Whitetail Deer Excite Youth About the Outdoors
AUSTIN, Texas – -(AmmoLand.com)- Education is key in getting today’s youth motivated to turn off their electronics and venture into the outdoors. The American Deer and Wildlife Alliance (ADWA) supports the mission of getting kids motivated and interested in the outdoors and is proud to announce its sponsorship of the Deer in School educational program, a joint venture that brings live whitetail deer to more than 20,000 public school children in Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
Founded by Steve Porter from Lake Bronson, Minn., the Deer in School program features live trophy whitetail to educate students about deer behavior, antler development, life cycles of the whitetail deer and hunting techniques. By turning kids onto the deer and wildlife industry, he firmly believes that it will keep kids out of trouble by giving them positive things to do in their free time. Porter believes that young adults who participate in outdoor activities are less apt to get into trouble and is willing to take his vacation time to motivate kids to get outdoors.
The Porter family and their trophy bucks are on the road for four weeks visiting schools in the three states during the months of September and October. The Porter project gives a presentation about the deer industry and provided an antler collection that was impressive even to the most cynical of 16-year-olds. Porter’s presentations touches on a wide range of deer and hunting topics, including deer behavior, antler development and the family bonds formed when families hunt and farm together
The Deer in School program provides students with a rare chance of seeing a whitetail buck up-close, ask questions and touch the vast antler collection. The live bucks provided an excellent learning experience for the students and left them memories they will not soon forget.
“This was the coolest presentation I’ve ever seen done at a school,” says Tracy Hudin, a high school teacher in Eden Valley, Minn. Hudin noted that many teachers were simply amazed by Porter’s ability to hold the attention of high school students for the full 50-minute presentation since they know all too well how difficult a task it really is.
The Deer in School program visits 20 schools which receive grant money from the Cervid Livestock Foundation, Whitetails of Wisconsin, Minnesota Deer Breeders Association, North Dakota Ranchers Association, the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance and several other deer farming associations. Even some of the local sportsmen’s clubs donated money for the project to come to their nearby schools! These groups focus on and realize the importance of introducing kids to the outdoors at a young age.
The Porter project helps facilitate the missions’ of ADWA and the Cervid Livestock Foundation of educating the general public and youth about the deer and wildlife industries. The Cervid Livestock Foundation (CLF) is the research and education foundation of the North American Deer Farmers Association (NADeFA). For more information on the CLF visit www.nadefa.org.
For more information on the American Deer & Wildlife Foundation and/or the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance and/or to become a member, please call 877.331.8607 or visit www.deerwildlifealliance.org.
About:
Headquartered in Austin, Texas, the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance is a non-profit organization dedicated to the growth of the deer and wildlife industry, and to help educate consumers and the youth on the conservation issues which effect deer and wildlife as well as the industry. For more information on the American Deer & Wildlife Alliance, call 877.331.8607 or visit www.deerwildlifealliance.org.