The Houston Safari Club Foundation works towards saving our hunting heritage through policy and charitable efforts.
The Houston Safari Club Foundation has a simple stated mission: preserve hunting through education, conservation and the promotion of our hunting heritage.
It's important to point out that HSCF is an independent organization, is not affiliated with Safari Club International (SCI), and is not a chapter or affiliate of any other organization. It stands alone and serves its own purpose and mission.
The HSCF has a pact described as the We Hunt We Give responsibility. Through this pact they promote "legislative and policy initiatives that may affect the future of hunting."
In doing so they strive to protect the rights of the hunting community and the overall hunting heritage through advocacy, policy, and legislation. Here's more in their own words:
"HSC supports initiatives that protect the tradition of hunting and hunters' rights. We take an active role in efforts to affect policy, protocols and legislation. HSC collaborates with legislators, key opinion leaders, policy groups, professional organizations and governments at home and abroad."
Their Mission
As you would expect from a nonprofit, this organization depends much on the contributions from like-minded individuals like you and me to support their worthy initiatives.
The Houston Safari Club Political Action Committee was established to support pro-hunting legislation and policy in the effort to give everyday hunters a voice that they might not have had. Non-deductible contributions are used to connect with federal election policies in mind, and directed to campaigns and candidates that support pro-hunting legislation and policy.
Obviously, getting involved on the legislative levels is job number one at the HSCF.
Giving Back
Scholarships, grants, youth hunting programs, and the "Guardians of Hunting" initiative are also integral parts of what the foundation does with their time and donated monies.
Part of the job of these organizing institutions is to get the word out, and that can't be done for free. Donations garner the supporter memberships that grant them marketing items (like apparel, rifle and shotgun cases and other accessories) and invites to yearly conventions and private dinners.
Perhaps their best objective comes from the annual scholarships granted to students from every walk of life. The Houston Safari Club Foundation says that "HSCF annually awards scholarships to students enrolled in an accredited Texas university and currently involved in the study of Wildlife Management and/or Range Management." Since the program's inception in 1999, over 650 scholarships have been awarded, totaling more than $2.95 million dollars.
HSCF has understood that the future of conservation depends on education. The commitment of students who want to work to protect all hunter's rights with an eye on wildlife conservation for decades to come is at the heart of the HSCF. All the information that a student needs to apply for one of these scholarships can be found right here.
The HSCF also provides youth hunting and fishing programs which are meant to introduce the next generation of outdoorsmen and women to the hunting lifestyle. They are firm believers and supporters of the R3 initiative: Recruiting, Retaining and Reactivating hunting and shooting sports participants regardless of age or ability in the effort to give a brighter future to the outdoor hunting life.
For hunting events, hunter safety is priority one and each participant is monitored by a responsible adult guide. The ultimate HSC goal is for every youth hunt to end with a successful harvest of an animal while each young hunter comes away with a lifelong respect for the animals and a new appreciation for wildlife conservation.
The Hunter's Horn
Craig Raleigh
The HSCF sponsors TV shows such as the This Is Africa and Hunting Matters radio and podcast media. They also offer the digital newsletter called the Bush Telegraph which provides legislative updates, upcoming events, meeting notices, membership information and more.
But their best and brightest publication is the award-winning Hunter's Horn magazine.
When Executive Director Joe Betar offered to send a couple of copies of this magazine, I thought that I had mistakenly accepted a hunting encyclopedia instead! Just three issues of the Hunter's Horn has enough information, stunning photography, and links to every kind of worldwide hunting opportunity that you can get lost for hours reading it.
This tri-annual publication features thrilling first-person hunting accounts and experiences detailed by some of the world's most renowned hunters. Hunter's Horn not only emphasizes the hunting lifestyle, but includes features on outdoor education, conservation, legislative policy, field medicine, cuisine, product information, art, HSCF news and more.
The Houston Safari Club
The Houston Safari Club Foundation is replete with information concerning every walk of hunting life that one can imagine, and it is all there to be of tremendous support to the hunting community as a whole. As a foundation that promotes youth education, provides a grants program, a scholarship program, and promotes the youth shooting sports, it should go without saying that one of their top priorities is fundraising.
While their next annual convention and expo are slated for February 4 to 6, 2022, hunters can still provide their support for outdoor education programs by attending, through online auctions, or simply by giving back as a sponsor.
You can contact the organization, which is located at 14811 St. Mary's Lane Suite 265 Houston, Texas (77079) by calling their offices at 713-623-8844, or e-mail at [email protected].
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NEXT: ALDO LEOPOLD AND HIS ROLE IN THE CONSERVATION MODEL OF AMERICAN HUNTING
