President — Craig Sweet, 1825 Kirkwood St., Saint Charles, IA 50240; phone: 641-764-2758
Vice President — Randy Mitchell, Iowa Fall, IA; phone: 641-648-6787
Secretary — Patty Kempf, 3371 130th St., Jamaica, IA 50128; e-mail: itasecretary@iowatelecom.net
Treasurer — Chris Grillot, 2769 110th Ave., Wheatland, IA 52777; phone: 563-374-1074;
e-mail: itatreasurer@fbcom.net
FTA Director — Gene Purdy, 521 Edwin Place, Fontanelle, IA 50846; phone: 641-745-8841
NTA Director — George Scalf, 123 N. Madison Ave., Ottumwa, IA 52501; phone: 641-682-3937;
e-mail: iantadtr@mchsi.com
Membership Options:
• Individual membership including subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $15
• Lifetime membership with subscription — $250
Complete membership application on first page of association section and send dues to:
ITA Secretary
Patty Kempf
3371-130th St.
Jamaica, IA 50129
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Greetings to all. Hope everyone had a good holiday season. This winter has been a lot different than the past couple of years. As I write this there is no snow on the ground and the most we had was about 4 inches. Kind of nice for a change.
By the time you read this, the January 31st closing of trapping season will be near, but beaver trapping will remain open until April 1st. Some of the rivers and creeks around here have plenty of open water yet. I have just a few pelts to get scraped, then will be all caught up. Will keep trapping til the 31st, then take a little time off then hit the spring beaver. As usual there have been events during the season that will be remembered in the years to come that only trappers can relate to.
On December 26th , Ron Kuntz, who hosts Des Moines WHO radios’ Sportsman’s Notebook, invited me to be on the show to talk about trapping. It is a live radio program dedicated to the outdoors that airs on Sunday from Noon to 1 P.M.. Ron, who is a lifetime member of the ITA, wanted a show to get the trappers a little publicity. I got there early and had a real good pre-program chat with Ron. I thought I would be nervous about being on live radio. After getting in the studio and going on the air, it was just another conversation with another like-minded person. It was a real good experience for which I will never forget. Thanks Ron for the invite and you were right, just give me a call!!!
The ITA Fur auction will be history by this time. From what I heard there was about 40 sellers and 8 buyers planning on being there. I will try to get the auction results in the next issue. At this point in time, prices appear to be good compared to last years prices.
The Legislative session will begin on January 10th and is scheduled to end on April 29th. The ITA will have our usual eyes and ears present for any issues that may come up during the session. Hopefully it will be uneventful for all sportsman.
The ITA will have a booth at Pheasant Fest January 28-30th in Omaha/Council Bluffs again. If anyone would like to help in the booth contact Spencer Hill or myself for information. March 11-13th the booth will be at the Eastern Iowa Sportshow at the UNI-dome in Cedar Falls.
Anyone willing to help with that show can contact me for that info.
The ITA is still in need of District Directors in the far Northeastern & far Northwestern corners of the state. If you would be interested, contact me and I will get info to you about what the position requirements entail.
The Winter Directors meeting will be held Sunday February 6th starting at 10 A.M. at the Quality Inn in Ames. The hotel is located just west of I-35 off exit 113 – address is 2601 East 13th Street. Anyone who is a member is welcome to attend ANY of the Board of Director meetings.
Better close for now, til next time. Be safe and have a good remainder of the trapping season.
— Craig Sweet