The program is not affiliated with any particular school, Dean said, and receives no funds from any district, but it includes students from Hope High.
Participants in the program do have to be in at least the fifth grade, in good standing at their respective schools, earning an A or B average and never having been called in for disciplinary office visits. They also must take Arkansas’ certified hunter training courses. Those requirements were responsible, Dean said, for a reduction in numbers over the past year from its original 75 to about 40.
Last year, a simulator was bought and placed at Hope High, which allows beginners to start gaining skills. “So we can take those fifth graders and some of the older kids that have never shot before, slow it all down on the simulator, and they can learn exactly what you're supposed to be doing and the angles that they need to hit and everything else to shoot. We fundraised last year and got that,” Dean said.
The hope is to raise funds through sponsorships and donations to allow for trips to Grandview Nature Center in Columbus, Arkansas and facilities at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia to participate in tournaments. While shotguns are provided, the costs of ammunition and fees for participation in tournaments can total up to $24 for each student in the senior division and up to $22 for each in the junior division.
“We try to do this with no cost to the kid or the parents. When we go to those tournaments, we buy a sandwich stuff, chips, drinks. We feed them at the tournament, because they're usually all- day events and then, when we leave, we try to take them somewhere before we get them back home.”
After his initial speech, Dean asked if the Lions had any questions. Several did. He was asked what kinds of guns were used. “Ten- or twenty-gauge shotguns,” he replied. The guns are provided by Dean from his own collection and by volunteers. Asked about the male to female ratio among the participants, Dean said it was actually pretty even.
In answer to a query about fundraising activities, Dean said in the past the program had twice sold raffle tickets, on both occasions raffling off guns donated by Farmers Bank. Lions Club donations allowed for the buying of portable gunracks and pop-up tents to be used for tournaments. Hope Auto donated coolers and a wagon. Pafford donated a $4,000 enclosed trailer for the transportation of equipment.
Asked about the cost of ammunition, Dean said it was too high, but the simulator allowed for the use of unlimited rounds.
To become head coach of the program, Dean explained, he went through a course three years ago. When he finished, he worked mainly on the Garrett Memorial Christian School campus, Hope not having enough members to constitute a team yet but several Hope students “helping out” the Garrett team. Finally, last year, Hope High began to produce larger numbers and Dean began to work more from that campus, having become the Hope Public Schools resource officer before that.
Dean said the value of the program for students begins with their learning the elements of gun safety. But it has additional benefits, too. “I hope that for most kids they get in the outdoors more, get off the video game and get outside. Do something different. But another thing I like about the sport is any kid can do it. It doesn't matter what your weight is, how tall you are, how short you are, what color you are. My niece who is in a wheelchair is actually going to try it this year. They have a kid from Fouke or Genoa who is in a wheelchair, and he's really good. So you can be in a wheelchair. All it takes is upper body strength.”
Those interested in joining the program, helping as a sponsor or contributing to it in other ways can contact Justin Dean at mailto:[email protected].
Dean is also currently an K-9 officer of the Hope Police Department as well as Hope’s Community Outreach Officer.
Also at the meeting, long-time member Dave Phillips was presented with the key award for his activism in recruiting five new Lions members this year.
