June 1 Michigan Awards Ceremony: The Michigan DNR honored the ATA with
a 2006 Partners in Conservation Award during a June 1 ceremony in East
Lansing. Shown here, from left, are Jeff Poet, president of Jay's
Sporting Goods in Clare and Gaylord, Mich., and member of the ATA’s
Dealer Council; Larry Griffith, president of the Bohning Co., in Lake
City, Mich., and ATA Board member; Michigan DNR Director Rebecca
Humphries; and Jay McAninch, ATA CEO/president.
The Archery Trade Association and its two foundations, ArrowSport and
the Bowhunting Preservation Alliance, were honored June 1 by the
Michigan Department of Natural Resources for helping the agency promote
archery, conservation and resource management.
Rebecca
Humphries, director of the Michigan DNR, presented the state’s “2006
Partners in Conservation Award” to the ATA for helping the agency
develop archery ranges, forge conservation partnerships, and implement
the statewide school archery program.
Since signing a Memorandum
of Understanding (MOU) with Michigan in September 2004, the ATA’s
financial support has allowed the DNR to hire a statewide coordinator
to administer the school archery program, which is currently in 53
schools in 27 counties. Michigan was the 11th state to adopt the
National Archery in the Schools Program, which will soon be in place in
40 states.
In presenting the Partners in Conservation Award to
ATA, Director Humphries said: “Your association has helped grow archery
and protect bowhunting by connecting to other organizations in the
hunting, conservation and recreational communities. Your association’s
gift through the BPA and ArrowSport foundations has made NASP possible
in Michigan. Without the dedication and diligence of your association,
Michigan’s declining participation in shooting sports would have gone
unaddressed, threatening the financial and public support for wildlife
conservation.”
Among those present in East Lansing to receive
the award were Jay McAninch, ATA’s CEO and president; Larry Griffith,
president of Bohning in Lake City, Mich., and member of the ATA’s Board
of Directors; and Jeff Poet, president of Jay’s Sporting Goods in Clare
and Gaylord, Mich., and member of the ATA’s Dealer Council.
“We’re
very excited to see this partnership come together here in Michigan,”
Poet said. “Times are tough, financially, and talk is cheap, but the
ATA put the money behind this to help the Michigan DNR get this program
on solid footing. This is a great program for our schools, our state,
archery dealers like us, and the many conservation groups that are
stepping forward to help. When our educators saw the DNR’s commitment
to the archery program, and the grassroots support in all the
communities, they realized it’s a great system that has instant
credibility.”
The Michigan DNR hired Mary Emmons in late March
to be its first coordinator of the statewide school archery program.
Emmons, who has been with the DNR three years, said she’s impressed by
how much support and cooperation the program is receiving.
“The
ATA provides instrumental support in developing archery ranges and
community archery programs,” Emmons said. “I’m excited to be part of a
program that’s creating the next generation of Michigan’s target
archers. It’s fun to watch kids develop their skills and
self-confidence as they learn a new lifelong sport. Our goal, though,
is not only teaching target archery in schools, but developing
after-school clubs and long-term relationships with archery clubs,
archery retailers and conservation organizations. We want to find as
many ways as possible to link all of them together. The best way to
ensure success is by making this a community and statewide effort that
involves as many people and groups as possible.”
Michelle Doerr,
the ATA’s education and research coordinator, said statewide
coordinators are vital to the long-term success of school archery
programs. “It’s too easy for a state to lose control of a program if it
doesn’t appoint one person to oversee all the schools and make sure
they’re staying true to its long-term mission,” Doerr said. “By
appointing Mary Emmons to this post, the Michigan DNR is making a
strong statement about its commitment to archery and bowhunting.”
Michigan’s
school archery program started as a pilot program in 2004 with 12
schools. Since then, 72 physical education teachers have been trained
and the program has grown to its current level of 53 schools enrolled.
So far, more than 400 students have participated in the program, and
Emmons expects at least 300 Michigan schools to include the program in
their curriculum by 2008.
Poet credited the Michigan DNR for
making archery and bowhunting a high priority. “It’s great to see the
DNR step up and be an active player in this,” he said. “We take pride
in that. We’re very excited about participating in it ourselves. The
archery departments in both of our stores, in Grayling and Clare, are
fired up about the program. We can’t wait to become even more involved
in the years ahead.”
