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Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Names New Chief Executive Officer

DavidAllen

(December 4, 2007) Missoula, Montana – The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s Board of Directors announced today that it has selected David Allen as the Elk Foundation’s new president and chief executive officer.

A lifelong conservationist with a deep passion for elk and hunting, Allen says he will rededicate the Elk Foundation to its core mission of ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife and their habitat. “We will focus on two primary paths for our mission: permanent land protection and stewardship,” Allen says. “The Elk Foundation is in a class by itself when it comes to conserving wildlife habitat. In excess of 5 million acres secured and enhanced in the past 24 years is astounding. It speaks volumes on what we do best.”

Allen aims to bring his wealth of marketing and business experience to work for protecting elk country. He began his career as Media Director for the Pro Rodeo Cowboys Association and served as Director of Special Events for Wrangler Jeans. He went on to create his own sports marketing agency where he directed marketing and sponsorships for the Dale Earnhardt/Richard Childress race teams and other NASCAR teams until Dale’s death in 2001 at the Daytona 500. Allen has spent 33 years marketing pro rodeo, the Pro Bull Riders Tour and NASCAR, and served on the board of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation.

“David’s long-time association with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and his dedication to wildlife conservation overall, make him a great choice as the organization’s new CEO,” said Richard Childress, president of Richard Childress Racing and a renowned wildlife conservationist. “He and I have been friends for three decades, so I know how important the Elk Foundation’s mission is to him. His personal experience will make him a strong leader who will continue the Elk Foundation’s commitment to wildlife conservation.”

Andy Hoxsey, Chairman of the Board for the Elk Foundation, says Allen was the finest of a sterling crop of contenders for the CEO position. “We’re delighted to have David Allen’s leadership and marketing acumen,” Hoxsey says. “We welcome his commitment to conservation and feel confident that he’ll help the Elk Foundation meet the tremendous pressures facing wild elk country today.”

Randy Bernard, CEO of the Pro Bull Riders, Inc, applauds the selection of David Allen as CEO. “It was very exciting to hear that RMEF has hired David Allen,” Bernard says. “I have worked with him for the past 15 years and have never met a person that didn’t like him or seen a job he couldn’t do. I believe David’s values of integrity and hard work and his get-it-done attitude will take the RMEF to the next level.”

Allen brings a profound admiration for the foundation’s 10,000 dedicated volunteers. “Serving on the RMEF’s Board of Directors, I came to recognize our volunteers as real-life heroes of wildlife conservation in this country,” he says. “For no payment other than satisfaction, they put on our Big Game Banquets, roll up old barbed-wire fence, build water guzzlers, seed and reseed lands after fires and a host of other work-all on behalf of elk and other wildlife. They are the kind of conservationists Theodore Roosevelt would brag about. My goal is to give them all the tools they need to make the greatest possible difference.”

Born and raised in Deadwood, South Dakota, he studied journalism at the University of Wyoming and now makes his home with his wife and two sons in Billings, Montana.

About the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Founded in 1984 and headquartered in Missoula, Montana, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife and their habitat. The Elk Foundation and its partners have permanently protected or enhanced more than 5 million acres, a land area more than twice as large as Yellowstone National Park. Nearly 500,000 acres previously closed to public access are now open for hunting, fishing and other recreation. The Elk Foundation has more than 150,000 members, a staff of 140 and 10,000 active volunteers. To help protect wild elk country or learn more about the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, visit www.elkfoundation.org or call 800-CALL-ELK.

RMEF

Kevin Paulson

Kevin Paulson is the Founder and CEO of HuntingLife.com. His passion for Hunting began at the age of 5 hunting alongside of his father. Kevin has followed his dreams through outfitting, conservation work, videography and hunting trips around the world.

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