TRCP Fetes Conservation Leaders at Awards Event
Third annual Capitol Conservation Dinner unites sportsmen-conservationists, recognizes Rep. Collin C. Peterson, Orvis’s Dave and Perk Perkins.
WASHINGTON –-(Ammoland.com)- At its third annual Capitol Conservation Dinner, held last night in Washington, D.C., the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership lionized the achievements of giants in the sportsman community and brought together influential policymakers, union leaders and conservationists to celebrate the TRCP’s work in guaranteeing all Americans quality places to hunt and fish.
The flagship TRCP event honored the conservation accomplishments of Minnesota Congressman Collin C. Peterson, chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, and Dave and Perk Perkins of the Orvis Company.
The dinner also spotlighted the Jim Range Conservation Fund, which commemorates the life’s work of the TRCP’s former chairman and co-founder.
“Through the TRCP’s Capitol Conservation Dinner, the sportsmen’s community celebrates the incalculable contributions of our nation’s most dedicated conservationists,” said Whit Fosburgh, TRCP president and CEO. “Following a trail blazed by President Theodore Roosevelt, the sportsmen honored at this year’s event exemplify the uniquely American drive to responsibly manage and enjoy our irreplaceable fish and wildlife resources.”
Chairman Peterson was presented with the James D. Range Conservation Award for his persistent efforts to conserve the nation’s natural resources, particularly on funding private and agricultural lands management programs via the federal Farm Bill. In lively introductory remarks by Peterson’s Minnesota colleague Sen. Al Franken and Pheasants Forever Vice President of Government Affairs Dave Nomsen, the congressman was cited as an unparalleled champion of fish and wildlife resources and our sporting culture.
“American communities depend on the smart use of our agricultural lands and on balancing the protection of natural resources with the needs of the nation’s farmers,” said Franken. “No one understands that balance better then Collin Peterson.”
“The last Farm Bill did more for conservation than any previous Farm Bill,” said Peterson. “Looking ahead to the next Farm Bill, we will work together to do the best we can to further conservation efforts and the way of life that are central to our great nation.”
Orvis Vice Chairman Dave Perkins and Orvis Chief Executive Officer Perk Perkins were honored with the TRCP Lifetime Conservation Achievement Award for their commitment to natural resources conservation as embodied in the mission of the Orvis Company and its hunting and fishing product lines. Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops and recipient of the 2009 Lifetime Conservation Achievement Award, presented the 2010 award to the Perkinses.
“Orvis is simply a conduit for the hard work being done in the name of conservation by agencies, individuals and groups such as the TRCP,” said Dave Perkins in accepting the award. “We are proud to help advance these efforts that help sustain America’s fish and wildlife resources and long-held outdoor traditions.”
“Theodore Roosevelt once said, ‘I am only an average man, but, by George, I work at it harder than the average man,” said TRCP Board Chair Jim Martin, conservation director of the Berkley Conservation Institute. “Our 2010 honorees give credence to Roosevelt’s belief that our most valuable contributions arise from a simple desire to ‘work hard at work worth doing.’”
Lead sponsors of the 2010 Capitol Conservation Dinner included Bass Pro Shops and the High Lonesome Ranch.
A hero of modern conservation, Jim Range was instrumental in the crafting and passage of a string of landmark natural resource laws, including the Clean Water Act, and served on the boards of directors for numerous conservation groups. Range’s dedication to the conservation of fish and wildlife in support of the nation’s sporting traditions remains entrenched in sportsmen’s lives through the TRCP. Launched in October 2009, the two-year Jim Range Conservation Fund has raised more than $500,000.
Inspired by the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, the TRCP is a coalition of organizations and grassroots partners working together to preserve the traditions of hunting and fishing.