Yippee, Yahoo… We Are A Little Excited Too!

At the recent Shot Show, held in Las Vegas, one of the evening highlights is always the Outdoor Channel awards event.  Every year the tickets for this event are hard to come by, so when you land some then you get to join about 2,500 other folks at the Hard Rock theater.  This year our Babes with Bullets team was invited to sit in the VIP section (YIPPEE) as we were nominated for “Best Online Series.”  We were joined there by Todd Merkow, President of Outdoor Channel digital and his wife, Lisa, who is also a Babes alum.  The hosted bar and dinner was enjoyed by all, along with laughter and applause for a variety of awards, my second favorite award being for “Best Blooper” (now come on…who doesn’t love a good blooper?)

My first favorite award has to been when Todd took the stage and announced the nominations for “Best Online Series” followed by saying the magic words “the winner of Best Online Series is Babes with Bullets.” (YAHOO!) I do remember thundering applause with multiple whoops and hollers coming from the audience; which later I found out was probably generated by our sponsors and fans from OTIS Technology along with several of our camp alum. I remember going up to the stage with Kay and Lisa, accepting the award, and saying a few words at the microphone.  (Actually I don’t know what I said but I was told that I was short winded for a change.) Kay then thanked our Foundation sponsor Smith & Wesson, as without their financial support, along with providing the camp with firearms, Babes with Bullets would not be entering its eighth year.  I remember Lisa thanking our campers, after all camps are for them and about them.  Then we were whisked back stage for an interview and photos. We came back to our table just about the time the last awards were being announced. The rest of the evening was a wonderful time of being congratulated by friends and meeting many new people related to the outdoor industry as well.

If there was an unfortunate part to this event it’s that our head camera gal and editor, Marilyn Vogel of ProVideos4U, was not at SHOT Show with us this year.  This award is being shipped to her; after all without the “magic” that she creates with viewing and editing hundreds of hours of tape, we wouldn’t have any webisodes to offer up.  And I never did make it back to thank Todd  Merkow for his support over the last two years and for providing a home for our Babes with Bullets webisodes which are located at OutdoorChannel.com/BabeswithBullets.  I’d also be remiss in not sending out a thank you to Jared Gustafson, our Outdoor Channel producer, for the extra things he does for our webisodes.

The day after the awards event, Friday, was the last day of SHOT Show and Outdoor Channel hosted us at their “Celebrity Big Shots” booth that afternoon.  They provided trading cards for us to autograph and we enjoyed having the opportunity to meet with several fans of our series and even pass out flyers about the 2012 camp schedule, which is also available at BabeswithBullets.com. Upon arriving home from SHOT Show 2012, I was tired and elated for both the success of the Women’s Outdoor Media Association, which our booth was very busy with many new members and sponsor requests, and the success of Babes with Bullets.

So Yippee, Yahoo and we can’t wait until SHOT Show 2013!

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Fun Female-Friendly Targets by GunFun.com

So just how good a shooter is our camera-toting Marilyn "Bullseye" Vogel? You be the judge!

Recently, I had the chance to do some target practice with two of my favorite gal-pals, WOMA Chair Deb Ferns and WOMA member Marilyn Vogel.  Nothing unusual about that.  What was unusual was what we were shooting — GunFun.com’s line of female-friendly (and somewhat comical) targets.  Bennett Perritt, the company’s owner, started out with a publishing company that branched out into target printing after his son asked for an air rifle.  It took 8 months from the first printing until Bennett was satisfied with his targets.  That’s a perfectionist at work.

Melita Ellington points out her hits on the Female Intruder GunFun.com target

Gunfun.com offers many target packages to choose from — check them out at www.gunfun.com, like them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/gunfuntargets) and follow them on Twitter (@gunfuntargets).

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WOMA Booth A Big Hit at the 2012 Shot Show!

All I can say is WOW!  The Women’s Outdoor Media Association BOD members Deb Ferns and Melita Ellington did an outstanding job with our booth at the Shot Show.  We have been having a very successful week with meeting and greeting many of the folks that stopped by to chat and inquire about the WOMA mission of focusing on increasing media coverage of women who are active in traditional outdoor sports, especially shooting, hunting, fishing and archery.  It has also been a great week for attracting new sponsors for the WOMA!  If you are still at the show, drop by and see us!  We are on the 3rd floor, just across from the Press Room, a great location.

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Heartbeat of The WOMA – January 2012

The WOMA team has been working on arrangements for the 2012 SHOT Show since last spring.  Finally SHOT Show has arrived in Las Vegas.

The WOMA is in booth L344, which is on the 3^rd floor very close to the NSSF Pressroom. FYI – This is an excellent location as its located in a large lobby area so the hours and access to L344 are very “open” and you don’t have to have an exhibitor badge during the off hours.  To those members who have worked the booth and to our Veep Melita Ellington (Melita@theWOMA.com) for coordinating the schedule at the booth, a big THANK YOU!  Melita, besides being the Vice-President of the WOMA, is also the Membership Team Leader, and your help is much appreciated.

Again, because L344 is in the lobby area, we have been gathering members at the booth. This has been a great time for members to get to know each other. For me personally, it’s one of my favorite parts of SHOT Show; to meet new members of the WOMA and reestablish relationships with our alum!

In case you didn’t read the last couple of Heartbeat blogs then another SHOT Show “news flash” is that as a WOMA member (even if you aren’t attending SHOT Show) your flyer/brochure can be at the booth at no charge! Many of our members who weren’t attending shipped their flyers/brochures to me and they have been proudly displayed at our booth.  The Women’s Outdoor Media Association, theWOMA, is proud to represent you at SHOT Show and throughout the rest of the year including at the upcoming NRA convention in April.

My closing thought and prayer for us all in 2012 …REACH UP for something higher!  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.” Proverbs 3.5-6

Deb Ferns
WOMA Chair

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Free Marketing For You and Your Company!

Would you like a free marketing opportunity at the SHOT Show January 17 to 20^th, in Las Vegas?

The Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT Show) is the largest and most comprehensive trade show for all professionals involved with the shooting sports, hunting and law enforcement industries.   There are over 2,200 exhibits and more than 40,000 attendees at this annual event.

One of the many benefits of your membership in the WOMA is to have your brochures and/or flyers at the WOMA booth, this year located at L344 near the Press Room. Maximize the value of your WOMA membership by letting us know if you want WOMA to be part of your marketing strategy! And remember this is free!

Let us know as soon as possible if you would like to have a threefold brochure or flyer at the WOMA booth by contacting Marsha@TheWOMA.com or Deb@TheWOMA.com.

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Bid on a Hunt, Win a Family!

The strangest thing happened while I was at the NRA auction last May; I bid on a hunt and won a whole new family!  I’d never been to one of the big NRA convention dinners/auctions before, but my gal pal Marsha Petrie Sue, President of the Women’s Outdoor Media Association (the WOMA) and very active in the NRA, convinced me to buy an event ticket. I met up with other WOMA members there, like Anne Draper from Bear Mountain Ranch and Chris Quam of Hi Viz Shooting Systems. We had a ton of fun along with dinner, drinks and the auction.

Deb gears up for a cold bird hunt in north Texas complete with her clothes from WOMA member, PROIS!

The auction item I won was a pheasant hunt in north Texas offered by the Frantz family, scheduled for early December. As soon as I paid for the item I called my husband, who was left back in Tucson working away and taking care of our four legged children. The news made him a very happy guy, as he hadn’t had the opportunity to bird hunt in many years. In June, I contacted our hunting hostess, Stephanie Frantz.  Between her cheerful updates plus contact by her husband, Trey, we spent the summer and fall touching base on a variety of hunt details. Just for starters, the Frantz’s put us up at our own private B&B, the “Bella Grace”, near their ranch outside of Dalhart, TX.  Since the hunt was for four people for the weekend, we invited along the head instructor of our Babes with Bullets camps, Kay Miculek and her daughter, Lena, who both happen to be WOMA members as well.

Here’s where I admit that out of the group I was definitely the novice bird hunter; actually, novice hunter period. It was a case of “practice what you preach” since I’m constantly telling women to try something outside their comfort zone.  My learning curve to becoming a bird hunter couldn’t have been made any easier since Trey had everything organized in the field. He recruited his family members and friends to come along on the opening pheasant weekend hunt and be “walkers” and “blockers.”

FYI – I opted to be a “walker” when I found out that group gets to talk! Trey delivered a safety briefing at the front of the hunt, and I’m happy to report that everyone, including Trey’s 9 year old son Max and 8 year old nephew Zane, did a great job on maintaining a safe shooting line. (Here’s where I put a big THANK YOU too for Trey’s brother-in-law, Mike, who helped out with the hunt and even loaned me his shotgun when mine quit running.)

To insure that it would be a good hunt, the Frantz’s went one step further and added extra “raised” pheasants to the few wild pheasant that are still around in Texas. If you haven’t been in a coma for the last year you probably know that Texas has suffered through a devastating drought. For any game bird, the lack of water equals lack of crops and lack of crops equals lack of bird habitat.  Where this area of Texas once supported a thriving game bird population, now there are few wild birds and they are very hard to find! Wanting to go that extra step for our NRA hunt, Trey planted dozens of birds in the ½ section we were hunting. If you are thinking this made hunting easy, then you aren’t familiar with how well pheasants blend right into an abandoned cornfield.  I didn’t realize that pheasants were runners instead of flyers, especially pen raised birds. Now I know why it’s so important to have a good pointer; another bird hunting lesson learned.

Lena Miculek, WOMA Ambassador, gets ready for prairie dog hunting. Can you tell it’s a little bit cold?

We walked and walked, and it wasn’t long before I figured out the best bet was to stick near Daisy, the Frantz’s young yellow Labrador Retriever, as she was flushing up birds regularly.  On the first day we had close to a 30 mph wind and as the walkers and/or Daisy would flush the bird, it took a fast shotgun to grab the bird before it sailed off into the distance. By the end of the first day of hunting, I had a whole new appreciation for how much work it can be to bird hunt, along with that exhilaration of the bird coming up and making a good shot. I also came to appreciate John Frantz, Trey’s Dad, who trailed behind our group at a distance in his SUV. His job was to help out with transporting hunters from one end of a field down to another end.  What a blessing John turned out to be, especially after a long cold walk, where I found my muscles very unwilling to work anymore. That’s when I decided that John and his SUV were my new best hunting aids!

I also had an appreciation for Stephanie and her family providing us with great dinners on Friday and again on Saturday evening.  A blessing was said before each meal, a big “AMEN” uttered by all present, and then the conversation and fun flowed throughout the Frantz house. The evening activities even included making of S’Mores in the Frantz fireplace, which we taped, as I’m trying to convince Hershey’s Chocolate to become a sponsor of our women’s shooting camps. After all, you never know till you ask – right?

On Sunday, the last morning of the hunt, the temperatures were pretty cold but we tried one last pass at the fields; noting that the hawks had been fairly active over the night in finding several of the pheasants as dinner. We only shot a few more birds and then decided it was time to call it a morning. While the other hunters went off to try their luck at prairie dogs, I stayed behind and did a little handgun training with Stephanie and Max at the small steel handgun range that Trey had setup at the back of the ranch. Seems the Frantz family, at least Trey and Max so far, have been getting involved in some action pistol shooting, like IDPA, which stands for International Defensive Pistol Association. Small world since the IDPA Executive Director, Joyce Wilson, just became a WOMA member last month!

(L to R) Zane, Deb, Trey and Max with a successful pheasant hunt on opening day

I was happy to see that Stephanie was already comfortable in safely handling my M&P .9mm Pro Series semi-auto. She had a good grip, good stance and good sight picture. I was equally impressed on how well Max handled the .9mm semi-auto, though I’m pretty sure he’s been practicing quite a bit considering how much reloading Trey tells me he’s been doing. At nine years old Max already has the makings of a serious competitor, and I suspect we’ll be seeing both Trey and Max at a variety of action shooting programs in the future.  Plus, I am so excited that Stephanie is registering to attend a Babes with Bullets camp this spring!

If you are wondering what the moral of the story is, I’m not sure there is one. I recognize that the Frantz family offering the hunt to the NRA and that my being at the NRA event to win the hunt, along with having the opportunity to spend time in the field with my husband, were a series of God’s blessings. Like I said in the beginning, I bid on a hunt and I won a family, it doesn’t get any better than that.

Photo Credit: Gary Ferns

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HEARTBEAT of the WOMA for December 2011

There have been several new members joining the WOMA over these last few months, and to each of you I say “HOWDY!”

I’m hoping to meet our new members along with member alum at the upcoming SHOT Show, held in Las Vegas starting Monday, January 16^th (kicks off with Media Day at the Range). Then, Tuesday, January 17^th through Friday, January 20^th, we’ll be at the Sands Expo Center in booth L344.  The WOMA booth is right outside of the NSSF Press Room in the big hallway, and we are looking forward to a lot of traffic throughout the tradeshow. Help is needed to keep it staffed all four days so if you are willing to volunteer some hours please contact the WOMA Vice-President, Melita Ellington (Melita@theWOMA.com).

Here are some extra notes about SHOT Show :

• If you are attending SHOT Show and are planning to utilize the WOMA for a media badge pertaining to the Media Range Day, your online information needs to be submitted to NSSF by December 15^th at www.shotshow.org/en/Media/Registration.

• Media Range Day is completed by Monday at 4:00 pm, so starting at 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm at the WOMA booth at the Sands Expo/Venetian 3^rd Floor Lobby, we are hosting a light reception for our members. (Since we are in the general lobby area and not the firearms exhibit halls, it is open until 9:00 pm.) Please RSVP to me at Deb@theWOMA.com if you plan to attend that event.

• This year the WOMA booth will have racks to hold member flyers or brochures, even small/thin catalogs. Members must email Melita@theWOMA.com to reserve one of the racks shelves and provide her with a sample of what you intend to drop off at the booth. If you are planning to ship your flyers, please send them to Deb Ferns at 7850 N. Silverbell, Suite 114-315, Tucson, AZ  85743.

• The number of industry sponsors joining the WOMA is growing!  OTIS Technology and ATI are already Platinum Sponsors, and just this week we welcomed Bay Flats Lodge as a Platinum Sponsor and Crossbreed Holsters as a Gold Sponsor. Our SHOT Show booth will host banner/boards for our sponsors, so if you know of any additional industry sponsors potentials please contact our sponsorship coordinator, Mia@theWOMA.com

I’m not sure what happened to 2011…it went by in a flash, except for when I followed this dump truck for what seemed forever across New Mexico on my way to a pheasant hunt in Texas.  It finally dawned on me that God sent me a message in the way of a slow moving truck; let go of old baggage and start the new year knowing how blessed I’ve been in 2011 and how much I’m looking forward to 2012.  I hope that each of you has a blessed holiday season as well!

Deb Ferns
Chair

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HEARTBEAT of the WOMA for November 2011

The WOMA's Deb Ferns (Left), enjoying time with her new POMA gal pals, Laurie Lee Dovey (center) and Lisa Metheny (right)

I’m so proud!  I’m actually getting my monthly “Heartbeat of the WOMA” blog out before the last day of November; it’s like a miracle. In tune with the theme of November I’m going with notes of Thanks Giving for the people and events that entered my life this month. There isn’t any doubt in my mind that it was God’s blessings on me for the way this month turned out.  For instance…

THANKS to Ducks Unlimited (DU) and Bay Flats Lodge for inviting me, along with other women in outdoor media, on a “Blast and Cast” trip. This event made a lifetime impression on me and it was only 48 hours long. FYI – I’ve already written an article for the WOMA about my experiences in the duck blind and fishing, but what I didn’t write about is the blessings I received in terms of new gal pals!

To give you some brief history, the WOMA was created in 2008 to concentrate on media of any type that related to women in the outdoor venues of shooting sports, hunting, fishing and archery. Like any new kid on the block, the WOMA struggled in the beginning for recognition and to figure out where we belonged in the outdoor media world. When we started the WOMA, there were already two large outdoor media groups in existence, the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and the Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA).  To be blunt, I wasn’t sure if POMA or OWAA wanted much to do with the WOMA, so we weren’t working on building a relationship with each other.  I’m thankful that is now a thing of the past!

Lisa Metheny from POMA and Deb Ferns from the WOMA at the recent Ducks Unlimited camp at Bay Flats Lodge

Last spring, I was invited by an OWAA board member to join their group, and I have very much enjoyed getting to know the OWAA executive director, Robin Giner, and other members of the OWAA team. Then at the recent DU trip, I had the opportunity to share a hunt and meals with the executive director of the Professional Outdoor Media Association, Laurie Lee Dovey and POMA board member, Lisa Metheny.  Long story made short, our WOMA president, Marsha Petrie Sue, became a member of POMA within 24 hours of my leaving the DU event.

Kudos goes to Laurie Lee for sending over a benefit that is immediately available to all WOMA blogger members: a no-cost listing in the online directory at www.outdoorbloggerdirectory.com.  And another big Kudos because within a few days of leaving the DU camp, Laurie Lee became a member of the WOMA!   I feel blessed to have new outdoor friends and I don’t think a woman can ever have too many (right?)  I’m already trying to work out a date with Lisa, (on the left in the second photo), so she can take me turkey hunting. I’m not sure how that will go, since I found out I’m not allowed to talk and I can’t do my normal yoga in a blind movements.  All that said if Lisa’s game to make me into a turkey hunter than so am I!

THANKS go to Julianna Crowder, a fellow WOMA member, who also operates aGirlandaGun.com, and Sheldon Carruth of TexasMultiGun.com. Julianna knew that our Babes with Bullets firearms program (I’m the camp director) was looking for a place in Texas to host an event and she had women already recruited for us. We struggled to find a range with the bays and equipment we needed, along with a reasonable day rate. We had just about given up hope when Julianna stepped up with a commitment from Sheldon to cover a significant amount of our range fees through their Texas Multi-gun club and he also provided equipment, like target stands. To Julianna and Sheldon, you both “walked the talk” of getting more women involved in firearms training -thank you!

THANKS to my awesome Babes with Bullets instructors, most of them are also WOMA members, for making the last 2011 camp in Tucson a huge success! I’m sorry that each and every one of you can’t be with me on December 10th as I meet up with the BBC here in Tucson. The BBC is coming to tape a docudrama pilot on Babes with Bullets and you can bet I’ll get some information about the WOMA in there too!

Next month I’ll be reporting on the new board of directors for the WOMA, along with updates on SHOT Show quickly approaching in January. The WOMA has secured a booth, L344, and it has a great location near the NSSF Press Room. My prayer for you in this next month is that you each go and make a newfriend in the outdoors and most importantly remember to hold Thanks Giving in your heart through the holidays.

Deb Ferns
Chair

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Ducks Unlimited at Bay Flats Lodge Offers Unlimited Fun!

So many new gal pals were made at the recent Ducks Unlimited event for women in outdoor media. Photo Credit: www.LisaMetheny.com

Last year, I had the opportunity to attend the Ducks Unlimited “Women in Outdoor Media” event in Arkansas. The accommodations were nice and the food was good, though unfortunately, the birds weren’t flying. Still, I returned from that trip in awe of all that Ducks Unlimited (DU) does for conservation; for waterfowl habitat in general. I never considered I’d be offered that opportunity again, but then earlier this summer I was contacted by Mike Checkett of DU with an invite to return to their event coming up in November 2011. He also suggested that I recommend a few more members of the Women’s Outdoor Media Association to attend with me.

The big question right off the bat was “Who to invite?” It finally came down to deciding which members would place stories in established magazines or newspapers, which members would get the most radio or tv interviews done for DU? Just doing an article for the WOMA, like I am now, is nice but the real “meat & potatoes” is getting other forms of media involved in creating more opportunities for DU. The dilemma was that many WOMA members wanted to go and there just weren’t enough slots to accommodate everyone.

After discussion this summer with the WOMA board, it was decided that media trips, such as this one with DU, could easily be abused if someone attended and then didn’t do the follow up work expected, or if someone participated and didn’t realize they needed to make room next year for other WOMA members to attend. With that in mind, I relinquished my spot for the DU event this year and turned it over to another WOMA member on the wait list.

Well, let’s just say God must have really wanted me to go duck hunting, as my connection with Outdoor Channel came into play and I went on their slot. I took along my camera supervisor, our “Saint” Marilyn, who is now busy editing a couple of webisodes for Ducks Unlimited that should be out by late December (I’ll post in the WOMA when/where those are ready for viewing.) FYI – Marilyn also did a quick video piece for our camp host location which is already playing at their website at www.BayFlatsLodge.com .

Our Bay Flats Lodge guide, Jason, with Sadie, our excellent retriever!

So now that I’ve bored you with the “how I got to DU camp”, let me give you a little bit of background on a fast 48 hours spent at camp. On arriving Monday afternoon we were greeted by our host extraordinaire, Captain Chris Martin. To say that Chris lives and breathes duck hunting and fishing is an understatement. He has his hand in everything from the lodge website and social media, to training the hunting dogs. His wife Deb is the strength behind the throne, as she oversees maintenance of their beautiful lodge and works shoulder to shoulder with the kitchen staff to make sure everything is done right. This is no impersonal hotel, it feels more like a large B&B that is warm, friendly and of course the scenery is breathtaking in the Barrier Islands.

Just in case you are like me and don’t know much about the Barrier Islands (I could barely find Sea Drift, TX, on a map to get us there) check out one of many links talking about this unique coastal area at www.TexasWetlands.org/Barrier.htm . I was so taken with this area that for Christmas this year, I’ve purchased a three day “Blast and Cast” event for our family with duck hunting in the morning and fishing in the afternoon.

Getting back to the DU event the first evening (Monday), we had the opportunity to meet & greet the other women in our media group along with the two DU gals joining us for the event. I very much enjoyed getting to know Alicia Wiseman, a biologist for DU in Louisiana, and Emily Tyner, a DU Communications Manager located in Washington DC. The work that both of these women do for DU is invaluable, and just as importantly, I am impressed that DU is a leader in conservation groups that hire women!

The next morning (Tuesday) came with a wakeup call at 3:30 am to go duck hunting; pulling out of the docks by 4:30 am to head out in groups of three assigned to each boat, where our captain guided us through the Barrier Islands. We lay claim to one of the many blinds established along the waterways, or maybe the more appropriate term is “flyways”, and setup for business. This is where I have to delve into a sideline story about chest waders. Why didn’t anyone ever tell me that chest waders will give you diaper rash if you don’t wear the right things underneath them? So I’m here to share with the rest of you that normal “wick away” long underwear is the wrong choice for under chest waders with temps in the Barrier Islands of 74 degrees. Just so you know, it’s hard to shoot ducks with a shotgun with one hand while the other hand is down inside your chest waders keeping them off your body! I survived; I even shot a couple of ducks, one Redhead and one Pintail. Then mid-morning, we headed back to the lodge, where I happily discarded my chest waders and got comfy in my yoga clothes just in time for lunch.

Now I’d already eaten a big breakfast, after being reassured that the boat ride to a duck blind was not going to be the high rolling seas I experienced recently on a Carnival Cruise. I’m not sure why I felt I needed to eat a big lunch as well, but count me in as the Bay Flats Lodge chef dished up a wonderful Red Snapper entrée. Now that I think about it, dinner the night before was outstanding as well and who could say no to Tiramisu for dessert? (Did I mention that the food at Bay Flats Lodge is awesome?)

After lunch, we had time for a couple of quick interviews and we were off to go fishing for the afternoon. I was on the only boat that afternoon that didn’t “strike it lucky”, but all the other gals had multiple fish stories with fish in tow as backup. To say I was envious was an understatement, but bless her heart, one of the gals in our group, Lisa Metheny, gave us some of her fish to take home. After admiring everyone’s catch, we arrived back to the lodge just in time for… yep, DINNER! Small wafers of duck breast served in raspberry sauce and this time Crème Brulee for dessert. (At this point in time I was really wondering if my chest waders were going to fit me by the next morning.) The rest of the evening was informative and fun, as first Emily gave us a brief synopsis of why membership in DU is so important; after all, in Washington DC the voters of large conservation groups get heard first!

Here is where I share with you that I became a DU member right after my first trip last year and I just renewed my membership again; though this year I “upped” the contribution amount. The work that DU does for waterfowl habitat isn’t just about more duck hunting, it’s about CLEAN water and salvaging the wetlands which have a direct impact on everyone, not just duck hunters. My dad was an active duck hunter, living his whole life on Lake Huron. I’ll be honest that I never quite understood it as the Great Lakes in the late fall and early winter are cold, windy and wet.

L to R, Deb Ferns of the WOMA, Alicia Wiseman of Ducks Unlimited and Judy Rhodes of the WOMA. Photo credit: Judy Rhodes

With thoughts of my dad and how excited he would be to see me duck hunting, we headed out on the last morning (Wednesday) to go duck hunting. We woke up again at 3:30 am to see Stephanie from the Bay Flats Lodge staff smiling at us yet again while she served breakfast. Then, we were back in the boats by 4:30 am, arriving into the blind by 5:30 am and that’s when I had my duck hunting epiphany. Insert drum roll here…I sit in a blind in the Barrier Islands with a good guide (thank you Jason), with a retriever (our sweet Sadie) and along with a couple of new gal pals (Alicia Wiseman and Judy Rhodes.) It’s windy, the ducks are flying, we’re shooting, we’re having fun, the dog is happy retrieving and for a little window of time all is right and good in our part of the world. Understanding how blessed we are to be born women in America where we can own guns and go hunting hit me with full force. Understanding how blessed we are that Ducks Unlimited continues to work diligently on conservation efforts to benefit the ducks, benefit duck hunters and to benefit humans with fresh water. (Do I hear a big AMEN?)

We headed back mid-morning with many ducks in tow, which by the way is what I’m serving for Thanksgiving this year. It was a fast packing job for Marilyn and me as we were heading to another event back in Austin. We only had a few moments to hug our new friends, plus thank our hosts at both DU and at Bay Flats Lodge. How it happened that one of the most moving trips of my life took place in 48 hours I’m not sure, but I’m heading back to Bay Flats Lodge to try it again in the hope to recreate the magic for my family. Now if someone could just figure out how to help me eliminate diaper rash with these chest waders, life would be close to perfect for my next duck hunting trip!

If you are looking for the perfect Christmas gift, consider a Ducks Unlimited membership for your family members and especially the younger kids in your clan, as DU has a special program just for them. Visit www.Ducks.org for more information. Till my next DU adventure this is Duck Hunting Deb signing off…

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Heartbeat of the WOMA – July 2011

My goal was to have a Heartbeat blog by the beginning of each month. I only missed that deadline by 29 days here in July (sad, so sad.) I’m not going to beat around the bush; bottom line is summer is very busy for my meeting planning business (my paying job) and we were slammed with huge camps for Babes with Bullets ™ through May, June and July. In fact our July three day camp, recently held in Chicago, was one of the largest ever with 32 women participating and varying in ages from 18 to 71. Besides being a well attended camp we also had a “pro gun” article from the Chicago Tribune (link is below in case you have an interest) which generated over 2,000 emails with requests for more camps in the Midwest. So despite Mayor Daley’s adamant “anti gun” stance it seems the women in that area want to learn how to shoot! God bless America that they have the right to do so and only because the Supreme Court basically told Mayor Daley he’s been wrong for decades on his personal interpretation of the 2nd Amendment.

Moving off the subject of our camps and back onto business for the WOMA I urge you to read the minutes each month from the board of directors’ meeting. We address issues presented to the board by the members and that’s where the discussion is held and a vote taken on how to proceed with the member request. For instance several new members wanted to know how they could become more involved in various WOMA teams. Again, read the minutes of the meeting to find out what projects are being worked for the teams of:

• Web – contact Cindy@theWOMA.com

• Moderating/Editing – contact Editor@theWOMA.com (this goes to Heide Kaser, Cindy Noyes and Deb Ferns)

• Membership – contact Melita@theWOMA.com

• Public Relations/Marketing/Sponsorship – contact Marsha@theWOMA.com

Reach out to the committee person noted, who is basically the team lead, and let them know how you would like to participate. For instance a new member, Cami Eisenzimmer, offered to take on Facebook and Twitter for the WOMA and update it weekly with a theme for each week no less.   New member Amy Carducci also volunteered to help us with the website.  Considering that the entire board is volunteers having someone like Cami and Amy step forward is huge and I love Cami’s quote of “I don’t want to rock the (WOMA) boat, just add a little wind to the sails.” FYI – in my mind Cami isn’t adding just a little wind through her involvement in the Woma’s social media; instead I think she’s like a breath of fresh air!

Moving on to other areas where we would like to see more members involved is tradeshows and assisting with sponsorships. The PR team wears many hats and marketing the WOMA at various tradeshows across the country is just one of the hats. In August in the Midwest is the ATA tradeshow, in November in Reno is the National Association of Sporting Good Wholesalers conference, and then in January is the huge SHOT Show in Las Vegas and in spring the huge NRA annual convention, this year held in St. Louis. Then in the summer we’re invited to participate in the Outdoor Writers Association of America (OWAA) which is held in Alaska next year. We have been invited to participate in each of these events with a complimentary table in the registration area along with a listing in the tradeshow program. We would love (LOVE) to be present at these large national events but again it takes members stepping forward to staff the table, hand out brochures, talk about what the mission statement is for the WOMA and on occasion doing an interview about the WOMA to local media. While at most tradeshows we can work out for you to have free “shared” housing, the member picks up their own expenses to attend in terms of airfare, rental car, and food.

If you have an interest in becoming more involved in the WOMA, possibly in the tradeshow area, please let me know. It’s easy to reach me at Deb@theWOMA.com and those of you who email me know that I’m pretty darn good about getting back to you fairly quickly. Last but not least for the month of July we had two new members join us; Doctor Dawn Obrecht and Morgan Craft. Every month I’m impressed by the members who are joining and this month with Dawn and Morgan that trend continues! Hope you are all having a great summer and that we have the opportunity to meet at either a fall retreat (still a work in progress) or at a future tradeshow. Take care…

Deb

Chicago Tribune Link: Babes with Bullets and other women who believe the Constitution …

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