup chopped ham
8-oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ¼ cup minced green pepper
Melt butter and add flour, stirring until smooth. Add chicken or duck stock, paprika, onion, green pepper, celery,
parsley and mace. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, and add chicken or duck stock as needed. Stir in duck,
ham and tomato sauce. Cook for 5 minutes and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice.
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Upcoming Kentucky Events
Cave Run SNO – Morehead
February 2, 2013
Lake Cumberland Banquet – Somerset
February 9, 2013
Union County Banquet – Morganfield
February 16, 2013
Grayson County Banquet – Leitchfield
Audubon Sponsor Dinner – Henderson
February 23, 2013
South Licking Banquet – Cynthiana
Green River Banquet – Beaver Dam
Lake Barkley Banquet – LBSRP-Cadiz
March 2, 2013
Barren River Banquet – Bowling Green
March 7, 2013
McLean County Banquet – Calhoun
March 9, 2013
Bourbon Chapter Banquet – Bardstown
Union County - Morganfield
March 16, 2013
Kentucky State Convention - Frankfort
March 22-24, 2013
Bullitt County Banquet – Sheperdsville
March 30, 2013
Caveland Banquet – Barren River SRP
May 3, 2013
For more information, go to
http://www.ducks.org/kentucky/events/
Jim King
[email protected]
Kentucky Ducks Unlimited still has a
few areas without local chapters. If
you know anyone in these areas who
would be interested in participating in
a local DU chapter, contact the
regional director for that area or the
state chairman.
For Ashland, Florence, Maysville,
Versailles, Winchester & Carrolton:
Contact Joe Borders
317-696-8726
[email protected]
For Williamsburg, Barbourville,
Middlesboro & Hazard:
Contact Charlie Lowery
423-506-3407
[email protected]
For Scottsville & Hardinsburg:
Contact Ben Burnley
270-823-3157
[email protected]
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2013 Kentucky Ducks Unlimited State Convention Registration
#_____ Full convention registration (single) $70
#_____ Full convention registration (couple) $120
#_____ Full convention registration (college chapter student) $50
#_____ Full convention registration (Greenwing) Free
#_____ Saturday only (single) $50
#_____ Saturday only (couple) $75
Total convention fees $_______
Credit card #______________________ Expiration date___________ Security code_____________
Signature________________________________ Date__________
Names of all attendees and titles: ________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
Mailing address__________________________________________
City___________________ State________________
Phone_____________________
Email_____________________________________________
Early bird prize: Free T-shirt to first 75 registrations. Early bird deadline: March 10, 2013.
Please circle T-shirt size: S M L XL XXL XXXL
Please mail completed form to:
Kentucky Ducks Unlimited
C/O Rich Risinger, KY Ducks Unlimited State Treasurer
P.O. Box 77
Frankfort, KY 40602
Click here to register online: http://www.ducks.org/kentucky/events/
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Mark Your Calendars!
2013 Kentucky Ducks Unlimited State Convention
Capital Plaza Hotel, Frankfort, KY
March 22-24, 2013
The KYDU State Convention is coming to Frankfort, and this year’s convention will be sure to
please! We don’t want to give too much away, but there will be signature Kentucky items on the
auction block, plenty of bourbon, barbecue, horse racing and southern hospitality. Mail in your
registration today or register on-line at http://www.ducks.org/kentucky/events/!
Thanks to our volunteers!
Ducks Unlimited had a great fundraising year in FY12 (ended June 30, 2012) and made great
strides in the protection of vital habitat across North America (an additional 186,000 in the U.S.
alone). In addition to the increase in total revenue, we were able to operate at better than 83%
efficiency which means that your support went even further in FY12. DU’s external auditors,
KPMG, wrapped up our year-end audit last month and below are some of the official
highlights:
 Operating surplus of $5 million
 Non-operating surplus of $7.2 million
 Grassroots event support of $34.4 million reflected a 9% increase over budget
and an 8% increase over last year
 More than $68 million in U.S. conservation support from public sources and
more than $29 million from private sources (Major Gifts)
 More than $119 million in conservation expenditures, conserving more than
186,000 acres in the United States alone
 Program service efficiency ratio of 83.4%, including conservation easements
 Adult and youth members more than 610,000
 More than 50 diamond events reflecting the successful 75th anniversary
campaign
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MAJOR DONOR ACTION PLAN 2013-14
By Dr. Brian K. Priddle
Kentucky Major Donor Chairman
GOALS FOR 2013-2014 – 10-4-2
Ten new Life Sponsors, four Major Sponsor upgrades and two
new Feather Society commitments.
EVENINGS OF CONSERVATION
The purpose of these events is to provide an opportunity to gather Major Donor prospects
and educate them on the Ducks Unlimited conservation mission and opportunities for
support. The focus is on DU’s international conservation plan, regional and local focus
areas, prior accomplishments and the importance of private support. Emphasis is placed on
to DU’s on the ground work to conserve critical wetland habitat. The goals are to identify
and cultivate new major gift prospects and to steward current Major Donor prospects.
Evenings of Conservation are designed as a first-contact cultivation event separate from
our traditional event system and there is no fundraising done at the event (no auctions or
raffles). The program is informational in nature and a means to engage potential major gift
supporters.
Make your commitment to SAVE THE BEST for Kentucky ducks. Contact Dr. Brian
K. Priddle at [email protected] to invest for the future of Kentucky ducks
and save the prairie breeding areas. It is a conservation fact that more money in the
ground means more birds in the skies!
10
Kentucky DU’s Major Donor goal for 2013-14 is 10 new Life Sponsors, four upgrades and two Feather
Society
members. We
currently
Kentucky’s
Topare
Four
Ducksat one new Life Sponsor, one upgrade and no Feather Society as of
1/31/13. Our goals are very much obtainable with your help. Please contact Dr. Brian Priddle at 606-2711015 if you have any inquiries or need support with Major Donor activities in your area.
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The Second Annual Wounded Warrior Waterfowl Hunt
Bluegrass Army Depot, Richmond
By Mike Hough, Ducks Unlimited District Chairman
On January 11 and 12, the Blue Grass Army Depot (BGAD) and the Madison County Chapter of
Ducks Unlimited hosted their second annual Wounded Warrior Waterfowl Hunt in Richmond.
A total of 14 servicemen and women attended from the 101st, Fort Campbell and Fort Knox to
participate. The soldiers arrived on Thursday evening in preparation for the events of the next
two days. Just like last year, it rained during the trap shoot. That did not dampen the spirits of the
shooters, but it did dampen the Ducks Unlimited Television (DU-TV) film crews’ cameras some!
The warm-up trap shoot was scheduled for Friday morning and sponsored by the Kentucky
Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) and the Central Kentucky Trap Shooters, who
provided shot shells for the soldiers at the Central Kentucky Wildlife Management Area near the
depot. After introductions and a safety briefing, the hunters and their mentors worked together
to hone shotgunning skills on the range. By the looks of most, even the ones that did not fire a
shotgun very often had the skills necessary to break targets after the first round. Their skills were
fantastic by the end of the practice session. After practice, the guns were cleaned and lunch was
provided by the depot. A site visit to the blinds with the mentors allowed everyone to see where
they would be hunting the next day.
A wild game cookout was held that evening at the Buck Lake Lodge, with members of the
Madison County Chapter providing the main course of goose poppers, elk, pheasant and duck.
Charlie Lowery, East Kentucky DU Regional Director; Mike Checkett, Director of Development for
Missouri and Kentucky; Neil Riggs, Kentucky State Chairman; Tom Tate, East Kentucky DU
Regional Chairman; and Steve Glenn, 6th District Fish and Wildlife Commissioner, were on hand to
thank the soldiers for the sacrifices they made.
Individual duck and goose calls were donated to the soldiers in attendance from Fat Baby Custom
Calls and Zink Calls. Now, just in case you did not know, DU-TV has a new host, a good ol’
Kentucky Boy by the name of Field Hudnall, World Champion Goose Caller. You would think
something would be done to make sure each hunter would have a lesson on how to properly
blow their calls! And it was: all of the hunters came forward with their calls and stood in line in
front of the cameras to make sure each one could make the correct sound. Field must be a good
teacher—between the laughter of the first try and their final attempt, the sounds were produced
well enough to be ready for the next morning’s hunt!
Continued on next page »
12
The day of the hunt started once again with unseasonably warm temperatures for January and a
hot breakfast before heading to the blinds. But this year was a bit different. Not only did we have
birds in the area but DU-TV was there to film the experience. Tom Edwards of KDFWR gave the
hunters a brief update on bird counts in the area, and smiles were seen across the room. The
soldiers and mentors departed, the boats were launched, the decoys were set, the dogs were
ready, coffee was poured from the Thermoses and the hunters and mentors were awaiting the
first shots of the morning. The magic time for legal shooting arrived, 7:22 a.m., and the shots
rang out. By the time the hunt was over at noon, each soldier had harvested a minimum of two
birds each, and several had obtained their limits. Final count was 46 ducks and seven Canada
geese.
The Madison County Chapter, with volunteer support from the Lake Cumberland and Wilderness
Trail Chapters of KYDU District 10, the Frankfort DU Chapter and the Kentucky Department of Fish
and Wildlife co-sponsored the hunt. DU volunteers provided all of the elements of the hunt,
including mentor hunters, duck callers, dogs and handlers, decoys, boats and weapons and other
waterfowl hunting equipment and assistance.
We would like to thank the following companies for the support they gave to the men and
women of our Armed Services by providing items used on this hunt:
Browning/Winchester: Dirtybird clothing
HEVI-Shot: HEVI-Metal shells
Rio: Shot shells
Fat Baby Custom Calls: Duck calls
Zink Calls: Goose calls
Avery Outdoors: Blindbags and totes
Central Kentucky Trap Shooters: Shot shells for the trap range
Coastal Knives: Personalized pocket knives
Ducks Unlimited Television
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Wounded Warrior Waterfowl Hunt group
photo after the hunt
From left to right: Front Row: Major James
Thompson and Major Brent Denny. Back
Row: SPC Kenneth Hohneck, Duncan and
Mike Hough (DU).
Major Tiffany Williams shows everyone how
it’s done with Tom Edwards (KDFWR).
Charlie Lowery’s dog, Luke, and SSG Keith
Pleva with a redhead from the morning hunt.
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Kentucky 2013 Statewide Gun Drawing
Hello fellow DU volunteers! It is almost time again for our Statewide Gun Drawing.
We will draw for these prizes during the 2013 Kentucky State Convention on March 23.
The state convention will be held in Frankfort at the Capitol Plaza Hotel, March 22-24.
You do not have to be present to win, but please come to the convention and have a
great weekend anyway!
Tickets will be sold by the individual chapters and their committee members for $10
each. Each ticket drawn will win a great prize: a gun safe with a mystery gift inside, plus
eight special guns! Sounds like a great drawing to me! Any chapter that sells 100 tickets
or more will win an AR-style Tac. .22 cal. This rifle is to be used at their event the
following year.
To make sure each chapter gets proper credit for the tickets they have sold, the ticket
stubs need to have their chapter # written on the back of the stub! Mail all tickets to
the address below. As soon as you get a handful sold, just mail them to me. Please
don’t wait till the night of the dinner to turn them in all at once.
Good luck selling and buying the winning tickets! By the way, if your ticket is drawn, it
will be placed back in the hopper to give you another chance of winning! All prizes will
be awarded in order of their dollar value. Call or email me with any questions you have.
Thanks for everything you do to support Ducks Unlimited!
Richard Fowler
1812 Goggin Lane
Danville, KY 40422
[email protected]
859-516-1424
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“DUCK DYNASTY” COMING TO CALLOWAY COUNTY
The Duck Commanders are coming to Kentucky! The Calloway County football team is proud to
announce that the stars of the hit A&E TV show, “Duck Dynasty,” will be in Murray for an event to benefit
Calloway County football on May 11.
“We are thrilled to have this event and these great men in our school,” said Brad Lawson, Calloway
County’s head football coach. “’Duck Dynasty’ is one of the most popular shows on television now, and to
have them in our gym benefiting our football program, is just amazing. It’s just going to be a great night
for Calloway County High School, our program and our community.” Scheduled to appear are Phil, Willie
and Si Robertson.
As a high school athlete, Phil Robertson was all-state in football, baseball and track and attended
Louisiana Tech on a football scholarship. There he played ahead of four-time Super Bowl winner and Hall
of Fame Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw. After college, Phil spent several years teaching
until he produced a duck call in 1972 and Duck Commander was born. During this time, Phil also turned
his life over to the Lord and has built up a reputation all over the country for his faith and belief in the
Almighty. He is invited to speak at hundreds of different churches and organizations every year, telling
them what the Lord had done for him and can do for them. Phil is married to Kay and they have four
boys, Alan, Jase, Willie and Jep.
Willie Robertson is the CEO of Duck Commander and graduate of Harding University. He also created
Buck Commander, which can be seen on the Outdoor Channel. Willie loves being outdoors and is
happiest at home in West Monroe, LA, with his wife, Korie, and children, John Luke, Sadie, Will and Bella.
Si Robertson, Phil’s youngest brother, can be seen on the Duck Commander videos and on “Duck
Dynasty.” Si has worked for Duck Commander since 1993, when he retired from the United States Army.
Si lives in West Monroe, LA, with his wife, Christine.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Saturday, January 26, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the
commons area of Calloway County High School. General admission tickets are $60 and meet-and-greet
tickets are $125. There will be only 2,200 general admission tickets and 200 meet-and-greet tickets sold
for this event. If there are any tickets available after the initial sale date, they can be purchased at
Calloway County High School from Athletic Director Chip Gray or Coach Lawson. Any questions about
tickets or the event can be directed to Coach Lawson by calling CCHS at 270-762-7374 or emailing him at
[email protected].
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Do you have an article, event summary or photos you would like to see in Kentucky Duck Calls?
Whether you are a longtime DU volunteer or a first-time member, Kentucky Duck Calls is YOUR
Kentucky DU newsletter. For any aspiring writers and photographers, what make Kentucky Duck Calls
truly ours are stories and photos by Kentucky DU members. Please take the time to send me a story
or photos of your events, members, conservation projects, Greenwing activities, trips or whatever
you feel is important to share.
It is my goal to provide articles relating to national and local conservation news, events, outdoor
adventures, hunting, regulations and much more. With your help, we can make Kentucky Duck Calls a
publication we all look forward to reading. Please submit your items for publication to:
[email protected].
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The Last Shot
I’d like to take a moment to say thank you to the 400+ Ducks Unlimited volunteers here
in the state of Kentucky. As a fellow volunteer, I understand the effort it takes to put on a
dinner banquet or to try to pull off that second event in order to meet your goals for a state
award. Each year we seem to do whatever it takes to meet our fundraising goals to support the
organization and cause we all love.
We do it for many reasons; for me, it is about the opportunity to serve the greatest
conservation organization in the world and to make friends all across the Commonwealth while
doing so. Over my years as a volunteer, I’ve had the opportunity to support events from
Ashland to Paducah and Alexandria to London. It has truly been a life-changing experience, as
I’ve made so many great friends all across our great state. There are many opportunities for
service here in Kentucky for Ducks Unlimited volunteers. If you have an interest in doing more, I
would ask you to consider contacting your District Chairman, Regional Chairman or State
Chairman and vocalizing your interest. I’m sure it will be a positive and rewarding experience
for you.
In closing, I would like to provide you a quote from past DU President, John Tomke: “I came for
the cause, but I stayed for the people.”
Till next time…
Kevin Wright, Editor, Kentucky Duck Calls