HUSH TEAM JOINS PFSC - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Hunters United for Sunday Hunting TELEPHONE: 717-350-6741 EMAIL: huntersforsundayhunting@gmail.com

WEBSITE: facebook.com/HuntersUnitedForSundayHunting

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE/DISTRIBUTION 

HUNTERS UNITED FOR SUNDAY HUNTING TEAM ACCEPTS LEADERSHIP POSITIONS WITH PENNSYLVANIA FEDERATION OF SPORTSMEN AND CONSERVATIONIST.

  

Several members of Hunters United for Sunday Hunting management team have been elected and accepted positions on the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen and Conservationists (PFSC).

Jahred Klahre was voted in as Vice President - East Region on Saturday, March 14, 2020. He assumes his duties immediately.  As Vice President, East Region Mr. Klahre will work closely with the PFSC president to ensure all organizational goals are being met along with developing relationships in the eastern counties of Pennsylvania that benefit the mission of PFSC. 

“ I’m a driven professional with a passion for conservation and the promotion of science-based wildlife biology. It is my goal to use my energetic and compassionate leadership style to move PFSC forward and accomplish the tasks ahead of us for hunter-conservation, second amendment, and our outdoor heritage.”

Jahred also serves in various volunteer capacities and is a member of Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, Quality Deer Management Association, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, National Wild Turkey Federation, Sportsmen’s Alliance, NRA, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited.

Doug Lapp was voted in as PFSC Secretary on Saturday, March 14, 2020. He assumes his duties immediately. As PFSC Secretary Mr. Lapp will work closely with the President and Vice President on PFSC objectives. Doug will supervise and ensure proper recording and documentation of all Board and organizational meetings. 

“There are two groups within American culture that claim to be the original conservationists. The farming community and the hunting community. My loyalties lie with science-based conservation. That’s why I am so heavily involved with both.”

Doug also serves in various volunteer capacities with Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, Cochranville Fire Company, Chester/Delaware County Farm Bureau, Lanchester Softball League, Highland Township Committeeman, Republican Committee of Chester County.

HUSH Mission Statement - Remove the prohibition of Sunday hunting in PA Title 34 Game Law through education, and influence legislatures to change the law accordingly.

PFSC Mission Statement - To protect and conserve Pennsylvania’s natural resources, outdoor heritage, and 2nd Amendment Rights. ###

For more information about this topic, please contact Hunters United for Sunday Hunting, Executive Director Kevin Askew at 717-350-6741 or email at huntersforsundayhunting@gmail.com. or PFSC Executive Director Harold Daub at 717-648-1835 or email at dauber@pfsc.org PFSC- Who Are We

Help turn 5 angry fishermen into 100,000 voices for hunter-conservation.  

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SUNDAY HUNTING NOT ABOUT SPECIES OR SEASON

Statement to Pa. Game Commissioners, January 25, 2020
Executive Director Burhans, Deputy Executive Directors Grohol and Palmer, Commissioners, and Staff:

Good morning commissioners. My name is Kevin Askew, I am the Executive Director for Hunters United for Sunday Hunting. Let me first say that my organization, as well as the 20 other conservation organizations, remain focused on the mission and task to remove the prohibition of Sunday hunting in Pa Title 34 Game law, through education and influence the legislatures to change the law accordingly.

As commissioners, you are now faced with what do you do with the three Sundays of hunting opportunity for the upcoming season. It is not your fault that lawmakers anchored two of these Sundays - one in archery season and one in deer rifle season. It would have been best for all three Sundays to be set by you, the subject matter experts. But here we are today, with three additional days of hunting opportunity as dictated by Senate Bill 147. So what do you do?

The fight to bring hunting on Sunday has never been about a particular species or season. It is not about deer, it is not about specific seasons, it is not about this firearm or the other. It is about the increased opportunity based on your agency's resource first model and the North American Model of Wildlife Management.

Reports have indicated that in setting the upcoming seasons you are considering adding a Sunday for bear and as dictated by law the Sunday for deer rifle and the Sunday in archery. What has not been reported is what other species will be available to hunt on these Sundays. Will any of the small game or furtaking species be available to hunt on these Sundays? If not and there is a biological reason that is fine. Just let us know why a species can’t support additional hunting. We as hunters definitely will understand. But if there isn’t a biological reason, then let us hunt any and all available species. The time afield is very valuable to us, as you know. 

It is important that you get this as correct as possible from the beginning. There are still many nay-sayers among us who think the sky may fall when these three Sundays are implemented. These people, politicians included are just lying in wait to have another thing they can blame on you as the Pa. Game Commission. So, do all you can to not give them that satisfaction.

The conservation and hunting community supports the wildlife management decisions made by this agency. Sunday hunting is no different. All we are asking is that you maximize and set the upcoming seasons and bag limits for as much hunting opportunity as possible on these precious few Sundays. 

In closing, I want to take the time to thank the commissioners and PGC staff for the way you have handled the information regarding Senate Bill 147 as it went through the final steps. You kept people informed, were transparent, and educated as much as possible on what was happening. This helped my organization as well as others. For that I thank you. 

Again, as one of the leading organizations for Sunday hunting. Hunters United for Sunday Hunting asks that you maximize these three Sundays by allowing as much hunting opportunity that is biologically permitted. 

Thanks for your time;

Sincerely; 

Kevin B. Askew

Executive Director, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

SB147 LAW. NOW WHAT?

Message from HUSH Executive Director

I have had a lot of people ask me ‘now what’ since the passing of Senate Bill 147.  Henry Ford said it best, “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.”

That’s exactly what we do - move forward. If we do not, then we are stagnant and ineffective. The fight remains the same, it hasn’t changed. The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau remains opposed to hunting on Sunday and will continue their hypocritical efforts to infringe on hunter-landowner rights all the while asking for politicians to grant exemptions and other favorable programs to farmer-landowners.

There are more hunters in this state and more than likely more hunter-landowners than there are voting farmer members of the PFB. We as hunter-conservationists just simply outnumber them. That is why we must remain consolidated in our efforts to bring this archaic blue law prohibiting hunting on Sunday to an end.
 
Politicians have learned that we have organized. The PFB has learned their dynasty is coming to an end. Their ability to hide behind PFB enabling politicians and the long-running ill-fated excuses of ‘why not’ will no longer be tolerated.   It is time that Pennsylvania entered the 21st Century in regards to hunting and conservation.

The sky has not fallen in West Virginia. There the legislature has done the right thing and ignored the West Virginia Farm Bureaus opposition and opened the state for hunting on Sunday. West Virginia is benefiting from this. If West Virginia legislators can ignore their farm bureau and reap the benefits the same can and should happen here in Pa.  

As I have previously stated. We are just getting started. This fight to bring Sunday hunting opportunities is much larger than any person or organization. It is based on our principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 

You have my commitment that Hunters United for Sunday Hunting will continue in our mission to bring full regulatory authority to the Pa. Game Commission. I ask that everyone stay engaged, involved and continue the journey with us.

Let’s make 2020 the year of real hunter-conservationist change in Pennsylvania. It’s time we take conservation out of the hands of politicians and Pa. Farm Bureau and place it fully where it belongs – Pa. Game Commission.

Sincerely,

Kevin B. Askew
Executive Director
Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

SB147 IS NOW LAW - GOV. WOLF SIGNS

Message from the Executive Director, Kevin Askew, Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

Governor Tom Wolf has officially signed Senate Bill 147 into law.  Amending Title 34 Game Law to allow for additional Sunday hunting opportunity as follows:

• One day of Sunday hunting shall be instituted by the commission during the deer rifle season.
• One day of Sunday hunting shall be instituted by the commission during the Statewide deer archery season.
• One day of Sunday hunting as determined by the commission shall be instituted by the commission.

Many of you will understand the historic significance and what an incredible leap in the right direction this is for hunter-conservation in Pennsylvania.  Though this is not perfect and more work is needed it is definitely a step forward to correct a 337-year-old antiquated blue law.

Thank you Governor Wolf for signing Senate Bill 147 into law. Your signature helps bring Pa. wildlife management into the 21st Century standards.  

For all of you who have been involved with this Hunters United for Sunday Hunting.  It is your dedication and tenacity that has made this happen.  Please take pride in that.  Many have failed before us.  In March of 2018 we set out on a new course to bring Sunday hunting to Pa. You all have participated in history.  You all have been a tremendous influence that affected Governor Wolf’s signature.  For that be proud and start telling the story of how Sunday hunting prohibition came to an end in Pa.

We are just getting started. This fight to bring Sunday hunting opportunity is much larger than any person or organization. It is based on our principles of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.   

You have my commitment that Hunters United for Sunday Hunting will continue in our mission to bring full regulatory authority to the Pa. Game Commission.   I ask that everyone stay engaged, involved and continue the journey with us.  Most of all, take time to reflect, understand and think about what November 21, 2019 means for the future of hunting in Pennsylvania.

Sincerely; 

Kevin B. Askew

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

REMINDER OF WHY WE ARE DOING WHAT WE ARE.

While watching TV my neighbor calls and asks if I’m home; his son Matthew wants to talk. Matthew knocks on the door, excited and nervous he comes in dressed in all his hunting gear. He had just shot his first deer with a crossbow and couldn’t find it and wanted to know if I would help him recover the deer.  

I get dressed in some suitable tracking clothes, grab a flashlight and head out.  As we walked up the road Matthew eagerly and hesitantly tells me the story of the hunt all while worried that he did something wrong because he has never taken a deer with a crossbow and didn’t know what to expect. 

We get to his spot, walk in, he shines the light and there is his deer. He spent the next 30 minutes showing me where he was, where the deer was, how quick it happened, how nervous he was and how he couldn’t hold the bow steady, where it ran, last blood, etc.  All the things that you expect from a young hunter.  The next few hours were spent showing him proper gutting, skinning and butchering techniques.    

His dad tried to take his excitement away because of being a smaller deer.  My response to Matthew; ignore your dad's comments, you just shot your first deer with a bow and should be proud and so should your dad. 

Wanted to pass this first hand story along for a reminder of why we are doing what we are. So when politicians such as Representative Keith Gillispie tell us that we need to do “damage control” we know why we must double down - so they, the politicians, can’t take these memories away from a young hunter like this. 

Kevin B. Askew, Executive Director

Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

WHATS GOING ON WITH SENATE BILL 147? I HAVEN'T HEARD ANYTHING.

“What’s going on with Senate Bill 147?” I have been asked this question quite frequently since the September 10, 2019, Sunday hunting public hearing held in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Game and Fisheries Committee.
  
Currently, our national partners from the National Rifle Association and the National Shooting Sports Foundation have asked if they can handle the continued negotiations. This is an agreeable request since these organizations have the resources, knowledge, and experts that understand all the legislative work that takes place.
  
As of this writing, Senate Bill 147 sits in the Pa House Game and Fisheries Committee. The current negotiations regarding whether the request for written permission from the Pa Farm Bureau will be added or not. The PFB is requesting SB147 be amended to include written permission on the Sundays stipulated in the bill. No other days are being considered to include written permission.
  
So essentially the PFB wants lawmakers to write a law for what we already have. Under our current posting regulations, a landowner can require or not require written permission to hunt on their property. If the landowner is comfortable with verbal permission, that is completely up to the property owner.
   
So the question becomes why do we need a law to do what we already can do legally at landowner discretion.

The NRA and NSSF are working through this. Neither has agreed or disagreed with the proposal. The negotiating team is working with lawmakers to understand why they think writing a law to do what can already be done makes sense or not make sense.
  
Now to the big question. Are we going to have the opportunity to hunt this hunting season? I wish I had a solid and straight answer but I don’t. I can assure you that HUSH, NRA, NSSF, and all the of the conservations organizations involved in the Pa Sunday hunting fight are doing all we can to get hunting opportunity as quickly as possible. We know and understand what the extra time afield means to everyone.
  
We are up against politicians and their willingness to act quickly for all the right reasons. As it stands the Pa House Game and Fisheries Committee must vote, SB147 then goes to the entire Pa House for a vote, then back to the Senate for a concurrence vote, and then to the governor's desk for signature. All indications are Governor Wolf will sign the bill into law.
  
The overarching and more pressing issue is: the longer the legislators choose not to take action. The longer SB147 is held up in the process. The timeline gets extended. 

This is why it is extremely important to continue calling and emailing legislators on SB147.

I get it, everyone has been doing that for the past 18 months. Please hear and read my words.  It is because of you, supporters of Sunday hunting opportunity that SB147 is where it is and the ‘needle moved’ further than it has ever been in the past 20 years. I am asking that you continue that momentum, keep those phones ringing and the legislator's email boxes full with SB147 and Sunday hunting messages. Continue making the hunter-conservationists voice heard. 

We are close, please stay in the fight. 

Sincerely;

Kevin B. Askew, Executive Director Hunters United for Sunday Hunting

LETTER TO PA POLITICIANS - I HAVE HAD MY FILL

Thanks Joe for providing us a copy of the letter you sent to Pa. politicians.  Your frustration is not lost on any of us.  We need more of these letter being sent to politicians in this state.   

Letter from Joe - Disgruntled Veteran & Hunter
To the politicians of Pennsylvania: 

I am an army combat vet who served in Baghdad from 2003-2004. I now own a home, land and have three kids. I want to pass on the family hunting tradition. My daughter is three and even at this young age, she knows daddy loves deer. It is not uncommon for me to work six days a week with Sunday being the day I have off. Being on commission based salary, Saturday is the day I make my money. 

I find it both ironic and pathetic that I can't use the very freedom I served to protect to hunt the land I own on the only day I have off [Sunday] with my children.  Especially since the Pennsylvania Game Commission supports hunting on Sunday as a game management option. 

I want to teach my kids how to hunt, but I also want to instill ethics and morals into their lives. With Senate Bill 147 not passing this year I decided to purchase a New York state hunting license. On Sundays, I will be spending my time there.   When my children turn 12 years old, I will be taking them there as that's the age they can legally hunt in NY. 

My plan for next year if SB147 does not go through is to purchase an acre or two in NY close to the state lands that I will be hunting. This will also allow me to take advantage of lower license prices for me and my family. 

I can assure all of you politicians if we do not have full inclusion of all Sundays by the time my kids are 12 years-of-age. I will refuse to spend a dime of my money in this state [PA] when it comes to hunting. 

I have also decided to not support dairy farms in Pennsylvania.  I will make sure any money spent on dairy products for my family will be on products that come from elsewhere. I understand how that sounds but I don't care, the Pa Farm Bureau claims to represent all these farmers that are dictating what I can and can't do with my children on my private land. I know that may not make much difference but I can't in good conscience support them [farmers] knowing that a portion of that money benefits the PFB in some way.  

Please understand I am not an unreasonable person but I have had my fill. To us, hunting is very important as a family and we should not have to make a choice between hunting or summer vacations or choose a different career path to get my kids hunting. 

Thank you for your time.

Joe - Disgruntled Veteran & Hunter