President — Virgil Schroeder, 3471 Earlwyn Road, Cottage Grove, WI 53527; phone: 608-764-5218; e-mail: virjo4t@msn.com
Vice President — Lee Sillars; phone: 715-218-5041; e-mail: Isillars@aol.com
Secretary — Dorothy Abrahamson, 508 E. 9th Ave., Stanley, WI 54768; phone: 715-644-0644
Treasurer — Pam Mather, P.O. Box 305, Oregon, WI 53575-0305; phone: 608-335-2700; e-mail: wtatreas@verizon.net.
NTA Director — Chris Bezio, 5479 Hawthorne Dr., Pulaski, WI 54162; phone: 920-822-3427
Trapper Education Coordinator — Nicke Shumaker, P.O. Box 28, Caroline, WI 54928; phone: 715-754-2121; e-mail: wctep@mwwb.net
Public Relations Director — Ken Kasper, P.O. Box 367, Fremont, WI 54940; phone: 920-446-3815; e-mail: wtapr@centurytel.net
Trapper Correspondence Course Director — Mike Widner, P.O. Box 483, Baraboo, WI 53913; phone: 608-356-3621
Future Trappers of Wisconsin Coordinator — Jennifer Roever, W14399 Highway 45, Tigerton, WI 54486; phone: 715-754-5317
Membership Options:
• Three-year individual membership without Trapper & Predator Caller — $80
• Individual membership with Trapper & Predator Caller — $30
• Individual membership without Trapper & Predator Caller — $15
• Junior (under 17) with Trapper & Predator Caller — $15
• Family Membership with Trapper & Predator Caller — $30
• Lifetime membership (under 65) with Trapper & Predator Caller — $500
• Lifetime membership (over 65) with Trapper & Predator Caller — $300
• Husband and wife lifetime membership with Trapper & Predator Caller — $600
• Future Trappers of Wisconsin membership (under age 19) without Trapper & Predator Caller — FREE
Complete membership application on first page of association section and send dues to:
WTA Treasurer
Pam Mather
P.O. Box 305, Oregon, WI 53575-0305;
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Well, the trapping season is coming close to wrapping up for this season. The season started out on a very low note as far as prices go, but along the way it seems to be picking up some momentum, especially the muskrats and raccoons. We can always hope for a better season next year.
The Personnel and Finance Committee has been working hard to do some restructuring of the WTA. Hopefully the details will be worked out in time for our March meeting. Please come to the Board of Director’s meeting at 9 a.m. on March 20, and also be a part of the General Meeting at 1 p.m. The meetings precede the 5 p.m. banquet. I’m looking forward to the evening. It will be a good time of relaxing with a good meal.
Our special guest for the evening will be Kenny Salwey. He is the author of “Tales of a River Rat” and also “The Old Time River Rats.” I have not heard him speak, but he comes highly recommended by those that have heard him. It’s going to be a great time!
The Spring Banquet is one of the yearly highlights of the WTA. Don’t miss it this year. If you’ve never attended, March 2010 is the time to start a great tradition. Bring the family and enjoy the evening while supporting the WTA.
The spring meetings for each district will be approaching soon. It’s our chance to be involved closer to our own area and keep in touch with local trappers.
Well, that’s it for now. Take care and see you March 20 in Wausau.
— Virgil Schroeder
NTA DIRECTOR’S REPORT
The NTA was notified the first week of December that the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), the plaintiffs in the Maine lynx case, have appealed the District Courts Judgment. The judgment was extremely favorable and important for trapping and the future impact of the Federal Endangered Species Act on trapping. The NTA has filed a notice that we intend to participate as a party and file briefs in support of the District Court Judgment.
The Maryland Fur Trappers Inc., has another obstacle to overcome. The MD DNR has eliminated the furbearer program in that state. Although this will not end trapping, they will not have the continued science to help support the facts that they are harvesting furbearers to control populations. In the poor political climate in that state, it could open up trapping to further attacks. The NTA is in regular contact with Ron Leggett, President MFTI, offering any assistance as needed.
Earlier this fall, Bill HB3710 was brought forward to prohibit the use of traps on the National Refuges. Currently, this bill is sitting in committee. The following WI reps have their names sponsoring this bill: Tammy Baldwin, Gwen Moore, Ron Kind, Paul Ryan and James Sensenbenner. Please contact them and ask them to remove their name from the above bill.
There was an owl caught in a foothold in CT and this might cause someone to introduce some sort of anti-trapping legislation in that state. The NTA will be monitoring it closely.
The ballot initiative in Montana is going forward. The footloose in Montana people are gathering signatures and engaging in various editorial campaigns. The NTA is working with MT Trappers and the Ballot Initiative Coalition (BIC) to help provide financial support. If you would like to help send donations to the NTA and state you would like it passed on to Montana efforts.
Jim Curran and Tom Krause will be attending the annual BMP meeting in January at no cost to the NTA.
The new 2009 NTA convention demo DVDs are now available from the office for $20.
We are still not getting memberships growing in a consistent manner. If you know someone that should be a member but can not afford it in these tough economic times, please consider buying them a membership. We must all work hard to continue doing what we love.
I will be attending the Midwest conference in Bloomington IL March 13, 2010, and will have a report at the Spring Banquet.
— Chris Bezio
FUTURE TRAPPERS OF WISCONSIN
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Hi everyone,
I’d like to take the time to ask all FTW members 12 and older to consider attending the trapper’s leadership camp being held June 23-25 at the Mackenzie Center in Poynette. This is going to be a great time to get away and do something you like to do. I know the cost is $85, but we are looking at getting some sponsors to help offset the cost some. The deadline is May 1 to register.
To members 14 and older, we are trying to get the bungee run and a bounce house for the kids this year at the National Trappers Convention. This is if we get enough sponsorships and/or donations to put this on again this year. We are going to need eight kids a day for an hours worth of time. So this means a total of 16 kids for the two days. We will take more kids if they want to help out. Remember, this could earn you a pin or two for your help. Please let me know if you will take one of the 16 time slots if we get enough sponsorship to put this on again. I personally believe that it will do really well at the National Trappers Convention, since it did good at the state convention last year with no advertising, which it would get this year.
I have sent out letters to 64 businesses asking for their sponsorship and/or donation for the following items, but everyone is more then willing to sponsor or donate to the FTW. We are looking for sponsorship and/or donation to the following areas: 1) The FTW pins and badges, 2) The FTW trap loan buckets and 3) The FTW-sponsored games at the National Trappers Convention. This would be the bungee run (for adults too) and a bounce house for the kids.
The FTW can use the sponsorship and/or donation the most for the pins and badges, since they have none at the present time to hand out to the FTW members. I hate having to turn kids away because the handbook says we are to have them to hand out when they earn it. They can earn quite a few at the National convention if they are willing to help out.
For those that sponsor and/or donate it will be listed in the Wisconsin Trapper, and the FTW booth. I will also have some kind of recognition sheet or button for those that help out. I hope to see your name on that list.
The new handbooks are in, please let me know if you are in need of some. I will mail the handbooks to you if you need them so you can get them out to kids who wish to join the FTW. I now also have a new letter that can be handed out at the trappers classes, or any events that you are planning. This new letter saves time on getting the kids to become FTW members.
Remember, a good time to hand in the trap loan buckets are going to be the Spring Banquet at Stoney Creek Inn, if you aren’t going to buy it. If you can’t get to the banquet, you can get a hold of your district director or a friend that will be coming up to the banquet. Don’t forget to return the contract letter also with the bucket or if buying the bucket. Hope you enjoyed trapping with the the trap loan buckets, and that you caught a lot. Bring pictures to the National Trappers Convention or our State Convention to hopefully get your pins.
A reminder that the FTW spring meeting is going to be held at the Spring Banquet at Stoney Creek Inn at noon by the pool. Pizza is to follow the meeting.
Anyone who wishes to sponsor and/or donate may get a hold of me at the following address:
Jennifer Roever
W 14399 US HYW 45
Tigerton, WI 54486
715-754-5317
ftwcoordinator@hotmail.com
Thanks.
— Jennifer Roever
DISTRICT 2 REPORT
January is finished and the days are getting a little bit longer. For some reason, I don’t care for winter as much as I used to, must be an age thing.
The spring banquet will be history or close to it by the time you get to read this. I hope all had/have a good time that attend.
Things are getting finalized for the District 1-2-3 rendezvous for this year. We should be able to wrap things up at the district meeting this month. There are a few things are asking for yet.
One is that if anyone has a book or books on trapping they would like to donate, please bring them to the summer rendezvous. There are libraries in the district that do not have any books on trapping and any we get from donations will be given to local libraries.
The other item we need is some rough sawn lumber for a kids activity to make cubbies at the rendezvous. What we need is five (5) 1” X 10” X 8’ and eight (8) 1” X 6” X 8’ boards. If you have any to donate or know where we could get some, please contact Dave Louis at 715-651-2839. Dave needs to have these in advance so they can be cut to size for the project, unless you are able to get the dimensions from Dave and do it for him.
Tickets are available for the rendezvous and can be obtained from any of the district directors. Please buy or sell some as this is our biggest money maker for the year. I realize times are tough, but your district rendezvous will only make money if each member gets out and sells some of the tickets.
I will have a sign-up sheet at the summer rendezvous for the NTA convention in Marshfield. Please check your schedule and volunteer an hour or two to help with the workload at this. There is a lot of work to make this happen and it can only happen if you as members step forward for this task.
Enjoy life; it does have an expiration date.
— Mike Abrahamson
DISTRICT 7 REPORT
Winter is moving along. January is about over. District 7 Spring Mtg. is March 6 at PUMPKIN CENTER SPORTSMENS CLUB. We will be having potluck/ wild game for our meal again. Plan for supper at 6:30 p.m., meeting to follow. March 20 is the state WTA meeting and banquet.
Please attend the banquet. It is a major fundraiser and great time. If I can help with anything, call 920-382-0218 or rwarmka@centurytel.net. THANK YOU. See you at the banquet or Pumpkin Center Sportsmens Club.
— Russ Warmka
DISTRICT 8 REPORT
There are a lot of items to cover in this issue so I will get right to it.
Thank you to our buyers Terry Stoeckigt and Les Koeppel for attending our first District 8 member fur sale. We held this meeting in conjunction with our Jan. 17, 2010, winter meeting.
We had 15 lots of fur. Here are the averages for our furs that were sold and bid on:
211 muskrats — Average $5.80
205 ’coons (185 put up) — $13.69
61 grey foxes — $13.53
3 red foxes — $17.33
40 coyotes — $13.70
7 mink — $5.42
4 opossum — $1
3 weasels — $2
3 deer hides — $4.67
Thanks to those who donated furs to the WTA donation lot. We had $94 worth of donated furs.
Our attendance was around 30 and we had many door prizes to offer our members. Thank you to all who donated door prizes.
At our meeting, we voted to do the following:
We voted to donate $500 to the WTA for the spring banquet.
We voted to donate $100 to the Wisconsin Wildlife Foundation for all the work they are doing on our behalf.
We also voted to donate $100 the Maribel Sportsmen’s Club and also pay the $85 membership fees for the Sheboygan and Manitowoc County Conservation memberships.
We currently have $1,800 in our district treasury. We voted last year to maintain a working base of $1,500 for our district. The funds above that level will be used to plan for our spring rendezvous.
Bryce and Chris Bezio attended the WTA BOD meeting on Jan. 9, 2010. There are many changes occurring within the WTA to provide programming, and how we are staffing and who will be helping to do the operational work of the WTA. If members have questions, please contact me and I will answer your questions or direct you to a resource that can address your questions. Bryce currently functions as the District 8 director, a member of the personnel and finance committee and will be the chairman of the demo area for the NTA at Marshfield this August.
Activities for the coming months are as follows:
Jan. 9 — 14th annual Conservation Day at Chilton, District 8 had a booth which Brenda and Kelly staffed. They were well received and we plan to return next year.
Jan. 17 — Annual meeting and fur sale mentioned above.
Feb. 20 — 2010 Kewaunee County 4-H seminars. Mark Richard and Bryce Larson will hold four seminars that day.
Feb. 26, 27 and 28 — Green Bay Deer Classic, Mark Richard and his wife will be working the booth for the whole weekend. Richard and Maryann Clark will be there on Saturday also. District 8 members, we need your help for this weekend. Friday afternoon and evening, Saturday and Sunday Contact Mark Richard at 920-868-3924 or Bryce Larson at 920-693-8734 if you can help and when. Car pooling can be arranged if we know who and when people are working. It is one of District 8’s goals to take over staffing and paying for the deer classic booth in the future. There are vendor tickets available at the business office for volunteers to use while working the booth.
March 13, 2010 — From roughly 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., we will host seminars for the Calumet County 4-H. Bryce could use someone to help him with this. This is our first year in Calumet County. Contact Bryce if you can help on that Saturday.
March 20, 2010 — WTA BOD Meeting and General Membership Meeting, AND our new-and-improved SPRING BANQUET. Our featured speaker this year is Kenny Selway or better known as the “Last River Rat.” He is from the LaCrosse area and spent much of his life living near the Mississippi and deriving his means of life from the river.
REMEMBER this is an even district number work year. We need four to six volunteers from District 8 to help setup the banquet area and sell raffle tickets at the various tables. Contact me or Ken Kasper directly at 920-446-3815 to let him know when you will be there to help.
SUNDAY MAY 16, 2010 — District 8 rendezvous will be held at the Maribel Sportsmen’s Club. There will be a very full day of trapper ed demonstrations in the early morning and other demos throughout the day along with our annual meeting during the lunch hour. Plan to attend this event and help our district promote trapping, welcome our new trapper ed graduates to the WTA and learn and share for a day. I will have a more detailed rendezvous letter and agenda mailed to you in early April. Mark your calendars now for May 16.
The June 26 WTA BOD meeting will be held at Marshfield, WI and we will also have a walkaround at the fair grounds so that we will be familiar with the additional areas that we will use for the August NTA Rendezvous. District 8 members are invited to attend that meeting so you can become familiar with the grounds and where our demo area will be.
That brings us to our big task for 2010, the NTA NATIONAL Convention at Marshfield, WI from Aug. 5 through Aug. 9. It has been over 20 years since the national has been in Wisconsin. Wisconsin is in the top five nationwide for membership in the NTA. Let’s give a hardy welcome to fellow NTA members and trappers from North America. This convention will be big fund raiser for the WTA, but it will take planning, organization and yes, you guessed it, bodies and sweat. We need a good 10 to 20 volunteers from our district over that week to setup, conduct and clean up after a week-long event with up to 5,000 people here for the week. Contact Chris Bezio at 920-822-3427 to let him know where you are able to help and how long you can be at the convention.
There is a considerable amount of setup work before the convention opens. If you can help with the demo area, let me know also. I am working with Gene Purdy from IA, who has been in charge of the demo responsibilities for many years. This will be an absolutely great opportunity for Wisconsin trappers to meet many nationally known trappers and trap supply owners.
I became a life member of the WTA this December. I am looking forward to continuing to work to defend and promote trapping in WI and the U.S. in the future. This is an even numbered year and it is during the even numbered years that we elect district directors from the even numbered districts. If you are interested in working as a co-director, please contact me as I am planning not to continue doing all the tasks above by myself.
I spent much of this fall in and out of examination rooms with some cardiac-related issues that are stable for now. I don’t want to leave the WTA or the district hanging if things would degenerate faster than we would hope they would. I am putting together a monthly to do, action and operational plan so that people would know deadlines, and other items that need to be done by specific times or licenses etc. that we need from the Manitowoc Health Department for serving food etc.
I trust each of you are having a good season and that you are already thinking about improvements for next year.
— Bryce Larson
DISTRICT 9 REPORT
Howdy all. By the time you get this, we are only a few days to our spring meeting. It is March 6, starting at 9 a.m. It will be in Woodman at the town hall. If there is someone that would like to step up and take charge of the district, please let us know. I know Dan would like to be free for his district. The other day, I got a call from a trapper ed instructor. He was worried about getting his trapper ed class scheduled for this spring.
Let me tell you people, this guy has only a year to live and he is worried about his classes. Talk about dedication. God bless him and his family. It would nice if we had a good turn out at this meeting . We need to comprise a list of workers from our district, so we can get it to the NTA people. This way they can have volunteer t-shirts for them. That’s all for now.
— Denny
DISTRICT 10 REPORT
The District 10 winter meeting will be held on March 6, 2010, at NAFA in Stoughton. The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. As in the past, we will hold a business meeting, have a raffle, draw for door prizes, enjoy a great fish fry and get a chance to talk with old and new friends. Tom Florin, owner of Florin Trapping Supplies and Fur made an extremely generous donation of a dozen Grizz Get’rs. They will be our grand raffle prize. Thank you very much, Tom. The raffle will also include Victor Coils, Duke Coils, Bridger and Duke #160’s, and other prizes donated by members. If you have any donations for the raffle, please contact Scot Stewart, Pat Varney or bring them to the meeting.
Our next summer rendezvous will be held on Aug. 21, 2010, at the Delevan Sportsman’s Club. Last time we were at Delevan, we had a great turnout and enjoyed fantastic demos. Plan to join us for a good time, good food and good friends. Mark your calendars.
District 10 will again hold a 50:50 ’coon raffle this year. This is another fundraiser for our district. In addition to helping the WTA, we have a new scholarship fund that will give an annual scholarship to an upper class natural resources student at UW-Stevens Point each year beginning in 2010. We have also assisted a grad student at UWSP, helped trapper’s education students with equipment and assisted with funding for the marten restoration areas in northern Wisconsin. If you like the types of efforts our district is supporting, consider donating one or more raccoons to the ’coon raffle. All you need to do is donate at least one raccoon at NAFA and tell Virgil Schroeder that it is for the District 10 WTA 50:50 raffle. There is no limit to the number of raccoons you can enter. Your chances of winning increase with each raccoon. The winner will split half the proceeds with District 10. We will draw the winner at our summer rendezvous.
I hope all of you are having a rewarding trapping season. And, if you are done for the year, I hope it was a good one.
— Scot Stewart
DISTRICT 11 REPORT
Well, District 11, it is now official, we will be having a rendezvous this year. It will be held at the Daniel Boone Conservation Club in Richfield. It will be held on our traditional weekend, which I might add took some incredible negotiating. The rondy almost was going to have to be scheduled for a later weekend, which would not have worked out as well.
Anyway, the dates are as follows, Friday, May 14 and Saturday, May 15. Make sure to mark those dates in your calendars. I will follow up in our next report with specific times. This year’s program will be somewhat different in that we will be offering a lot more raffle prizes of greater value, plus more vendors and demos. I, as well as our county directors, will be asking for volunteers to help with setup and tear down, and possibly helping at the rondy with demos, etc. The other thing we will be doing is a great deal more advertising. I will take the responsibility of getting all of the advertising put together.
However, I will be asking county directors and members to help with getting flyers and/or posters hung up at their local sporting goods dealers and any other outlets that might be appropriate to the event. As always, any comments and suggestions are welcome. My information is listed, let me know your thoughts.
In regard to our last board meeting, I was unable to attend due to work. I have not received any minutes of the meeting at the time of this writing, so I cannot give you a detailed report. Therefore, I will have to ask you to refer to our Wisconsin Trapper publication for the details. I do know that it was a very positive meeting, and one that I wish that I could have attended. Your current board members are working very hard to right the ship of the WTA. It is a great deal of work and takes an enormous amount of time. I can tell you that once it gets straightened out, there will be a lot more transparency. We need to continue to support our WTA organization and continue to offer suggestions and recommendations that will continue to strengthen and grow the WTA.
Nuff said. In closing, I will be attending our next board meeting and our spring banquet. The spring banquet will be held March 20 at the Stoney Creek Inn in Wausau. I hope to see many of you there, and hope to meet many of you. I will have our District 11 rendezvous agenda and sign-up sheet with me if anyone is interested. The spring banquet is always a great time, and I do hope many of you will try and make it. As the trapping season begins to wind down, good luck and be safe…
— Lance D. Joaquin