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| JAKES Chairman Byron Moyer with a group of happy kids at the 2001 Summer Event held at the Barre Fish & Game Club. |
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| The Central Vermont Longbeards chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation sponsored a J.A.K.E.S. event at the Barre Fish & Game Club on July 28th. The acronym J.A.K.E.S. stands for Juniors Acquiring Knowledge Ethics & Sportsmanship. The program is dedicated to informing, educating, and involving America�s youth in wildlife conservation and the wise stewardship of our natural resources. It�s also designed to help pass on the great tradition of hunting, with a strong eye towards ethics and safety. It was a beautiful sunny day with 15 girls and boys attending the event. Byron Moyer, the J.A.K.E.S. Chairman, welcomed the group of kids and their parents to the Fish & Game Club for the day�s festivities. The morning session began with a Camping & Wilderness Survival demonstration put on by the Boy Scouts of America - Troop #95 of Barre. Rob Borowske and his scouts had several types of tents set up to show how they can vary depending on the season you want to camp in. They also explained how valuable a rain fly and tarp can be while camping. They covered such topics as the use of foam pads and sleeping bags, fire building, back pack stoves, water purification, and orienteering just to name a few. It was also stressed to pack out everything you pack in. The idea is to not leave a trace of anything behind when you leave your campsite. The Wilderness Survival portion gave examples of different types of food, which can be found in the wild and safely eaten. Things such as cattail roots, pinecone seeds, and the inner layer of bark can be eaten if need be. They even had some samples for the audience to try. Shelter is another important aspect of surviving in the wild. They discussed different types of shelters, which can be built or natural shelters such as caves, which can be found. At the end, everyone was given a �You Alone in the North Woods� safety and survival manual. The Boy Scouts presentation lasted for two hours from 10:00 until noon. At that time, Chef Byron cooked up his world famous �burgers and dogs�. The hungry crowd quickly took advantage of the gourmet cooking indulging in the summertime favorites along with chips, soda, and �Hoodsies� ice cream for dessert. The kids enjoyed the �Hands-On� table during the lunch break. The Hands-On table consisted of a number of whitetail shed antlers from across the country, mule deer and moose shed antlers, turkey feathers, spurs, tail fans and wings, tanned hides, and a mounted bear head. There was a large collection of turkey calls available for everyone to try. They also enjoyed looking at the display of trophy mounts provided by members of the Barre Fish & Game Club. The afternoon consisted of two one-hour sessions of First Aid and Basic Turkey Hunting. Pete LaFlamme was the presenter for the First Aid session. Several emergency scenarios were described including a severe cut, burns, and choking. Pete explained how each injury should be treated and had the kids participate in administering the proper first aid. He also showed the kids how to remove a fishing hook from the hand. Pete informed the group that everyone should take at least a basic first aid class. The Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts , and Red Cross all offer classes which people can sign up for and attend. At the conclusion of the presentation, each child was given a first aid package consisting of a variety of band-aids, different size gauze pads and rolls, latex gloves, and alcohol swabs. The other afternoon presentation was on Basic Turkey Hunting, which was presented by Al Jones and Rob Burkart. A short 10-minute hunter safety movie was watched and then discussed. The movie showed several scenarios, which a safe turkey hunter should never do. Each was explained how it was unsafe and what should have been done. Various aspects of turkey hunting were demonstrated from different types of turkey and locator calls to clothing and gear. Safety, ethics, respect, and sportsmanship were all stressed. The kids were then taken outside and shown how to set-up on a bird. Things such as keeping a large shoulder width tree at your back, keeping your decoys in an open area where you can see at least 50 yards in front of them, and never wearing anything red, white, or blue (the colors of a gobblers� head) were pointed out. The kids helped set up the decoys and ground blind. There was even a wary �gobbler� in the nearby woods responding to their yelps and clucks. Each child was given a one-year membership in the J.A.K.E.S. program, a baseball style hat, frisbee, ruler, pencil, decals, and a subscription to J.A.K.E.S. magazine. For more information on the J.A.K.E.S. program, contact Cyndy Jones at 476-9889. If you would like to become a member of the National Wild Turkey Federation, contact Cyndy Jones at 476-9889 or Mike LeFebvre at 276-3543. Special thanks to our sponsors and presenters: Al Jones Barre Fish & Game Club Boy Scouts of America � Barre Troop #95 National Wild Turkey Federation Pete LaFlamme Quality Market Shaws Supermarket |
| Al Jones showing a group of JAKES some of the finer points of turkey hunting. |