Saint Paul, Minn. – February 25, 2009 – Pheasants Forever (PF) and Quail Forever (QF) recently announced the recipients of the second annual No Child Left Indoors® National Awards. The distinction is presented to one PF chapter and one QF chapter for their efforts in introducing youth to the outdoors and bringing along the next generation of hunters and conservationists. Chapters honored were the Sioux Prairie Chapter of PF based out of Sioux County, Iowa, and the Mid-MO Young Guns Chapter of QF, based out of Macon, Missouri.
Created to increase youth participation and interest in the outdoors, PF/QF’s No Child Left Indoors® initiative looks to extricate today’s youth from an overwhelming presence of electronics while engaging them in outdoor activities such as hunting, fishing and camping. “Both these chapters epitomize what Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever are trying to do with the No Child Left Indoors® initiative,” said Cheryl Riley, PF/QF Vice President of Education and Outreach, “They have both shown a strong commitment to promoting youth activities and getting kids involved in the outdoors.”
Sioux Prairie Chapter of PF
The recipient of the 2008 PF No Child Left Indoors® National Award hosted numerous events this past year, including a Governor’s Hunt, its annual youth hunt and a fundraising banquet. The chapter also made the state’s largest land acquisition. The chapter supports PF’s Legislative Action Fund, pays for boys and girls to attend summer conservation camps and provides prairie grass seed for wildlife habitat projects. This past year, the chapter also held its first youth banquet, with 110 youngsters among the 220 participants. Activities included dog training, trap shooting, county educational games, the “Name That Critter” game, dog bumper throw and pheasant darts. The chapter involved local businesses and other community groups to make their first event a huge success.
Mid-MO Young Guns Chapter of QF
The recipient of the 2008 QF No Child Left Indoors® National Award has only existed for three years, yet they have held two fundraising banquets, two youth pheasant hunts, a women’s pheasant hunt and a senior’s hunt. Chapter members have been very involved in developing the youth program to include a youth rabbit hunt for two years. The chapter is working towards incorporating youth habitat days this summer which will include workdays on a local conservation area building brush piles for quail. The chapter always encourages youth events and annually fixes the meals for the local conservation agent’s hunter safety course. The chapter is also involved in the Macon family fun day, a four-organization event that was started by QF leadership and is led by a different organization each year. Last year, there were 500 attendees and over 30 booths.
The No Child Left Indoors® National Awards were announced at Pheasants Forever’s National Pheasant Fest 2009. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s commitment to engaging youth in the outdoors was on full display at the event. In addition to honoring a pair of deserving chapters, the organization signed up 522 Ringneck (youth) members. The membership fees, totaling over $2,500, were donated by the Plymouth County (IA) Chapter of PF, the Dodge County (WI) Chapter of PF, the Southwest Wisconsin Chapter of PF, the Upland (WI) Chapter of PF, the Outagamie County (WI) Chapter of PF and the Wisconsin State Council of PF.
The No Child Left Indoors® initiative builds on PF/QF’s popular Leopold Education Project and chapter youth events with a menu of expanded youth and family programs that are designed with PF/QF chapters in mind. The No Child Left Indoors® initiative is carried out through youth habitat projects, youth and family community events and youth outdoor education programs hosted by chapters and volunteers across the country.
Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever are non-profit conservation organizations dedicated to the protection and enhancement of pheasant, quail, and other wildlife populations in North America through habitat improvement, land management, public awareness, and education. PF/QF has more than 130,000 members in 700 local chapters across the continent.
For additional information please visit www.PheasantsForever.org and www.QuailForever.org
