NWTF banquet celebrates hunting heritage and youth
Bob Buxton, JAKES scholarship committee chair, is pictured with Chanelle Robinson, who was awarded a $250 scholarship at the 29th annual NWTF Hunting Heritage Banquet. Mark Fortune | Beacon
Bob Buxton, JAKES scholarship committee chair, is pictured with Levi Kilpatric, who was awarded a $250 scholarship at the 29th annual NWTF Hunting Heritage Banquet. Mark Fortune | Beacon
COSHOCTON – The 29th annual Hunting Heritage banquet of the Muskingum Valley Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) celebrated hunting, preservation of habitat and placed special attention on the youth JAKES (Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics and Sportsmanship) program.
The sold out banquet was held on Saturday evening, March 3 at the Lake Park Pavilion with raffles, silent auctions and drawings held throughout the evening with guests from Coshocton County and beyond having a chance to walk away with prizes that in total were worth thousands of dollars. The meal was catered by Schumaker Farms.
Emcee was Shawn Dickey, NWTF District Field Supervisor who told guests in attendance that, “This banquet is simply the best in the state of Ohio. Your local organization and Dwaine Scheetz in particular, deserves our appreciation. Scheetz was given a standing ovation.
Veterans were recognized, and every JAKES youth in attendance had the opportunity to take home a door prize and two scholarships were awarded.
Greg Rice and his son John were the auctioneers for the evening and kept things moving during the live auction, Longbeard raffle and many other giveaways. Greg said, “This is one of the only NWTF banquets that I do anymore because it is the local chapter and some of the money does stay here locally. And being an avid turkey hunter I like to give back to something that has given to me, and that is the NWTF. I’m glad to be able to give back.”
Chuck Smith, who is the chapter president, said, “The amount of support we get from this community is just phenomenal. Year after year, we sell out. We can’t thank everyone enough. We try to create a fun, family atmosphere. Some of the proceeds go to our local JAKES day, and some has helped to purchase land to preserve and create habitat. Dwaine (Scheetz) is the mastermind of this. He puts in so many hours but it takes the entire committee to do this.
JAKES Day is scheduled for July 28. You can find out more at www.mvnwtf.com and on Facebook.
Category: Clubs & Organizations
