Published: April 9, 2016
Wisconsin to host 1 of 4 national fundraisers
Event set for April 16
Daily News
Shooting sports are catching on around the nation.
Rick Leach, director of development of the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation, pointed to Minnesota as an example.
“It’s No. 2 in Minnesota, only behind football, but ahead of hockey,” Leach said. “Not many would expect that in Minnesota.”
Wisconsin is in a similar position as it has the most participants in
the Scholastic Action Shooting Program, which is why the SSSF will have
one of its four national fundraisers April 16 at the Ozaukee County
Fairgrounds, W67 N866 Washington Ave., Cedarburg.
“The SASP is having four fundraising events across the nation and
Wisconsin — because of our high participation, the state with the most
athletes — we were selected as one where one would be held,” Leach said.
“It supports the national program, which runs all the events in the
program, but proceeds also goes to the Ozaukee Scholastic Shooting
Sports team.”
The Ozaukee club is the host for the event and Leach is one of the program’s coaches.
“The proceeds will offset operational costs, the regional, state and national championship events, which was in July in Ohio,” Leach said.
Fundraisers will also be in Tennessee, Missouri and Arizona.
The cost is $50, which includes a buffet. There will be a silent
auction, live auction and a raffle. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the dinner
is at 6:30 p.m.
The SSSF was founded in July 2012 and has quickly become a popular organization, overseeing a rapidly growing sport.
“We’ve got teams across the country who are competing in piston and
rifle competitions, local, regional, national and virtual,” said Tammy
Mowry, the SSSF national director.
When the organization started in 2012, it was pistol only. In January, rifle was added to the mix and the
organization has seen a growth it thought it could get — just not at this level.
“We’re very pleased with it,” Mowry said. “With adding rifle, we know it’s going to really grow.”
In the last several years, many area high schools have added trapshooting as a club sport.
In 2013, West Bend high schools added trapshooting to its list of
extracurricular activities. More than 80 kids — boys and girls — signed
up.
“It’s a lifelong
sport,” Leach said. “It starts with the safety aspect, handling
firearms. Then it’s learning the skills for competition.”
The other appealing aspect, according to Leach, as to why shooting sports are rising is because there is no strength element.
“It’s about learning fundamentals and skills — willingness to practice,” Leach said.
“We’ve seen huge growth the last few years,” he added. “Kids are
finding out about it because of how programs are run. It’s a very safe
sport. The shooting sports are safer than recreational walking.”
There are clay shooting teams in all 50 states. Pistol
and rifle shooting teams are not yet in all 50 states, but they’re
getting close. Plus, the SSSF is the official feeder system for the
U.S. Olympic program.
The SSSF is open to shooters in grade school, middle school, high school
and college, while also providing scholarship opportunities for
college.
The Ozaukee team started five years ago in pistol shooting and has won three national championships in that time.
“It’s truly one of the level playing-field sports,” Leach said. “It’s a
coed sport. A lot of the girls shoot better than the boys.”
There have been discussions about the possibility of adding
trapshooting or other forms of shooting sports to the WIAA. The
discussions have been preliminary.
“We’re looking forward to coming to Wisconsin,” Mowry said. “We’re looking forward to a great banquet.”
For more information, contact Leach at 262-8944284 or rleach@sssfonline. com.
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