Parsons, Kansas – June 09 –
Quail hunters from the Parsons area have formed the tenth Quail Forever (QF) chapter in Kansas. The new chapter, to be called the Southeast Kansas Chapter of QF, will focus their efforts on restoring quail habitat to reverse the area’s declining bobwhite populations. The chapter’s leaders have already scheduled a youth clay shoot event for August and their first fundraising banquet for October 10th.
At the chapter’s first meeting in April, the group elected Richard Babcock as president. Babcock explains he already has a habitat success story on which the group can build. “A group of us have been working to improve habitat on the 400 acres owned by my son Mike and me. We’ve seen the quail coveys on that property triple in just a couple years. We know first-hand it’s all about habitat, and we know the quail numbers can be turned around. This chapter cares about bringing those same habitat efforts to all of Labette County and wants every area quail hunter to join our cause.”
QF applies the successful Pheasants Forever model of empowering local chapters with the responsibility to determine how 100% of their locally raised conservation funds will be spent. As a result, grassroots chapter volunteers are able to see the fruits of their efforts locally, while belonging to a larger national organization with a voice on federal and state conservation policy. Quail Forever and Pheasants Forever are the only national conservation organizations that operate through this truly grassroots structure.
“Quail Forever’s locally empowering model was important to this group of motivated volunteers,” reported Jordan Martincich, QF’s regional field representative for eastern Kansas. “Labette County is a heavily farmed region of the state, but there are certainly habitat opportunities for bobwhites through the addition of buffers, prescribed burning, and federal conservation programs. In fact, the chapter has already met with representatives from Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks, Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service.”
In addition to Babcock, the chapter elected Ray Jacquinot as Treasurer, Carl Hoskins and Doug Brinkman as Habitat Chairs, and Will O’Banion as Youth Chairman. All reside in Parsons.
The new Southeast Kansas Chapter of QF will hold their next meeting on Monday, August 3rd at the Commercial Bank in Parsons. The meeting starts at 6:30PM. Anyone interested in learning more about the chapter is invited to attend. For more information about the new Southeast Kansas Chapter of QF please contact Richard Babcock at (620)820-3733 or via email at sandy@thehomestore-parsons.com.
Kansas is home to ten QF chapters and 1,000 QF members. For more information on Quail Forever in Kansas, to start a chapter or join one of the state’s existing chapters, contact Jordan Martincich, QF Regional Representative in eastern Kansas, at (816) 560-1070 or via email at JMartincich@quailforever.org; or Devon Walter, QF Regional Representative in western Kansas, at (785) 524-4033 or via email at DWalter@quailforever.org.
