A Hunting Heart for the Holidays

Once again, I’ve learned something from another Holiday! I just recently accepted a part-time position at a wonderful non-profit group called HWOH, “Hunting With Our Heros”, with Nathan Nelson. This non-profit organization takes service men and women on hunts they have wanted to go on. I took this part-time position because I have felt the need to “give back,” if you will, whatever I can to hunting, and others that want to hunt. I have felt the need to help people for a long time, and do what I can, as I can. I’m grateful to the sport of hunting because it’s given me a lifetime of happiness, shaped my family and my personal story, and made me who I am today.
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If it weren’t for hunting, would I have spent time with my Oma, yes of course. Would I have spent lots of time with my husband and family, yes of course again! However, if it weren’t for hunting, would I have become as passionate of a person as I am today, NO, ABSOLUTELY NOT! It was hunting that created the strong bonds I have with my family members. It gave me a place to feel comfortable with them, and common ground between us that we all enjoyed doing together. It’s more than just going over to Oma’s house, maybe eating a meal, visiting, etc. It’s more than buying my child a video game that he can play, or I could play with him, or taking him places. It’s more than just being married to somebody such as Kevin, and he could go do his “boy things,” and I my “girly things.” It’s been something that occupies so much of our time together, and we can all participate in ALL parts of it. It’s given us friendships with others that will last a lifetime. It’s taught us compassion and respect about animals as well, because we learned the ethics of hunting, never to just go out and kill, but HARVEST an animal. We are grateful for them for food, and grateful of the togetherness from the hunts.
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This being said, because of my recent Extreme Huntress contest, I’ve met a DJ from a radio station in Kerrville, Joel Gonzales. He called me asking about my contest, and then if I knew of a place his son, an active military member who’s come home from another tour in Afghanistan, could go to harvest a deer. He said it didn’t matter how large, buck or doe, but his previously scheduled hunt had fallen through. He also told me that Joel Jr. had come home and just seen his baby for the first time! My heart leapt at the chance to make something so easy possibly happen for someone obviously so incredible, and that’s given so much of his own life and time for all of us in this wonderful country. So, already using my great connection at hand, I called Nathan, whom didn’t take a breath before saying, “Sure, we can take him! If we don’t get a deer, we will find him something! Then we will have it processed for him.”

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How amazing that felt, you will never know. I relayed the message, and the hunt is yet to come, and I hope I will have awesome stories and pics for you then, so stay tuned! I encourage you to search your heart, and find something incredible to do for another person, especially if you can share the outdoors, because it’s a connection that they will hand down to others as my Oma did, and now I have to kids and friends! The feeling is sensational!