President — Rick Van Horn, 4185 N. Irving Street, Kingman, AZ 86409; phone: (928) 757-3860; e-mail: rgvan@npgcable.com
Vice President — Mike Burris, 5452 E. Farmdale Avenue, Mesa AZ, 85206; phone: (480) 654-1411; e-mail: bda30@cox.net
Recording Secretary — Mike Huffer, 7720 E. Beatrice, Scottsdale, AZ 85257; phone: (480) 970-5904; e-mail: mjwildlife@aaahawk.com
Treasurer — Mike Hull, P.O. Box 3355, Chinle, AZ 86503; phone: (928)674-9542; e-mail: trapper7772003@yahoo.com
Membership Secretary — Amanda Prosser, P.O. Box 4111, Chino Valley, AZ 86323; phone: (928) 499-2114; e-mail: atamembershipsecretary@yahoo.com.
Fur Auction manager — Bill Strauss, P.O. Box 183, Seligman, AZ 86337; phone: (480) 375-1183
NTA Director — Cindy Seff, P.O. Box 762, Seligman, AZ 86337; phone: (480)390-0723; e-mail: AzTrappers@hughes.net
Scent Post — Winter/Duncan Davis, P.O. Box 86783, Phoenix, AZ, 85080; phone:(623)466-6799; e-mail: dunksdonk@yahoo.com
Membership Options:
• Adult membership including subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $30
• Junior (under 16) with subscription — $20
• Family membership with subscription — $35
• Oldtimer membership with subscription — $75
• Lifetime membership with subscription — $275
Complete membership application on first page of
association section and send dues to:
ATA, Membership Secretary
Amanda Prosser
P.O. Box 4111, Chino Valley, AZ 86323
Phone: (928) 499-2114
President’s Report
Treasurer’s Report
Membership Secretary’s Report
Fur Auction Manager’s Report
NTA Director’s Report
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Hi Everyone,
This month will be short & sweet. We finally got some much needed rain over the Thanksgiving holiday. Makes for muddy, frozen ground for trapping, but the plants and animals really needed it.
We had a surprise visit from my sister Kathy and my niece Beth from Artesia, New Mexico, so for once, I am glad I didn’t have any traps out. We spent a lot of great time together playing 10,000 (dice game), canasta, playing albums (yes, vinyl), and, of course, eating turkey, pie and everything in between. On the record player, we had Andy Williams, Perry Como, Bing Crosby along with other Christmas music. Hope your holiday was just as great.
I will leave you with this thought, written by Jean-Louis Servan-Schreiber:
“Unlike other resources, time cannot be bought or sold, borrowed or stolen, stocked up or saved, manufactured, reproduced or modified. All we can do is make use of it. And whether we use it or not, it never the less slips away.”
May you have peace and harmony in your life.
‘Til next Month.
— Rick Van Horn
Hello to all.
I am thankful to be enjoying another trapping season. I’m very pleased with the bait I made using the old Bill Nelson bait solution — George Seff and I split the cost of a gallon of this. I mixed it with fresh ground cat. All predators seem to like it. My neighbor went to Missouri and caught 245 ’coons. He said he had good luck with the bait on ’coons. I will keep you posted.
Regardless of your politics, pray for our troops.
— Mike Hull
Dear ATA Members,
This month I have renewed the following members: John Albin and Gary Graham. If anyone has any questions about your membership, please contact me.
Thank you.
— Amanda Prosser
FUR AUCTION MANAGER’S REPORT
Hi Folks,
Well, here we are in November and I decided it was time to write a letter. So far, everything in fur prices are looking good. I hope by the time our fur sale is here it is real good.
Sitting here writing this and watching the news, I see that it is snowing in Utah, Colorado and Iowa. Doesn’t that sound good? I’ve got all of our traps ready to go. This will be the first trap I have set in two years so I am really looking forward to that. We didn’t get our deer so I am very ready to kill something and it is starting to get cold at night, so the furs ought to be getting primed. As I was walking these roads up here, I’ve seen a lot of fox sign so I hope that’s the way it is all over. I am so ready to lay some steel and so is my wife. In fact, she is worse then I am when November rolls around. We have been working on our house all summer and it’s getting close to being done now.
This year, our fur sale will be Jan. 31, 2009, so mark your calendar. I am going to try and send some cards to remind you members to call with your fur count by Jan. 15, 2009, so we have some good numbers for the buyers. We have had conflicting dates with other states in the past so a few of us decided to try a little earlier sale date. I don’t think it will hurt anyone’s cat trapping for February too much and hopefully it won’t be a problem, you could send them off to other sales if needed. At the fur sale, we will have a University of Arizona Wildlife biologist. She is the assistant to the Arizona Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Reserve Unit. She will need small pieces of fur samples for DNA testing on cats, beavers and badgers.
Although I hate to write about things like this, I have heard we lost a couple of the “old timers” this year and I would like to send my condolences to the families, as well as tell them that their loved ones will be missed. I wish you all the best.
Well, until next time, I’ll see you later and remember to mark your calendars for Jan. 31, 2009, for the fur sale.
— Bill Strauss
NTA DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Jim Curran NTA Conservation Director will be going to Las Vegas to present the fur coat to the new Miss Rodeo America 2009 he will be standing in for Jerry Westphal, SD. whom for years now has headed up this great fur promotion program. This is a great promotion opportunity for the NTA. In January, Tom Krause and Jim will be attending the annual BMP meeting in Louisiana. Neither trip will be charged to NTA.
Negotiations are still underway for the 2009 Western NTA Regional Convention. The SE will be in Williamstown, NC on May 1-3. The NE Regional will be in Pittsfield PA on May 8-10. Watch the NTA Web site for additional information.
The NTA is currently looking for anyone whom might be interested in sponsoring the plaques for the trap setting contests and or the traps for those plaques. We will need a sponsors for all three 2009 NTA Regional Conventions as well as the 50th Anniversary NTA National Convention. Anyone interested can contact our Convention Coordinator, Dan Skurski at 231-938-4432.
One very good result of this past election occurred in Oklahoma. There was an initiative that would make hunting, fishing, and trapping a constitutional right of its residence. The NTA was able to assist with a financial contribution. Congratulations to all those in OK who worked so hard to get this passed. Below is an over view of the referendum.
STATE QUESTION NO. 742 LEGISLATIVE REFERENDUM NO. 345
This measure adds a new section to the State Constitution. It adds Section 36 to Article 2. It gives all people of this state the right to hunt, trap, fish and take game and fish. Such activities would be subject to reasonable regulation. It allows the Wildlife Conservation Commission to approve methods and procedures for hunting, trapping, fishing and taking of game and fish. It allows for taking game and fish by traditional means. It makes hunting, fishing, and trapping the preferred means to manage certain game and fish. The new law will not affect existing laws relating to property rights.
NTA has become a partner in the latest legal battle in Maine. The parties in the Maine case include as Defendant-Interveners the USSAF, FTA, Maine Trappers Assoc., NTA, and several individual trappers. The attorney for USSAF, Jim Lister, represents FTA and the individual trappers because they are all members of USSAF. Gary Leistico represents NTA. Attorney Phil Buckley is the local attorney from Maine acting as local counsel for both Jim Lister and Gary Leistico. As local counsel, Phil Buckley represents all the Defendant-Interveners and the Maine Trappers Association. There are three attorneys representing the trapping groups and individual trappers: Phil Buckley, Jim Lister and Gary Leistico. They all worked on the briefs and declarations filed in opposition to the preliminary injunction motion which was set for Oral argument, November 10, discussed the issues to be addressed and were in union on the court appearance. Only one of the attorneys will be heard, and that would be the local attorney, as explained by Gary there is no practical reason to send Gary Leistico. NTA will be financially helping support the cost of expenses to be incurred for one of the expert witnesses to be used in the case. In the amount of expenditures up to $2,500 to help defray costs associated with the use of expert witness for the ME lawsuit in 2008. The NTA will continue to support this effort however possible to make sure Maine trappers have a strong voice in this latest effort to take away their trapping abilities in certain areas.
NTA DNIA , Mr. Miller has had the opportunity to meet an individual who was interested in working with trappers on helping them, become more informed on the CCP process and comment period in the National Wildlife Refuge system.
The landscape of Washington DC is going to change significantly over the next few months with the election of a new president as well as changes that will surely take place in some key political positions in committees on Capitol Hill. The NTA will be monitoring this very closely and keep all affiliates and directors up to date of any major changes that could impact trapping in a negative way.
We will be making contacts with Congressional and Department of Interior personnel, in an effort to develop and improve relationships that will be beneficial to trappers.
The NTA sweepstakes drawing was held on Oct. 15 and all the prizes have been awarded. The 2009 Cash Calendar was mailed on Oct. 15, we started receiving returns about a week later. We are over $25,000 in gross returns on this fundraiser in only a couple of weeks and already making a profit. We still have many extra sheets of cash calendars at the office that the office would be happy to mail to anyone who needs extras to sell or to use as Christmas presents.
The NTA has applied for a renewal of our Indiana Charity Gaming License, which allows us to conduct the Sweepstakes and Cash Calendars.
Renewal letters was sent to 1048 whom had not renewed from October 2007 through June 2008 which included return envelopes and the new color tri-fold brochure which contains a membership application. Every few months we will be doing these mailings. These letters are in addition to the three reminders that each member receives before their membership is about to expire. The office leased a new Canon copier to use in the printing of these and other mailings. The old copier literally died about a week after they put in the new machine.
The office manager Dave Roberts sent 2009 National and Regional Convention budgets to Dan Skurski, Convention Coordinator. We are also working on some special 50th anniversary merchandise.
The NTA has a goal to have the CA lawsuit debt paid off by the end of the year. The LTM investment account had taken a loss due to the unstable stock market of the last month however, Dave Roberts felt it was best to just leave the investments sit and let them recover as the market did.
The link to the NTA website is http://www.nationaltrappers.com. Stop by and visit for current information as well as contact info for your national organization.
I will finish this newsletter off with the request that if you are not a member of the NTA please get yourself signed up. You can send your $30 for your year’s subscription to the NTA, which includes the American Trapper magazine to:
National Trappers Association, 2815 Washington Ave., Bedford, IN. 47421.
I am only a phone call away so don’t hesitate to contact me with concerns or comments.
Catchcha Next Time.
— Cindy Seff
