President — Gary Helms, 1092 Vanderbilt Rd., Texarkana, AR 71854; phone: 870-772-3834;e-mail: Arkansastrappers@aol.com
Vice President — Aaron Hitchcock, 9331 Sister Ln., Mulberry, AR 72947; phone: 479-997-8401
Secretary/Treasurer — Karen Davis, 1350 Hwy 70 E, DeQueen, AR 71832; phone: 870-642-3674
NTA Director — Mike Fischer, 13823 Masoner Rd., Lonsdale, AR 72087; phone: 501-939-2325
Editor — Bill Fields, 543 Riverbend Rd., Mammoth Spring, AR 72554; phone: 870-625-7457;e-mail: bcfields@ortrackm.missouri.org
Membership Options:
• Individual membership including subscription to The Trapper & Predator Caller — $20
• Family membership with subscription — $25
Complete membership application on first page of association section and send dues to:
ATA, Secretary/Treasurer
Karen Davis
1350 Hwy 70 E, DeQueen, AR 71832
www.arkansastrappers.org
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
We held our Spring Board meeting April 3 at Witt Stephens Nature Center in Little Rock. It’s kind of hard to find if you’ve never been there before, but well worth the trip. The staff there set us up with a very nice private meeting room and made sure we had everything we needed.
This was my first visit to one of the AGFC Nature Centers, as we don’t have one down in my corner of the State. If you’ve never been to one, I recommend you plan a trip with your family. They have activities and exhibits for all ages. They’re a neat place to visit!
We had a good, productive meeting.
I won’t bore you here with all the details, but I do have some dates for your calendars. Our Fall Convention will be Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010 at Petit Jean State Park. On Friday evening Sept. 10, we’ll have our Board meeting and a cookout for those that are coming up early to join us on the mountain top. The Trapper Education Workshop will be Oct. 29-31, 2010 at Camp Clearfork. The deadline for registration is Oct. 15.
We also voted to have future Fur Sales on the third Saturday in February. Therefore, our next Fur Sale is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011. I plan to post details on all of these events in upcoming reports, but if you need more info on them visit our website or contact the following Directors:
Convention – Gary Gray @ 870-246-3229 or Charlie Bass @ 870-612-5347
Workshop – Wallace Funderburk @ 870-867-2642
Fur Sale – Randy Davis @ 870-642-3674
The Southeast Regional Leadership Conference was held in conjunction with the NTA’s Southeast Regional Convention at Calhoun, Georgia April 9-11. Mike Fischer and I joined NTA Directors and Presidents from the other Southeastern States along with NTA officers in a meeting on Friday.
It’s a great opportunity for us to share information with the NTA and learn what’s going on with the other state associations in our region. John Daniel is the new General Organizer for NTA. He’s from Tennessee, so I’ve known him from past Leadership Conferences. He did a great job not only heading up our meeting but his association co-hosted the convention as well, so John pulled double duty for the weekend.
The Georgia Trappers & Tennessee Fur Harvesters teamed up and did an outstanding job on this year’s NTA Southeastern Convention. Congratulations to all of the volunteers for their long hours and hard work! I hope it goes as smoothly for us when we host it in 2012. Summer is fast approaching and Fall won’t be far behind. Now’s the time to be preparing your equipment for next season. Don’t put it off, or you’ll be sorry you did! (I speak from years of experience…lol).
Until next time. — Gary Helms
EDITOR’S REPORT
The Association Directors met in Little Rock for our spring meeting. We met at the Nature Center and if you have never been there, you need to go sometime. It is located along the riverfront beside the Clinton Library. After one of the guys found out how to reach the parking area, then we were able to guide everyone else in. The Center is indeed a wonderful place to visit with a nice meeting room.
We had a really good meeting with almost all of the directors there. Several things were discussed, and will be brought up for a vote at our Convention this fall. One of the things in question is that perhaps the Lifetime membership that we set at $300 at the last Convention is a bit steep and that perhaps $150 would be better.
We are also kicking around the idea of dividing the state into districts. Missouri and several other states have done this and say that it works for them. This would mean doing away with Chapters, however if we still have small groups that want to meet, there certainly would not be anything wrong with this continuing. These are things that all of you can be thinking about over the next few months and be ready to vote on them at our Convention in September.
Dub Shankle announced that Paul Browder had donated a beautiful red fox for the tanned fur set that the Association uses for exhibition. We thank you Paul for the generous gift.
The awards committee consists of Don Wilcox, Gary Helms and Aaron Hitchcock. They need your nominations for Trapper of the Year and Mr. and Mrs. Trapper of the Year.
The time will be here before you know it so you need to get those nominations to one of them. The Toe Pinchers had their annual Spring Picnic at Calico Rock City Park on April the 10th. Our attendance was down as it was a lousy day with thunderstorms, one of which hit while we were there. We were safely in a pavilion with a good roof so it was only a minor inconvenience.
There was plenty of good food, with good fellowship among friends. We were certainly glad to have Willard and Charlotte Watson whom also had Virgie Fischer with them. Virgie Gave us an update on the planning going on for Arkansas to host the NTA, not this year mind you but coming up nonetheless. Everyone always enjoys the auction and although the attendance was down, we still were able to raise $75. Thanks, everyone for being so generous.
Turkey hunting hasn’t been real great this spring. The turkeys were there, but the gobbling was really low keyed. I did manage to harvest one, but failed on number two. I sure did enjoy the camping out though with friends and family. It makes for a fun time and if I am still on this side of eternity next season, Ill be doing it again. All for now. — Bill Fields
OUACHITA MOUNTAIN TRAPPERS CHAPTER REPORT
The Ouachita Mountain Trappers Chapter of ATA met on April 17 for their Spring Meeting at Crystal Springs on Lake Ouachita. Eighteen members were present for a potluck fish fry and meeting. President Wallace Funderburk expressed his thanks to all members for their participation and attendance.
The chapter would like to form a means and weigh committee, please let Wallace know if you are interested in being on this committee.
The chapter discussed the idea of splitting the state into districts, as mentioned in the ATA Spring Board Meeting, to help in organizing members across the state. The idea was liked, but members feel more information is needed before making a final decision.
The chapter will have a table at the ATA State Convention at Petit Jean. Anyone with ideas on activities or programs for the next meeting is encouraged to call Wallace with suggestions.
Members also discussed their experiences of the recent trapping season while enjoying the fresh homemade vanilla ice cream and strawberry delight provided by the Kirschman’s and the Black’s.
The chapter set their next meeting for Saturday, June 26th at Camp Charlton off of Hwy 270 West towards Mt. Ida. Our meetings are open to anyone interested and everyone is welcome to come. We will begin at 1 p.m. with a potluck and sandwich lunch. A meeting will follow with desserts. After the meeting, members may partake in conversations with members and swimming in the cool waters of Camp Charlton. Anyone with questions can contact our chapter president, Wallace Funderburk. — Julianne Kirschman
