The Southwestern Washington Fairgrounds in Centralia, Washington was the scene of an amazing turnout of sportsmen last week. From all over the region, hundreds of hunters came together and showed that they will no longer stand idly by as animal extremists try to shutter them off the landscape.
“It was awesome to see a huge crowd of sportsmen heed the call and join us to raise money to put an end to the madness that is taking over Washington fish and wildlife management,” said Todd Adkins, vice president of government affairs at the Sportsmen’s Alliance. “Everyone in that room was of a single mind and one simple message: enough is enough, it’s time for us to take things back!”
The event was a result of two dedicated sportsmen who were willing to put other things on hold in their personal and professional lives to host an event: Steve Bell and Joel Swecker. Steve and Joel stepped up after learning about a similar fundraiser in Arlington last September. Both reached out to the Sportsmen’s Alliance and asked about hosting an event in the Centralia area. Sportsmen from all over the state can thank their dedication, because the Centralia event was a huge success.
“I have known for some time that we, as hunters, have to do something different or things will continue to get worse for us,” said Bell. “I saw what the Sportsmen’s Alliance is doing, suing Lorna Smith for her conflict of interest, and I thought, yes, that’s what we are looking for.”
The Centralia event is the second in six months in Washington where sportsmen stood up and said they wanted to help Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation make a difference. The event featured a live and silent auction with some amazing hunting trips to South Africa and Argentina, local salmon and steelhead fishing trips, firearms, lots of Sportsmen’s Alliance products, and more. But more than anything, the event was about hundreds of Washington sportsmen and women coming together to say “enough is enough” by stepping up to help.
“It really is time for all of us, no matter what kind of hunting or fishing we do, to come together and fight back against all this nonsense, or our kids won’t really enjoy the outdoors like we have,” said Swecker. “We’ve got to fight and fight now.”
If you love to hunt and fish, and you’ve had enough of the way hunters and anglers are being treated in your state, send us an email and let us know. We are always looking for volunteers like Joel Swecker and Steve Bell, those who are committed to helping us bring the fight to those who want to end hunting, trapping and fishing in the US and beyond.
Brian Dowler
