11th Hunter’s Rendezvous Jan. 26

Published 1:02 am Thursday, January 10, 2008

By Staff
Learning through mentoring is the basic theme of the 11th annual Hunter's Rendezvous, which will be held Saturday, Jan. 26 at the Dowagiac Conservation Club.
The annual gathering brings together both experienced and beginning hunters from noon until 6 p.m. to provide an opportunity for young hunters to learn from the experiences of veteran hunters.
"Visitors to the Hunter's Rendezvous can expect to see a large display of deer, elk and other game that have been harvested from this area," Richard Atkinson, event coordinator of the Hunter's Rendezvous explained. "This part of the event is always a big attraction. Every year the number of deer on display increases and there is always something new to see. As in the past, we will have scorers from the Commemorative Bucks of Michigan to score trophy bucks, as well as turkey, elk and so on."
In addition to mentoring opportunities and the displays of deer and elk, representatives from conservation organizations will attend the event to provide information about the work their group does to protect wildlife and their habitats.
Atkinson continued, "conservation organizations, including Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation, Pheasants Forever and many more will have informational booths set up during the event to hand out literature explaining the organization's role in protecting wildlife and their habitats."
Deer camp chili and hot dogs are available for a $4 donation. Admission to the Hunter's Rendezvous is free and the public is invited to attend.
An antique gun appraiser will be on hand during the event and visitors are encouraged to bring their vintage firearms to be appraised.
Money is also being raised through the silent auction.
"Area merchants and conservation organizations have donated numerous items, including hunting equipment, limited edition prints, apparel and more, to be sold during the auction. We also have the Trading Post, which is a way for people to buy, sell and trade their used hunting equipment and clothing," Atkinson said.
"The entire event is designed to educate young hunters," he added. "To that end, the Dowagiac Conservation Club will be signing up youngsters for a one year free membership to the club during the event.
Atkinson anticipates a popular activity at this year's Hunter's Rendezvous to be the virtual reality hunting.
"The club recently purchased our own virtual reality hunting equipment that is state-of-the-art. We will have this equipment available for visitors to the Hunter's Rendezvous," he said.
Hunter's Rendezvous helps area youth in that it raises money for the Dowagiac Conservation Club's Youth Education Fund. This fund supports such activities as the hunter's safety and bow safety classes held at the club, Youth Fishing Day and Wildlife Encounters, a program that brings live animals into area classrooms for an educational and interactive presentation.
The Youth Education Fund also supplies the Tracks magazine to area schools to serve as a teaching tool. The fund sponsors youngsters from the area, who wish to attend the Michigan United Conservation Club's summer camp as well.
For additional information about the Hunter's Rendezvous or the Youth Education programs at the Dowagiac Conservation Club, contact Atkinson at (269) 424-5186 or Furmer Reed at (269) 646-9839.