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JAKES Day youth event was fun for all involved

OBSERVER Photo by Gene Pauszek Charissa Jozwiak, Kristen Henderson, Ava Turk and Eva Tytka admire the taxidermy display at the JAKES Day event held at the Westfield Fish and Game Club on Saturday.

It has been a few years now, but the Lakeshore Long Beards, our local chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation has once again put on a terrific JAKES Day Youth event. JAKES stands for Juniors Acquiring Knowledge and Ethics but it also stands for fun for the kids and for the adults that put on the program.

The driving force behind the Longbeards has always been a nucleus of turkey hunters lead by Scott Dibble, Rich Lazarczyk, Gary Dudek. Gary Burmaster, Bob Turk Sr. and Jr. and their spouses, year after year, they find the time to put on a great banquet/fundraiser, and still manage to put on another event, geared towards getting our next generation involved with a sport that they (we) hold dear.

This years event was once again held at the beautiful outdoor gem, the Westfield Fish and Game club located on Ogden Road in Westfield. There were ten learning stations that included turkey calling, survival, sling shots, bow shooting, bird feeders, taxidermy, fishing, fly fishing, gun shooting, and everyone’s favorite — lunch.

Gary Dudek is a force when it comes to talking about hunter safety. He has dedicated much of his life as a Hunter Safety Training instructor, and recently just got done with three days along with his side kick, Rich Lazarczyk, at the Sportsmans Rendezvous at Cattaraugus, several upcoming courses locally, and the JAKES day.

With a captive audience after lunch, he quizzed the crew, “What’s the first thing you do when you pick up any gun?” If you need to refresh your memory for the answer, pick up a hunter safety training manual. In fact Dudek, often rereads the manual to stay at the top of his form.

A new twist to this years event were the sling shots. Targets were tin cans and aluminum pie tins suspended from a string. The ammo was biodegradable pieces of dog food. A clever way to improve your target practice.

Quiz time: Who were two cartoon characters noted for carrying a sling shot? Bart Simpson and Dennis the Menace.Scott Dibble had the youngsters attention with how to age a deceased deer, by looking at their teeth. Gary Dudek Jr. had loads of bird feeders ready for assembly with the help of his youngsters.

There was fishing, and shooting, and plenty of activities, and even though the day started out gloomy, it ended up sunny and bright., thanks to the efforts of the crew and all the sponsors who made this event possible. Thanks for taking the time and bringing along the next generation of outdoor stewards.

Calendar: Aug. 25 is the Innovative Outdoors Walleye Challenge out of Dunkirk. A one-day tournament with optional Big Fish Friday on Aug. 24. Limited to 65 boats who met the registration deadline on Aug. 1. Contact Jim Steel at 481-5348 or go to lakeeriewalleyetournament.com for more information.

The Westfield Moose Lodge #118 intends to run a one day walleye derby on Saturday, Sept. 1 from 5 a.m. until 5 p.m. Entry fee is $200 per four-man team. Awards will pay out for the five heaviest walleye that day, plus the five heaviest total weight basket of walleye (three walleye maximum) and the three longest walleye will have a prize division. If the date is un-fishable, the money will be distributed by random draw. Mandatory attendance at the Captains Meeting on Friday, Aug. 31 at the Moose Lodge located at 19 Clinton Street, Westfield. Make checks payable to: Westfield Moose Lodge No. 118. For more information call (716) 581-0487. Only New York State waters are eligible. Weigh-in will be at the Barcelona Harbor. Be patient. Every fishing derby has growing pains the first couple of years. It should be fun!

The Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Office will be offering a bow hunters education course on Wednesday, Aug. 29 and Thursday, Aug. 30 from 4:30 until 9:30 p.m. Two-day attendance is mandatory for completion of this course, which will be held at Hideaway Archery, 12749 Cottage Road, Dayton. Students should be at least 12 years of age. If an 11 year old wants to take the course, a parent must attend the course both days along with the 11 year old. Class size is limited to 35 students. Be sure to bring a form of identification (license or birth certificate etc.), a pen or pencil, snacks, a lunch and drinks. Mandatory pre-registration is done at www.register-ed.com. Homework must be done prior to taking the course. Find the course material on line, or pick up at the Sheriff’s office or call the DEC office at (716) 372-0645, prior to taking the free course.

There will be a free Hunter Safety Training Course at the Northern Chautauqua Conservation Club on Wednesday, Aug. 22 and Thursday, Aug. 23. from 5 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. For more details call Gary at 366-3397.

There will be a free NY Bowhunter safety course at the “Con Club” on Saturday Sept. 8 from 9 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

There will also be a free Trapping Course on Saturday, Sept. 15 from 9 a.m. until 5:30 p.m at the Northern Chautauqua Conservation Club. For information call Gary Dudek at 366-3397.

The Children of the Stream Youth Fly Fishing Program will be starting its 18th year of providing weekly free fly tying and fly fishing classes to both youths and adults in our area. Note that classes will switch from Wednesday evenings from 7 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. to Tuesday evenings at the Costello Community Room (P84) in the new addition to the Rockefeller Arts Center at SUNY Fredonia. You do not need any prior experience to attend these classes, and the course is geared towards ages 10 and older. For more information contact Alberto Rey at 410-7003 or alberto@albertorey.com.

There will be a gun show at the Astabula County Fairgrounds located at the County Expo Center Building, 127 North Elm Street, Jefferson, OH, 44047. Show is on Oct. 27-28, 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. and 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Next show is on Nov. 17 and 18 at the Hickory Post VFW located at 5550 East state Street. Us Route 62 East of PA. — West of Mercer on 62, Hermitage, PA, 16148. Same show times.

On Dec. 8 and 9, a gun show at Harbor Creek Fire Dept. Social Hall, located at 7275 Buffalo Road, US RT. 20 (located between North East, PA and Harbor Creek, PA. For details or information, contact Larry Spicer at 716-792-9972 or go to LRgunshows@gmail.com.

If your club or organization is holding a hunter safety training/trapping course or a turkey shoot or any other outdoors event, and would like to see it posted in the calendar, send information to the OBSERVER, 10 East Second Street, Dunkirk, NY 14048, or call the sports department at 366-3000 ext. 5 after 6 p.m.

Note: If you have a big game fishing or trapping success story you would like to share, call 366-1772, or 467-2079 and leave a name, phone number and a time you can be reached. You can also call 366-3000, ext. 5, after 6 p.m. or email sports@observertoday.com.

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