President's Message

On behalf of the Board, I'd like to thank all of our outfitters, taxidermists, exhibitors, volunteers, attendees, and all of the people who donated merchandise for helping to make the 2012 World Hunting Expo the highest grossing fundraiser in the history of Minnesota SCI, and we added 56 new members to our Chapter. It takes a lot of work from a lot of people to put on an event like ours. The next time you see Monique, Emcee Rick Scott, or any of the Board Members, please let them know you appreciate their efforts. I'd also like to thank our taxidermists, who participated this year, who all worked together to organize a fantastic display of members mounts.

I'm happy to announce that we have contracted with Bloomington DoubleTree Hotel to host our event for the next two years. The venue worked very well for us this year and we believe that it contributed to our success.

As many of you know, Minnesota's wolves were removed from the Endangered Species List (ESA) earlier this year. The management of wolves in now in the hands of the Minnesota DNR. By the time your read this, legislation authorizing the creation of a wolf season in Minnesota for 2012 should have already made it through the Legislature. For the past few weeks, we've been working diligently with our Legislators to ensure the creation of this season.

Our goal was to have Minnesota implement a wolf season where an unlimited number of tags could be sold over the counter for a fixed quota of wolves. Once the quota was reached, the season would be closed. This type of season has been used very successfully in the western states. Because the success rate for wolf hunters is typically less than one percent, we felt that to come close to harvesting our quota of 400 wolves per year, we would need as many hunters in the field as possible. This would also have potentially added millions of needed dollars to our state Game and Fish Fund.

Despite our efforts, the Minnesota DNR has suggested a much more conservative approach and the Legislature is following their lead. While we're happy that we have a wolf season, we are going to continue to work with both the DNR and Legislature to increase wolf hunting opportunities in Minnesota. Hopefully, the data from this years season will support our position and we can get things expanded next year. This is a prime example of one of the many ways Minnesota SCI fights for the rights of Minnesota's hunters.

My term as President will be ending in August of this year. While it's been an honor serving the organization for the past year and a half, I will not be seeking an additional term as President. We have a dedicated and hardworking Board in place, and a very knowledgeable and efficient Chapter Liaison to support the next President. I know we have a lot of great people in this organization with a ton of leadership experience, and we need someone to step up. If you've ever wanted to get involved with the Chapter, now is a great time!