HASC was mentioned in the WI-DNR monthly magazine in August 2011. Enjoy.
Shaping a diverse hunting heritage...
Passing the baton
Sheboygan hunter education instructors Cher Pao Vang and Sam Vang formed the Hmong American Sportsmen Club (HASC) last summer. Members include several generations of family and friends who absolutely love to hunt. HASC joined the Department of Natural Resources for a Learn to Hunt pheasant program last fall, and HASC member Addison Lee recently joined the Sheboygan County Conservation Association's board of directors as its newest member.
"It's really great to see diverse people and organizations working together towards the shared goal of passing on Wisconsin's conservation ethic and outdoor culture to future generations. We're really excited about it because in the end the conservation efforts of tomorrow depend on the youth of today," said Randy Stark, Chief Conservation Warden for the Department of Natural Resources.
Nowhere is the passing of the baton more evident than with the Milwaukee fishing clinics sponsored each summer by E.B. Garner. Garner, long-time Milwaukee resident and retired county worker, has taken kids to local lakes for over a decade to teach them how to fish. Parents, guardians and friends often accompany the youngsters, so that fishing traditions get passed to entire communities.
"Two things in life you'll never forget," Garner is known for saying, "the first person who took you driving...and the first person who took you fishing." Hundreds of kids in Milwaukee can now point to Garner as the first person who took them fishing.
Fishing clinics have also caught on in Madison. Susan Corrado, community parish and wellness center nurse, has worked with Allied Drive neighborhood residents and DNR fisheries and warden staffs for two years to teach casting techniques, review size and bag limits, and discuss ways to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species.
During fall in south central Wisconsin, dove hunting has become the big draw. "Many folks who are familiar with dove hunting in Mexico are now finding that they can enjoy dove hunting here as well," says DNR Warden Gary Eddy. Eddy said in all his time of checking licenses he's never come across so many Spanish-speaking hunting groups as he has in the Edgerton and Evansville areas during dove season.
And thanks to DNR Warden Gervis Myles, hundreds of Milwaukee school youth have now grabbed a hold of archery. Myles earned his instructor certification in the National Archery in the Schools Program in 2006. Since then he has introduced over 700 Milwaukee students to the sport. He also has helped 32 other individuals earn their archery instructor credentials. For all his efforts, Myles was honored by the Wisconsin Bowhunters Association as Warden of the Year 2011.
Kou Xiong, the DNR's Hmong liaison stationed in Eau Claire since the early 1990s (currently on medical leave), organized and taught hunter education courses for the Hmong community all over Wisconsin. Xiong and many of the hunter education course participants are veterans of the Vietnam War. They fought alongside Americans in the jungles against the North Vietnamese and Laotian communists. Before the war, many were avid hunters. They now enjoy reconnecting with their hunting passion here in Wisconsin.
In fact, two new Hmong sportsclubs have sprung up in the last four years: the Hmong American Sportsmen Club of Sheboygan in August 2010; and the Hmong Conservation Club of Green Bay, which opened its doors in 2008.
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http://dnr.wi.gov/wnrmag/2011/08/diverse.htm
Topic: Hmong American Sportsmen Club NEWS & UPDATES (Read 15770 times)