Thursday, October 05, 2006
Bill Cochran's Outdoors: Hunters for the Hungry is hurting
Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.
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When the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries went to an automated license-sales system July 1, many of us thought that Hunters for the Hungry would be a major benefactor. It didn’t happen.
Since 2003, there has been a check-off system that allows a sportsperson to contribute up to $2 to Hunters for the Hungry when he or she buys a hunting license. That’s a great idea, and hunters generally respond when asked, but there is a major snag. License buyers forget about the option and license agents haven’t been doing a good job of reminding buyers of the opportunity.
The result has been a meager amount of money trickling in from a system that has potential to fund the program to the tune of a half-million dollars or more annually.
Last year’s check-off contributions amounted to about $12,500. That was a decrease from 2003 when the first-year collection was $19,500, a number that hasn’t been reached since. Out of the 743 agents that sold licenses in 2004, 434 collected zero dollars for the program. Another 158 collected $10 or less.
The new automated license system hasn’t been the savior of the program some envisioned it would be. Check-off receipts remain low. Agents still aren’t reminding license buyers of the opportunity to contribute to Hunters for the Hungry, even though when a license is written a buff-orange reminder pops up on the agent’s computer screen.
A license-sales update revealed that during one recent period when 43,967 basic 2006-07 hunting licenses were sold, only 1,153 buyers checked off $2 for Hunters for the Hungry.
This dismal record is one of the reasons Hunters for the Hungry is holding a fund-raising banquet in Salem on Oct. 14. It is not just to raise money but also to raise awareness, said Gary Arrington, a Hunters for the Hungry official.
Arrington knows that there are a bunch of fund-raising banquets out there and he doesn’t relish competing with them, but he is left with little choice.
The fact is, low check-off contributions aren’t his only financial worry.
>Contributions to Hunters for the Hungry from churches, civic clubs, individuals and grants are down. These sources generally provide about 50 percent of the funding, but it appears that some of that money currently is going for Hurricane Katrina relief.
>A recent Hunters for the Hungry ATV raffle brought disappointing results.
>Sales of caps, shirts, books, art and other items has been slow at Hunters for the Hungry displays located at outdoor shows.
The purpose of Hunters for the Hungry is to take the excess of deer killed in Virginia by hunters and process and distribute the venison to feed the hungry.”
“It isn’t about hunting, it is about hunger,” said Robert Harper, a Hunters for the Hungry board member.
That’s a fact, but hunting and hunters reap a huge benefit. The program creates an enormous amount of good will for hunting. It plays a huge role in the state’s efforts to control the deer herd, something that benefits all citizens of the state.
Hunters contribute deer at no charge, but the processing fee comes at a high cost. That’s why money is needed.
The program has established a meat-distribution record every year since its beginning more than a decade ago, hitting the 350,000-pound mark last season. No other state can match its success, but the distribution figure could be even more spectacular were there additional funds available. Food banks, such as the Southwest Virginia Food Bank, are begging for more venison.
Back to the check-off system. It is baffling why it isn’t working better. Hunters for the Hungry used a $10,000 contribution form the Wild Turkey Federation to education license agents and alert the public about the program. Still, the results are disappointing.
License agents say they simply forget to mention the check-off, which means the buff-orange banner isn’t doing its job.
Maybe the DGIF needs to reprogram the system so agent will be forced to ask about a contribution before they can move onto the actual license sale?
“That has been considered,” said Virgil Kopf, an assistant director of the DGIF. “This slows down the system, and after an agent has used the system only a few times, they most likely will get in the habit of filling in the answer and clicking past the statement without ever asking.”
Kopf believes a better approach may be to honor license agents who are doing a good job. Recognizing them is a worthy idea, but those who aren’t doing the job merit attention of another kind.
The Hunters for the Hungry banquet is 6 p.m. Oct. 14 at Dave Sarmadi Mitsubishi, 1830 West Main St., Salem. Tickets are $20 for a single; $35 for couples. Kids under 12 get in free. Tickets are available from Fred and Phyllis Wells, 540-992-3874 or Jeff Fletcher, 540-985-6523. They also can be bought at the Mitsubishi dealership.
