Augusta County Virginia The Augusta County (Va.) Chapter welcomed more than 80 youth at its annual JAKES event in March at the Shenandale Gun Club in Stauton. Each child became a JAKES member at the event.

A local food pantry benefitted from the canned goods participants were asked to bring to the event. Then they spent the day learning about turkey hunting and calling, as well as shotguns, air rifles and archery. They also received skeet shooting instruction from five-time Virginia skeet champion B. Wayne Erskine.

Everyone enjoyed lunch donated by Peck's BBQ, who along with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and a host of other sponsors and partners, helped make the event a success.

The 411 on applying for JAKES event awards

Awards are given in the following categories:
> Best Special Event
> Best First Time Event
> Best State Chapter Event
> Best Cooperator Event
> Best Event for Xtreme JAKES (ages 13-17)
> Best Event for 1-75 JAKES
> Best Event for 76-150 JAKES
> Best Event for 151-250 JAKES
> Best Event for More Than 250 JAKES
Send newspaper clippings, printed photos, agendas and handouts from your event along with the application to give the awards committee a sense of what your event was like. Don't forget to include thank you notes or feedback you receive from your event.
Type or write your application legibly.
Award applications are returned to the chapter after judging. If you create a scrapbook or photo book as your entry, use it to recruit sponsors for your next event.
Download an application at www.nwtf.org/outreach/manual.html.
Applications must be postmarked by Nov. 30, 2010.

Mandy Harling
JAKES Coordinator

Passion: Pass it on

It was at one of the first JAKES events I coordinated when a towheaded, brown-eyed 8-year-old named Jakob said, "Ms. Mandy, today was better than our trip to Disney."
I immediately began making plans for my next event, reeling off such a huge, heartfelt compliment.

Whether you've hosted one JAKES event or 100, you've experienced the joy that comes with seeing youth hit a target for the first time, catch a wily fish or simply smile without abandon. You know the hard work and preparation that goes into an event is worthwhile.

And some of you have been recognized for your efforts.

Each year NWTF chapters are honored for hosting outstanding JAKES events during the outreach breakfast at our national convention. I sit on a committee that reviews the applications and decides which events excel in each of the nine award categories.

Award applications range from professionally printed books with vivid pictures to crumpled papers that appear to have gone through a laundry cycle. They represent events with thousands of attendees and some with only 30. Other applications include videos, scrapbooks and (my favorite) thank you notes from participants and parents.

"After all, the true reward is not an engraved plaque or even a pat on the back, it is the hugs, high-fives and smiles from the children"

No matter how elaborate the submission, they all have something in common: passion.

Passionate volunteers host successful events. They take pride in their work and have fun doing it. And it shows in the words, photos and videos we review every year.

Some of our applicants have hosted events for years, and their proven methods continue to work for them.

Others are novice coordinators who bring new ideas to the program, and we celebrate their creativity and fresh perspective. You don't have to be an old-timer to host an award-winning JAKES event. You simply have to have passion for teaching young people about hunting, wildlife conservation and the outdoors.

After all, the true reward is not an engraved plaque or even a pat on the back, it's the hugs, high-fives and smiles from the children. Those unsolicited gestures of gratitude and appreciation are more than enough for me, but a little recognition never hurts either. — Mandy