What drew me to the WITO weekend?
 
             I grew up with older brothers we all hunted and fished and enjoyed the outdoors together.  Being the only girl, I felt I was missing was a BFF’s to share hunting stories and weekend adventures with. I found these women at the first WITO outreach event over 20 years ago.  Little did I know then; these women would become “my pack” the best friends a lady could dream of. These volunteers, co-workers, confidants, hunting partners, and participants have become part of my core. I joined the organizing committee that first year, and I continue to serve today. 
 
What does the WITO weekend consist of? Fun – Fun – Fun!!
 
             Registration begins at 3pm on Friday afternoon. Participants then get settled in their cabins and then can get acquainted with the camp layout or try their hand at a craft or shop our famous raffles prior to dinner.  At dinner you can network and meet other participants, and then hang around the campfire before retiring for the evening.  Saturday consists of 2 – 3-hour classes that you register for, we offer a WIDE variety of offerings.  Shooting, archery, fishing, and water sports, hunting, crafts and challenge classes.  We encourage you to try new things!   Our goal is to keep classes small – generally not more than 15 participants per class.  There is a nice break in the afternoon before dinner to relax and socialize.   Dinner is shared, raffles are drawn, and the rest of the evening consists of laser shooting or a campfire. Sunday you take another 3-hour class before saying our good-byes.

Plan is to draw the winning sheet at the NWTF State Convention on January 25!

It’s not every day that a NWTF state board gets an inquiry from a national reporter, but that’s exactly what happened on October 14, 2019.
Dan Higgins, Food and Drink Reporter for the USA Today and Green Bay Press Gazette, emailed the National Wild Turkey Federation, Wisconsin chapter, about doing a story on the history and food value of this majestic and enduring gamebird. Read his story here.
Wisconsin State Board member and technology chair Andy Opichka was quick to forward this message to Wisconsin staff and board members. John Motoviloff, NWTF’s Recruitment, Retention, and Reactivation Coordinator for Wisconsin, put the word out to a network of NWTF friends and volunteers.
In mid-November, Motoviloff got word that a friend had harvested a wild turkey and was happy to deliver it to him. Motoviloff also secured wild turkey legs from another friend
On November 18, Motoviloff and Higgins met at Sunview Family Restaurant in Beaver Dam. The two are based, respectively, in Madison and Appleton.
Motoviloff provided Higgins with a recipe from his cookbook Wild Rice Goose and other Dishes of the Upper Midwest--and of course the turkey and accompanying paperwork. The slow-and-low-cooked legs turned out to be a big hit, but the whole roasted bird was—as sometimes happens—dry.
Higgins also spoke with Wisconsin DNR Assistant Upland Ecologist Alaina Gerrits, who provided details about the history and of wild turkeys in Wisconsin. The historic range of wild turkeys in Wisconsin extended from the Illinois border northward to a line from La Crosse to Green Bay. Wild turkeys were extirpated from the state in 1871.
Gerrits explained that wild turkeys were successfully reintroduced into the state in the 1970s following an agreement between the Wisconsin DNR and Missouri Department of Conservation. Ruffed grouse would be trapped in Wisconsin and exchanged for wild turkeys trapped in Missouri. Initial reintroduction efforts  centered in the Driftless area of southwest Wisconsin.
Thanks to tireless work by staff and volunteers from WDNR, NWTF, and other conservation partners, wild turkeys now exist in all Wisconsin counties.
In a few short decades, Wisconsin has gone from having no wild turkeys at all to being among the leading states in wild turkey harvest—and a reason for Thanksgiving indeed.

It all started during a conversation at a 2009 NWTF Wheelin’ Sportsmen banquet in southeastern Wisconsin between Dave Grisar of Saukville and Patrick Schmitt of Port Washington.  Grisar is an experienced hunter who often serves as a mentor in programs, including those offered by the National Wild Turkey Federation. Schmitt who lost the use of his arms and legs in a 2006 motorcycle accident had previously hunted white-tailed deer and wild turkey in Wisconsin.  When Grisar asked if he would ever like to hunt for antelope?  Schmitt answered with a with a resounding yes!  The western trip was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for Schmitt, who doubted he would ever be able to hunt out west after his accident.
Read the entire Story here:  http://greenbaypressgazette.wi.newsmemory.com/?publink=1f20057c2