Spring Turkey is only 3 and a half months away.

[yelp]

Strutandrut...not bitter just believe the facts should be correct especially on a public forum...that's all.  I believe that if a NWTF rep is going to get on here and speak his mind or tow the 503c line then he should be accurate in what he says.  Just being true to the sportsman that come on here and want to know why we have turkeys in Washington state. No offense to you as a past/present member.   

[NWTFhunter]

wow....didn't know that..do they still do that today NWTFHunter....or was that just back when they seperated them? ....NWTF demanded a proportion of tag sales from WDFW for thier efforts? 

I stand corrected.  The deal that was worked out was that WDFW had to use a portion of that for turkey enhancement and research.

I was incorrect.

[Wacenturion]

NWTFHunter..............OK...trying to understand.  You must be talking about raffle sales, and if that's the case a portion might go to individual species enhancement.....I'm not sure, but don't recall the NWTF demanding, standing up to WDFW on getting a share of these or any other tag sales.  No deal was worked out....another NWTF claim?

The initial separate tags were designed for the Washington Slam....or to be correct, the Washington Slam came as a result of them.  It was a unique opportunity to give Washington sportsmen the ability to harvest an Eastern, Merriam's, and a Rio Grande in the same year, same state.  That was the brain child of the person who ran the turkey program at that time and not the NWTF.  That's why management in our state went the three subspecies route rather than the rush to just get Rio's like Oregon and others during the 80's.  That should also be a clue...the 80's....the chapter system, that being the local chapters didn't come on the scene till the early 90's.

There seems to be quite a bit of confusion out there as to some of the history and who did what. 

[turkeyhunter]

Yelp, You and the others make a lot of sense on a lot of points especially when they are your own, I think it is great you guy's get so worked up on these issues, passionate volunteers is what founded this organization and it is that same hard work and determination that has put us where we are at today, 586,000 members  can not all be wrong. Washington State had it's first Wheelin Sportsman benefit this year, we also do three Jake's Day's and a Women in the Outdoors event every year. I was at them and might or might not have met you at one of them, were you guy's at any of these ?...I could see if you did not want to go to a banquet but we also like to do the other events as well. The banquet system is here for one thing..Generate Funds to make it possible to do the things we want to do in the State. I, like most people, work to make a paycheck. It is the same concept, without a paycheck how do you pay your bill's?.....I hate these necessary evils. From the first day you signed on with the NWTF to now the mission has been the same and another thing has not changed, we are still a Membership based organization, And if records serve, you guy's have been members longer than most. The biggest problem with this State is not finding volunteers it is keeping them, and to the folks reading these comments please understand there is always two sides to every argument, I am just having a hard time establishing mine swimming in these shark infested waters, Look forward to round four...

[Wacenturion]

Turkeyhunter you said.............


                 "The biggest problem with this State is not finding volunteers it is keeping them,"


I rest my case.

[Wacenturion]

Turkeyhunter you also said.........
I think it is great you guy's get so worked up on these issues, passionate volunteers is what founded this organization and it is that same hard work and determination that has put us where we are at today, 586,000 members  can not all be wrong.



A couple statements from a news release on the firings at the NWTF last year.......
National Wild Turkey firings prompt civil complaints
By Rob Pavey | Staff Writer
Friday, April 25, 2008 5:58 p.m. Two senior National Wild Turkey Federation executives fired on March 25 sued the organization and its governing board Friday, alleging their termination was the result of "a well orchestrated smear campaign" that involved lies and defamation. The civil complaints were filed in Common Pleas Court of Edgefield County.


"Although the NWTF, based in Edgefield, S.C., claims 550,000 members, it was a longstanding and routine practice to assign donated memberships to names of expired members, the lawsuit contends.

"The donated memberships are received during NWTF fundraising banquets held at 2,300 towns across America," the complaint said.

Each attendee who buys a banquet ticket receives an adult membership, but sometimes people multiple tickets, leaving "memberships" for which no names are available.

The federation routinely takes the "donated memberships" and assigns them to names of expired members or to those who signed up at special events for youths and disabled sportsmen, the lawsuit said."



Listen....if the membership numbers are wrong then all those members can be wrong.... or at least the "ghost" ones. Even the numbers are questionable......in my mind just another deceitful attempt at claiming more than they are responsible for.

Oh....and those wern't donated memberships.  They were all the extra memberships forced down our throats when we went to our 2nd, 3rd, 4th banquets of the year to help other chapters and spend more of our money in support of them and the NWTF.  What a crock of crap.....donated my ass.  Keep drinking the kool-aid folks.



 

 

[NWTFhunter]

Wa, I have been to MANY banquets and NEVER told to buy another membership !  Have only paid for the dinner.
This has been in Wa, Id, and Ca.
Many of my comitte members in Ca went to other chapter banquets, and did NOT pay for another membership !

I will argue that point with you over and over.

[NWTFhunter]

Wa, sent you a PM asking if you were active in a chapter in 05?  Didnt hear back.

[Wacenturion]

Wa, sent you a PM asking if you were active in a chapter in 05?  Didnt hear back.

What's that got to do with anything?

[NWTFhunter]

Asking you if you were active in 05

[Wacenturion]

Wa, I have been to MANY banquets and NEVER told to buy another membership !  Have only paid for the dinner.
This has been in Wa, Id, and Ca.
Many of my comitte members in Ca went to other chapter banquets, and did NOT pay for another membership !

I will argue that point with you over and over.

You can argue all you want......but I'm telling you that was the way it was when many of us were involved.  Some of the chapters would only charge for dinners because we all thought it was stupid, but the RD wasn't happy about it.  Always questioning and saying that it was policy.

If that has changed ...great...a good thing.  Maybe Turkeyhunter, the RD can make it official here right now by stating such.     

[Wacenturion]

Asking you if you were active in 05

Again......what's your point?

[NWTFhunter]

Obviously you were not active in 05. Obviously you were not at the meeting with the WDFW Dir and the local west side chapter when the discussions were held about the doing away with 3 tags when you purchased your small game license.

Yes, I made a mistake in saying a portion of those monies generated came back to the NWTF.  What was worked out was that all the monies would not go into the general fund, but some would be used in turkey conservation.

Im sorry that you have such a bad outlook on the org.  Things have changed.  Not everything is good, as in every org there is going to be good with bad.  But with a sound group of people and a collective voice things can get better.

[turkeyhunter]

I have never charged a member an additional membership when they attend another banquet in the State, I do not know where your info is coming from but it is not correct, wonder how that lawsuit turned out ? gotta stand firm but at the same time have to know all the facts..Do you agree ?

[NWTFhunter]

Yes Dave there has been cases of it happening.  But I have never had an RD do it to me, or any of those in my chapters, or at any banquet I attended.
I dont think Jeff, or Lyle can say they have either.