SSSF and Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever Partner to Introduce Youth to Shooting Sports and Conservation

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The Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation (SSSF) and Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever (PF/QF) have signed an agreement to partner on programs to introduce youth to shooting sports, hunting, wildlife conservation, and other outdoor experiences. SSSF and PF/QF will work together to develop new outreach programs, promote each other’s missions, and host joint introductions to shooting/outdoor events.

Ben Berka - John Linquist
Ben Berka, left, and John Linquist sign a memorandum of understanding between SSSF and PF/QF
The partnership focuses on strengthening the link between shooting and conservation, as SSSF and PF/QF will work together to educate and engage today’s youth to ensure a future of avid hunters and passionate conservationists.

Both organizations recognize that today’s youth are the next generation of outdoor leaders and conservationists. “Youth are making dedicated sport choices at a very young age these days,” explained Ben Berka, President and Executive Director of SSSF. “If we can make that choice a shooting sport, we can begin to influence the future of recreational choices for kids and families.

“By operating through the proven model of organized youth sports, SSSF has the ability to recruit many urban and suburban youth who have very little awareness about wildlife conservation or the outdoors in general,” Berka continued. “Also, youth shooting sports have structure, social interaction, and trusted adult leadership — things that are attractive to busy families.”

The memorandum of understanding between the two organizations came about through the efforts of Tom Wondrash, National Director of the SSSF’s Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) and John Linquist, National Shooting Sports Coordinator for PF/QF, who recognized the compatible goals of the two groups. Initially, the two men partnered informally by pairing SCTP teams with local PF/QF chapters. Later, SCTP teams were the catalysts for forming new PF/QF chapters in areas where there were none.

“Our mission is to get youth involved in shooting sports at an early age through team competition and to encourage their continued involvement when they graduate from our program,” said Wondrash. “Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever is an ideal partner to further our members’ interest and participation in the shooting sports as they reach adulthood, as well as enjoy these activities with their entire family.”

For PF/QF, promoting shooting sports is an important aspect of the No Child Left Indoors® initiative, which includes the FOREVER Shooting Sports Program. “We look at this partnership as a way to groom future leaders who care about the legacy we are leaving and who will pass on our love for the outdoors. In turn, that connection to the land through hunting will foster a conservation ethic,” added PF/QF’s Linquist. “We look forward to expanding participation at youth events nationally through this partnership.”

Pheasants Forever, including its quail conservation division, Quail Forever, is the nation’s largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have more than 140,000 members and 745 local chapters across the United States and Canada. For more information about becoming involved with Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever, contact John Linquist at 712-754-3221, jlinquist@pheasantsforever.org, or visit pheasantsforever.org.

CZ-USA Video: Handgun Training Tips

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There’s a good chance you can improve your shooting in just four minutes, the time it takes to watch this video featuring Matt Hopkins, CZ-USA sponsored shooter and USPSA Production Grand Master. Hopkins offers three excellent handgunning techniques for faster, more accurate shooting. The three techniques deal with sight alignment, correct grip, and trigger control.

Hear Kim Rhode on ESPN Radio This Saturday

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Kim RhodeOlympic shooting star and five-time medalist Kim Rhode can be heard this Saturday morning on ESPN radio at 790 AM on the “Outdoors with Larry Rea” show. As SSSF’s Honorary Fundraising Chairperson, Kim, an SCTP alumna, will be appearing on the show on behalf of SSSF to discuss our programs and how to support them.

The show broadcasts from Memphis, Tennessee from 6:00 to 7:30 a.m.

Larry & Brenda Potterfield Donate Over $1.7 Million to SSSF

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Larry and Brenda PotterfieldLarry and Brenda Potterfield recently donated over $1.7 million to the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation to further our role in growing youth shooting through the Scholastic Clay Target Program and the Scholastic Pistol Program.

“Brenda and I are delighted to support an organization that utilizes scholastic shooting programs to help develop today’s youth,” said Larry Potterfield, Founder and CEO of MidwayUSA. “As leaders, we all have an opportunity to change the future; we’re investing in tomorrow’s leaders, America’s future decision makers.”

Larry and Brenda were recently named Founding Life Diamond Members of the Champion’s Roundtable, which recognizes donors who have made major contributions to the SSSF mission. They are also Charter Members of the SSSF Legacy Society, which honors donors who have included SSSF in their estate plans through deferred gifts.

“The generous support provided to the SSSF by Larry and Brenda is vital to the growth and expansion of our Scholastic Clay Target and Scholastic Pistol Programs. This donation will help us extend our reach to get more kids pulling triggers and also support local SCTP and SPP team endowment accounts to fund teams well into the future,” said Ben Berka, President and Executive Director of the SSSF.

About MidwayUSA
Both country kids from Missouri, Larry and Brenda Potterfield turned their passion for shooting sports into a career by opening a small gun shop in 1977 that would eventually become MidwayUSA. They instilled family values like honesty, integrity, and respect for others into the business, and strive to maintain this culture with each employee added to their growing team. For over 37 years, MidwayUSA has offered JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING® for shooting, reloading, gunsmithing, and hunting with an unyielding focus on customer satisfaction.

For more information on MidwayUSA, visit their website, www.midwayusa.com, find them on Facebook, www.facebook.com/OfficialMidwayUSA, or follow them on Twitter, twitter.com/midwayusa.

Order SPP Nationals T-shirt

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The Scholastic Pistol Program has had numerous requests for t-shirts from the 2014 National Championships, so we will be re-ordering a supply of them soon.

SPP t-shirts will be available in Small through X-Large sizes for $14 and XXL and XXXL sizes for $16, plus shipping.

Click here to place your order on the SSSF online store.

The deadline to submit your order is September 7. Delivery will be approximately the week of September 22.

Save the Date: College Regional Tournament, Oct. 31-Nov. 2

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The Scholastic Clay Target Program will be hosting a College Regional “Spooktacular” Tournament on October 31 – November 2 at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta, Illinois. The tournament is open to any and all colleges registered with SCTP. Plans are still coming together, but for now, save the date. You don’t want to miss this! Details will follow soon.

Scholastic Pistol Program teams: Do you want to be included in this fun event? If so, contact Tammy Mowry or Scott Moore to let us know.

SSSF Home Office Has Moved to San Antonio

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National Shooting ComplexIt’s moving day!

Effective immediately, Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation is relocating home-office administration and financial operations from the current Maumee, Ohio office to the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio, Texas.

Plans for the move were originally announced in March, with a long time-frame for the move to allow for new staff to be hired and trained and to ensure there was no interruption of services to our program participants.

“As the Headquarters of the National Skeet Shooting Association and National Sporting Clays Association, the National Shooting Complex is a natural choice to house the SSSF’s operations,” said Louise Terry, Chairperson of the SSSF Board of Directors. “Since we are the largest feeder program for youth shooters to NSSA-NSCA, we envision this as a win-win relationship.”

Ben Berka, SSSF President and Executive Director, added, “We are pleased to call the National Shooting Complex home for our headquarters operations. Housing our key administrative and financial operations alongside an established and mature shooting sports organization such as the NSSA-NSCA will help us grow and give our home office perpetuity into the future.”

For most of your contacts with SCTP and SPP, nothing has changed. For program-specific requests, continue to contact the program staff as in the past. Contact for all of those staff members remains unchanged. Only for those reasons you might have contacted the Maumee, Ohio home office in the past will you now need to contact us in San Antonio.

You can find contact information for our home office and each program on every page of our website. Just scroll down the page, and you’ll find those contacts on the lower right side.

Our new home office contact information is:

SSSF
5931 Roft Road
San Antonio, TX 78253
210-448-8946

Want to Host an SPP Coach’s Class?

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Want to host a Level 1 SPP coaching class in your area?

Training is provided by the SPP / NRA / USA Shooting National Coach Development Staff (NCDS). The course covers all required coaching fundamentals for pistol coaches in the Scholastic Pistol Program, in addition to other disciplines of pistol competition. The class fee would include all printed materials, 3-year coaching credentials with the NRA, lunch, and refreshments each day.

Here are the requirements: at least 15-20 people wanting to take the class, a facility where the class can be taught indoors with access to electricity, and a range for field work.

If you’re interested in hosting a class, contact Tammy Mowry, tmowry@sssfonline.com or 724-822-7390 for more information and to make arrangements.

Level 1 Pistol Course in Michigan for SPP Coaches

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The Scholastic Pistol Program, along with National Rifle Association and USA Shooting, will host a Level 1 Pistol Coach’s course next month in Michigan.

The course covers all required coaching fundamentals for pistol coaches in the Scholastic Pistol Program (SPP), in addition to other disciplines of pistol competition. The training is provided by the SPP/NRA/USAS National Coach Development Staff (NCDS).

Caledonia Sportsman’s Club (10721 Coldwater Avenue SE, Alto, MI 49302) will host the class on September 13-14, 2014.

Click here for full information and registration form

The school is two days of sports-specific lessons and practical coaching exercises designed to teach the coach candidate the basics of coaching. The following general subjects are taught:

  • Introduction to the Coaching Program
  • Safety and Risk Management
  • Competition Events
  • Rule Book Use
  • Equipment and Facilities
  • Fundamentals of Shooting
  • Coaching Ethics
  • Coaching Methodology
  • Sports Psychology
  • Training Planning
  • Running Quality Programs
  • How to Conduct a Tournament

The two-day course runs from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day. Candidates should bring eye and ear protection and note-taking materials, along with either a 9mm or .22 LR handgun and 50 rounds of ammunition for their handgun.

Cost of the course is $140, which includes all printed materials, 3-year coaching credentials with the NRA, a binder for your materials, and lunch/refreshments each day.

Click here for more details and registration form.

SSSF Extends Agreement with WSRC to Host Nationals Through 2017

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Art Ashbrook, Ben Berka
Art Ashbrook, left, and Ben Berka

The Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation has contracted with the World Shooting and Recreational Complex (WSRC) to hold its National Team Championships at the Sparta, Illinois facility through 2017. Ben Berka, SSSF President and Executive Director, and Art Ashbrook, WSRC Executive Director, signed the agreement recently to formalize the three-year extension of the foundation’s relationship with the complex.

“We are pleased to call Sparta ‘Home of the SSSF National Championships’ and look forward to meeting our SSSF extended family there each year during the second full week of July,” said Berka. “The Illinois Department of Natural Resources staff at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex are great to work with and are committed to working together with the SSSF to accommodate our growth, both in numbers of participants and in the diversity of events we are offering.”

WSRA’s Ashbrook echoed those sentiments. “The World Shooting and Recreational Complex and the IDNR are extremely pleased by the commitment of the SSSF to hold its National Championships here for the next three years, and hopefully for the next 100,” said Ashbrook. “We think we work very well together, serving the community and young shooters alike.”

More than 10,000 people came to Sparta for the 2014 SCTP National Team Championship and SPP Junior/Senior National Championship at the WSRC in July, including approximately 2500 shooters plus coaches, family members, and other supporters.

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