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Michael Proctor: Welcome to
another episode of Real wealth
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podcast. I am here with Mike
Christiansen and Brittany
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French. And we're today talking
about pass on outdoor mentors.
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They're a nonprofit 501 C three,
and they help with getting,
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especially urban youth the
ability or the chance to get out
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and a hunt.
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Brittany French: Yeah, a lot of
a lot of youth don't even have
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the chance to do and so that's
that's what this organization is
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all about. My kids have
benefited my boys have benefited
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from it with doing some sporting
clays target shooting, which I'm
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so grateful for to be able to
give them consistency and
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opportunity. And, and Mike, you
founded the organization. Right?
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You're the founder. Right? I
started working with Big
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Brothers and Big Sisters back in
oh two, they hired me to be
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their director of outdoor
mentoring. Okay, Big Brothers
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Big Sisters saw a need to get
more men involved, typically,
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across the nation with Big
Brothers Big Sisters, about 75%
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of the kids on the waiting list
are boys. And they saw outdoor
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activities as being in a
vertical market approach to
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recruiting more men to get
involved with with mentoring.
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And the program took off from
there. We started with Big
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Brothers and Big Sisters. And
then we spun off as a separate
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nonprofit in oh six. And we've
been rolling ever since. And
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then in 2019, I hired Brittany
to head up a new effort that we
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put together, which is reaching
out to the shooting sports teams
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across the country. We saw what
was going on with trap shooting
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here in Kansas. That program was
growing rapidly. I think this
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last year, they had 137 high
schools across Kansas that had
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trapped teams. And so I hired
Brittany to say, Hey, let's go
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see if we can get these kids out
hunting. Most of them all had
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Hunter Ed, they all had
shotguns, but we didn't see
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anybody that was taking them
hunting. So I turned that over
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to Brittany. And she's been
rolling like crazy.
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Michael Proctor: Wow. Yeah, I
didn't realize until today that
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there was a big brothers big
sisters connection to it. That's
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where we started. Yep. So I've
had three little brothers. And
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they, when when I got matched
with kids to the big brothers
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program, I told them, all we're
going to do is hunting fish,
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we're not going to movies, we're
not making cookies, and we're
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not sitting around playing video
games. We're gonna go hunting
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and fishing. And that's it. And
all three of the kids that I
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mentored are now avid
outdoorsman. And we've seen that
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with a lot of the kids, we've
got volunteers in our program
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today. Kenny is one of the
coaches for the Trap Team. He
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was one of the littles in our
program, way back when, and it's
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really rewarding to see that
kind of thing happened. And, of
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course, that's what the big
brothers program is all about is
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showing kids that there are
avenues, other avenues in life
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that they can pursue. And it's
it's been really rewarding to
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see that. But yeah, we got our
start with Big Brothers Big
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Sisters. Yeah, that's wild. And
that makes so much sense that
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there was that initial need of
how do we get more men involved?
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And how do we appeal to the
those that we want to attract?
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And that that makes a lot of
sense is the why it even came up
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at all? Yeah, we were we had a
lot of fun with it. Yeah, I
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would say there's probably a
very serendipitous moment in
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time where the Department of
Wildlife and Parks released
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their first youth upland season.
Back in 1999. Yep, way
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backwards. Right. So imagine
these collective forces and
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visionary folks in our our
community, leaders at Big
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Brothers, Big Sisters, folks in
the Department of Wildlife and
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Parks. Some folks in the police
department here in Wichita, how
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do we how do we capitalize on
this opportunity? And kind of
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was the brainchild of let's take
kids hunting, why not? You know,
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we can run our dogs as mentors
early before everybody else can
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in the season, but also these
kids are going to be able to
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experience something they've
never been able to experience
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before. So that was that's
always really fun to share about
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our our start. And then you
know, fast forward, Mike was
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asked to start to program
officially and you know, just
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1000s and 1000s of kids have
benefited from that.
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Absolutely. Let's talk a little
bit about what you're doing with
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the organizational growth and
then some of the, I guess
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approaches you're bringing to
how you're growing it how you're
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managing it, because really a
lot of nonprofits just don't
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make it. Okay. And what are you
doing that is done Fred, as far
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as you can tell, that is leading
to success in this space?
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Mike Christensen: Well, that's a
tough one.
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We have been around for a long
time, like I say, we we spun off
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from Big Brothers and Big
Sisters and oh six. And you
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know, most of the support for
our program has come from the
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outdoor community.
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So we've been able to, to keep
this rolling, we still partner
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closely with Big Brothers and
Big Sisters, every chance we
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get. We took a bunch of kids
fishing from the big brothers
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program here just a couple of
weeks ago.
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Unknown: But it's but it's all
about giving these kids
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opportunities. And I think folks
in the outdoors just gravitate
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to supporting those kinds of
efforts. When we took a look at
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what was happening with the high
school trap shooting, you know,
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Britney had volunteered for us
for several years as as a
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mentor, through the big brothers
program. And she had expressed
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interest in getting involved
with this. And when I saw things
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going with, with the trap
programs, it just seemed like a
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and having been involved in the
national recruitment, retention
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and reactivation efforts. It
just seemed like a natural thing
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to do these kids all had Hunter
Ed, they all had shotguns, but
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there wasn't any program focused
on giving them opportunities to
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get out and hunt. So I turned
that ball over to Brittany. And
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she took and ran with it.
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Michael Proctor: So recruitment
retention and reactivation.
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Right. Brittany, why don't you
share a little bit about the our
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three initiatives that you guys
are working on and break that
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down?
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Yeah. So you kind of touched on
the importance of our three
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introducing the podcast, have
there been generational turnover
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in participation in the
outdoors, whether it be hunting,
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fishing, or even shooting
sports, right? Baby Boomers are
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aging up and out of the sport
due to age due to limitations.
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You name it relocating in life,
and they historically have
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produced children who have not
gravitated toward the outdoors.
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No particular reason why maybe
access maybe funding I mean,
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there's no one given answer that
fits this whole population.
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Right. But that kind of started
back in the early 2000s of
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movement called artery which
really was our to morphed into
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our three because of the focus,
we need to put on recruiting,
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retaining and reactivating all
of those folks, not just
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hunters, not just anglers or
target shooters, all of them at
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once, to kind of backfill that
deficit. What that looks like,
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though, is if we have by the
masses, a generational turn, and
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folks not buying hunting
licenses and ammo and firearms,
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our country looks very
different. Conservation looks
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very different. And I don't know
if that's a, that's an image I
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want to see. And we certainly
are trying to help combat that
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by recruiting and retaining kids
in the outdoors.
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So your husband's a financial
adviser? Yes. Yeah. And he also
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started a nonprofit. Okay, so
does do the three R's carryover
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to what he's doing? Or is that
totally different?
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I would say it's probably
different. However, if we want
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to talk like financial literacy
and sustainability for
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nonprofits like that is huge.
And I don't think many
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nonprofits talk about the
volatility in that space.
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Everybody loves the mushy
stories. I even told you that
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before we got started, like,
Yeah, let's tell stories,
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because there's so many good
ones. But I mean, there is a lot
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that goes into recruiting new
donors, retaining donors, and,
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you know, reactivating your
lapsed donors, you know, who
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used to give to you, but aren't
anymore? What's going on? Is
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that the economy we're in? Is it
how we're marketing, you know,
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to them and what we're doing and
how do we go find new folks to
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come on board and support us? So
there's, there's a lot of that
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that certainly correlates a
nonprofit to nonprofit in our
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three space.
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Okay. Is this a transferable
skill? The are three space for
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other nonprofits? Or is it
mainly just get? So So are
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three? So I understand that
recruiting, retaining and
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reactivating? Is that something
all of them should be doing?
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Well, I think we can certainly
take it and apply it to all of
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our missions, right? I would say
it's specifically coined started
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in the outdoor industry, right.
But if you were to think about
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who were beacons and your
mission, right, what's your
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actual effort? You should
certainly be looking at those
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things. You know, what kids are
we serving? If you're serving
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kids, what clients are you
working with? Are there
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different ones you need to be
onboarding? You know, can you
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serve the ones you are serving
better? I think you can probably
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apply it to a lot of the work.
All of us do.
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pretty universal. Let's talk
about the growth you're
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experiencing, because it's a lot
more than I would have ever
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anticipated to hear about. And
it's not just happening here in
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Kansas.
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Unknown: Right has been really,
really exciting to me. And when
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I when I first started looking
at what was going on with
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trapshooting I mean nationwide
is just exploding and high
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schools across the country. And
I Well, guys, this is a this is
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an area where we could recruit
kids. And I was basically just
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looking at Kansas at that time.
Brittany hired on in the first
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year, she spent a lot of time
getting into all the trap teams
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in Kansas. And we she did
organize 59 activities that
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fall. And the next year we did
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brought some other coordinators
on board, and we did 235 events.
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And we expanded to Iowa. And we
did over 500 events last year.
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And now we've just signed a
contract with the Wisconsin DNR
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and hiring a program coordinator
up there. I mean, we're looking
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at somewhere north of 600 events
this year and, and continuing to
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grow in the future. We're
starting to, we're starting to
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get attention from other
wildlife agencies across the
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country. They're everybody's
looking for how they're going to
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address our three and how do we
recruit and retain and
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reactivate new hunters? We're
just one piece of that puzzle.
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There are other groups that are
looking at how do we recruit
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adults? How do we how do we find
kids, the millennials and the
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Gen Xers, and how do we get them
involved. And that's different
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from what we're doing because
we're focused strictly on kids
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in high school and college age
and giving them opportunities.
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But Britain has just done an
outstanding job of building up
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what we've got going and putting
the processes in place and
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building the infrastructure so
that we can take this and scale
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it and replicate it to other
other states and areas.
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Michael Proctor: Are you going
to keep doubling like that?
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Unknown: I don't know that we
can keep doubling, but I don't
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see any, any slowdown in the
growth. This year, we're gonna
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go from five to six, maybe 700.
So we're not going to quite
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double this year. But we haven't
had any new coordinators until
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just now we're just getting
started in Wisconsin. But we're
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hoping to move into some other
states over the next few years,
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we got a couple of states that
have expressed interest in
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having a start our program
there. But that all comes down
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to funding because we have to
pay for a coordinator and we
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have to pay for these events do
all this work. So it's all a
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dollars and cents thing just
like every other businesses,
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Michael Proctor: well, are you
getting partnership from the
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states on helping with overhead
and program coordination?
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Yeah, so that's gonna work very
different state to state. You
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know, just speaking out of
Kansas level, we don't get
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funding from the Department of
Wildlife and Parks. And that's
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okay. A lot of that is because
of limitations and what money
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they do have to give. If you
look at places like Iowa, they
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have maybe a little bit more
funding to give, so we get some
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funding from them. If you look
at places like Wisconsin, they
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have a lot of PR dollars, to
steward to folks like us and
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other individuals who are trying
to put program on the ground to
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make a difference in the
outdoors. So we do get, I would
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say more substantial funding
from some of these states that
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have a more vibrant hunting and
fishing target shooting
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population across their, across
their state individually. And
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that kind of looks differently
to you know, there's been a
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nonprofit, you know, we're used
to writing grants, you know,
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pitching our, our mission and
asking for corporate sponsor,
220
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you know, for DNR situations,
which is Department of Natural
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Resources. For those who don't
know, we put a bid in, which is
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basically like, hey, we want
this much money, here's what
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we're going to do with it. And
they just say, Here you go, if
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you're awarded, which is pretty
wild to us, because it's never
225
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really come that easy. But it
just goes to show, you know what
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the scalability of our program
could look like in each state,
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and how much value you know,
people and the DNR state
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agencies are putting on that.
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00:13:44,849
Yeah, and on that note, I was at
a startup tech Kansas, I think,
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is what it was called conference
yesterday. And it was really
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interesting, where they're
talking about, we're talking
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about financing and, and there's
a piece here of it makes sense
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to start off with a little bit
of money and grow it organically
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so you can figure out what
works, what doesn't work, and
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not just wasting resources. So
that's legit, but it's really,
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it's got to feel nice to
actually get the money when you
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asked for it. This is this is a
lot easier than I thought it was
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gonna be
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Unknown: yes or no, when we
first started way back in oh
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two, the National Shooting
Sports Foundation has stepped up
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with a huge grant to get started
with Big Brothers and Big
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Sisters. It hasn't been quite
that easy since then, but you
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know, we're seeing more folks
stepping up to the plate and
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we're hoping to get more
corporate sponsorships and and
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make this thing go you know, it
takes roughly about $125,000 to
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fund a coordinator in a given
state. So that's our goal. And
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we have some parameters we can
say a coordinator can do X
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number of events a year and so
the math is pretty simple. You
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know, give me 125,000 And we can
do another coordinator and and
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we can put on this many more
events and get many more kids
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outdoors.
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Michael Proctor: Okay, Oh,
what's the economic cost to get
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one more kid out there who
wouldn't have been able to go
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on?
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Unknown: I think we're averaging
about $200 per event per kid.
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Okay, so to get a kid outdoors,
and that's including insurance
257
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and, and the staff time and
everything that's involved, but
258
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it costs us about $200 to get a
kid in the field.
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Michael Proctor: Yeah, there's a
lot of backlogged information
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there. So as a program and how
we operate, we have these great
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folks called program
coordinators on the ground who
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are doing the brute force of our
grassroots effort, right? They
263
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are connecting with landowners,
they're finding kids, whether it
264
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be through shooting sports
teams, whether it be through for
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age groups, youth groups, you
name it, there's kids out there
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who are 11 years of age and
hunting, our coordinators are
267
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seeking them out actively,
because that's who we should
268
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serve. That's who we want to
serve. And then they're also
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finding people like you, Mike,
who are passionate about the
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outdoors, who want to see their
kids get involved in equipping
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them, empowering them to become
mentors for us. So there's a lot
272
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of time that goes into that. But
then there's also the back end
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liability insurance. So that's
pretty important, right? Like,
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we're not going to program
without that. We have a CRM
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system where we can put all
these things together to where
276
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it becomes a uniform,
streamlined process. So these
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kids can sign up efficiently,
their parents know what's going
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on. Everybody's in
communication. So all of these
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00:16:24,180 --> 00:16:28,020
events, we plan get put on the
ground without hitch and we
280
00:16:28,020 --> 00:16:30,540
there's just no hiccups along
the way we're not stumbling
281
00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:34,410
through planning one event, and
that's what allows us to plan
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multiple events. So I mean, if
you'd asked ask a lot of other
283
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folks, they probably say $200 is
pretty expensive per kid per
284
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hunt. If you go out there and
hunt as an adult, that's you're
285
00:16:44,430 --> 00:16:48,810
probably gonna pay $500. Right?
Like, if I go book a preserve
286
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hunting somewhere, I'll probably
pay $500 for one person, maybe
287
00:16:52,890 --> 00:16:57,720
more. Maybe a lot more. Yeah,
yeah. Yeah. So that $200 mark is
288
00:16:57,720 --> 00:17:00,750
pretty realistic, especially
when we're providing it for free
289
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for them. And when I say free by
fundraising, to be able to
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provide that for free to them,
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Unknown: right. And that's one
of the unique things about our
292
00:17:08,940 --> 00:17:11,400
program is that we don't charge
these kids to participate at
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all. We asked them to buy their
licenses and fees, but that's
294
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about it. You know, this next
weekend
is the pre ret
295
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antlerless hunt in Kansas. And I
think we have upwards of 70
296
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different deer hunts set up for
kids across Kansas. So we're
297
00:17:28,440 --> 00:17:31,200
going to have and again, we're
able to do that, because we got
298
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program coordinators, and we've
got the CRM system and the
299
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technology in place that lets us
do that efficiently.
300
00:17:41,010 --> 00:17:43,260
Michael Proctor: Yeah, I can't
even imagine what that
301
00:17:43,260 --> 00:17:46,830
conversation initially may have
been, like have with the
302
00:17:46,830 --> 00:17:51,510
insurance company. So you're
gonna have kids with guns that
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00:17:51,510 --> 00:17:57,780
are 1112 13, you know, walk in a
night or in the door, get set
304
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up, go
305
00:17:58,289 --> 00:18:00,059
finish moving targets,
306
00:18:00,510 --> 00:18:03,600
they must have had a hard time
getting their head around that.
307
00:18:03,899 --> 00:18:06,029
Unknown: It took me about six
months to find anybody that
308
00:18:06,029 --> 00:18:06,659
would write Apollo.
309
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Michael Proctor: And I think we
can comfortably say every time
310
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we get an email from our
company, we can hold our breath
311
00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:14,880
like oh, no, what is this?
312
00:18:16,109 --> 00:18:18,449
Yeah, but that is something that
could take the whole program
313
00:18:18,449 --> 00:18:22,229
down is certainly one that
losses when that situation.
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00:18:23,670 --> 00:18:29,340
Unknown: But over 21 plus years,
we've had no problems. No, no
315
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issues, it's been out again,
kids in the field with the
316
00:18:33,330 --> 00:18:36,720
mentors is probably the safest
thing out there. You know, if
317
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you look at the trap shooting
programs, they have 1000s 1000s
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of kids shooting, and there's no
accidents, there's no injuries.
319
00:18:45,780 --> 00:18:47,910
There's not a sprained ankle,
there's not a blown knee,
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there's not a concussion.
There's nothing like you have
321
00:18:50,460 --> 00:18:54,510
with traditional high school
sports, no injuries at all, with
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00:18:54,510 --> 00:18:57,810
the shooting sports. And we're
working really hard to make sure
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that we do that with the hunting
side of things as well. It's
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00:19:00,150 --> 00:19:00,930
going very good.
325
00:19:01,020 --> 00:19:03,660
Michael Proctor: Yeah. I always
like to tell people it's, you
326
00:19:03,660 --> 00:19:07,350
know, talking about youth and
guns, right. Like that's always
327
00:19:07,350 --> 00:19:12,180
in the headlines. How do we not
allow access to kids to
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00:19:12,180 --> 00:19:14,820
firearms? And I think that's
kind of a disservice. Right?
329
00:19:14,820 --> 00:19:17,820
Because it's not if they're
going to be around firearms,
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00:19:17,820 --> 00:19:20,580
it's when they will be around a
firearm in their life. How do
331
00:19:20,580 --> 00:19:25,620
they feel responsible and
educated to remove themselves
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from a situation go report it to
somebody else and or take an
333
00:19:29,340 --> 00:19:32,400
active role? You know, and I
love that about our kids on
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Tina's they can call their kids
out who they're hunting with,
335
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hey, but your muzzle is not
pointed in a safe direction. I
336
00:19:38,460 --> 00:19:41,700
don't like it. So can you please
fix it or I'm going to go tell
337
00:19:41,700 --> 00:19:44,970
this mentor. Better yet the
mentors are actively overseeing
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all these activities to where
they can say hey, like we're not
339
00:19:47,700 --> 00:19:49,980
getting on you to be mean or
getting I need to be safe,
340
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because we want you to enjoy
this for the rest of your life
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00:19:52,740 --> 00:19:56,070
and one false move can take that
away from you and a lot of
342
00:19:56,070 --> 00:19:59,640
others and that's just not met.
Okay? So the responsibility word
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00:19:59,670 --> 00:20:03,210
pass. Seeing onto this
generation is, it's above and
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00:20:03,210 --> 00:20:06,090
beyond just like showing them
how to work a firearm, right?
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Like they're truly taking the
weight of that opportunity and
346
00:20:10,680 --> 00:20:13,920
knowing and executing that they
are the only one responsible for
347
00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:16,920
it. That's pretty big for a 12
year old. I mean, you've got
348
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boys that around my age, right?
Yeah, and they do, they're a
349
00:20:21,570 --> 00:20:25,260
great, great example of, of what
it looks like, you know, they
350
00:20:25,260 --> 00:20:27,390
could be horsing around and
having fun, but the moment they
351
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put that gun in their hand, they
are dialed in, they know.
352
00:20:31,410 --> 00:20:36,150
Right, and and I think maybe an
analogy is you can always have
353
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bad actors or, you know, whether
we're talking about youth or
354
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adults or whatever. But it
always comes down to the person
355
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using it, what they're trained
in, what their intentions are.
356
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And in I know that every time
I've seen the kids, my boys,
357
00:20:53,190 --> 00:20:57,960
especially with the mentors, or
the whoever's teaching them how
358
00:20:57,960 --> 00:21:01,350
to use, how to target shoot,
how, how to whatever safety's
359
00:21:01,350 --> 00:21:05,670
number one, and, and so that's
that's a huge reassurance of
360
00:21:05,670 --> 00:21:09,060
like, hey, you've been around
long enough to see a here's
361
00:21:09,060 --> 00:21:12,330
here's how this can get unsafe.
Let's stay safe,
362
00:21:12,450 --> 00:21:16,380
right? Yeah, we say the words
muzzle action trigger, often,
363
00:21:16,380 --> 00:21:19,590
right? Where is your muzzle
pointed is your action open, and
364
00:21:19,590 --> 00:21:21,720
your finger should never be on
the trigger until you're ready
365
00:21:21,720 --> 00:21:25,230
to either break a target or
shoot at your target, whether it
366
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be a deer or a pheasant,
whatever it might be. And quite
367
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frankly, if you're doing all
those things, right, there will
368
00:21:31,770 --> 00:21:35,430
be no accidents. Right? There is
no room for accidents if you're
369
00:21:35,430 --> 00:21:36,120
doing that, right.
370
00:21:38,220 --> 00:21:43,470
Absolutely. Okay, so let's talk
a little bit about maybe some of
371
00:21:43,470 --> 00:21:47,790
the lessons learned or or
learning that has happened,
372
00:21:47,970 --> 00:21:53,370
whether it's related to the
nonprofit or just personally
373
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like what are some life lessons
you guys have learned along the
374
00:21:55,680 --> 00:21:55,950
way?
375
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I feel like you could run out a
whole bunch of different
376
00:21:59,820 --> 00:22:03,570
avenues. With this one, I mean,
I'll share just some personal
377
00:22:03,570 --> 00:22:06,480
experiences with being a mentor.
So Mike mentioned, I got
378
00:22:06,480 --> 00:22:09,930
involved back in 2015. So I
think I was 21 at the time,
379
00:22:09,930 --> 00:22:13,290
pretty green. Still in college,
you know, taking glasses playing
380
00:22:13,290 --> 00:22:15,870
softball in a very different
stage of life than I have now.
381
00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:20,160
Certainly, but I think I
underestimated the value in
382
00:22:20,160 --> 00:22:23,700
serving kids at that time. In my
life. I always loved being
383
00:22:23,700 --> 00:22:26,400
around kids, I loved
organizations, I serve kids, I
384
00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:29,250
even you know, cast that vision,
like I'd love to just be part of
385
00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:32,340
an organization that worked with
kids. So certainly had that in
386
00:22:32,340 --> 00:22:35,580
my blood. You know, I think God
put that on my heart. But the
387
00:22:35,580 --> 00:22:37,890
moment you start really working
with kids in the outdoors,
388
00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:40,380
something really cool happens.
And I don't know if I can give
389
00:22:40,380 --> 00:22:45,540
it justice or do it justice and
explain it. But these kids just
390
00:22:45,570 --> 00:22:49,050
they unplug, they look to you.
And like all of a sudden
391
00:22:49,050 --> 00:22:52,050
everything that they're worried
about doing without home just
392
00:22:52,050 --> 00:22:55,920
falls away. And they're just
dialed in. I don't know how many
393
00:22:55,920 --> 00:23:00,480
times we've been in a blind or
walking to a location behind and
394
00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:03,270
there's, you know, tree limbs
rubbing together and kids are
395
00:23:03,270 --> 00:23:06,750
freaking out because they've
never heard that before. Right?
396
00:23:06,780 --> 00:23:09,240
Or they hear something scurrying
across the ground. And they
397
00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:11,730
think who is that Chewbacca
coming through the woods?
398
00:23:11,730 --> 00:23:16,020
Jokingly I'm like, no, that's
just wildlife. And it's natural.
399
00:23:16,020 --> 00:23:18,660
And all of a sudden, you just
realize the privileges, you
400
00:23:18,660 --> 00:23:21,840
know, I've certainly been
steward in life, and how often
401
00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:25,620
those get misplaced on these
kids. And so it just it's a
402
00:23:25,620 --> 00:23:29,070
great privilege to be able to do
that. And I think when we
403
00:23:29,070 --> 00:23:31,710
finally stepped out of our box
of being uncomfortable, right?
404
00:23:31,740 --> 00:23:35,550
Like, how are we qualified to
mentor, like, I didn't take a
405
00:23:35,550 --> 00:23:38,220
class on it. I didn't go to I
didn't go to school for it.
406
00:23:38,220 --> 00:23:42,630
Like, I had some mentors in my
life at a young age, but I
407
00:23:42,630 --> 00:23:45,300
couldn't really remember them
teaching me this is the playbook
408
00:23:45,300 --> 00:23:48,990
for you know, a mentor and a new
child. You just have to try it.
409
00:23:49,230 --> 00:23:51,450
And all of a sudden you find
yourself in these positions
410
00:23:51,450 --> 00:23:54,030
where that kiddos mentoring you
pretty drastically in life,
411
00:23:54,060 --> 00:23:57,720
right? teaching you about things
that actually matter. Showing
412
00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:00,750
you how to look at worldly
problems that you thought are
413
00:24:00,750 --> 00:24:03,690
one way but we're completely
different, right? So I think
414
00:24:03,690 --> 00:24:07,140
that's probably one of the best
things I've learned is just
415
00:24:07,140 --> 00:24:10,440
being able to be an active
listener, and mentorship and
416
00:24:10,470 --> 00:24:13,980
realizing what those kids can
actually do for us. That's
417
00:24:13,980 --> 00:24:14,730
pretty powerful.
418
00:24:15,120 --> 00:24:17,160
So who's been the biggest mentor
in your
419
00:24:17,160 --> 00:24:21,810
life? Well, this guy right here
for sure. Mike Krishnan said
420
00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:26,370
absolutely. I mean and so this
is funny there's a Facebook post
421
00:24:26,370 --> 00:24:29,370
that always pops up right about
this time of year, maybe a month
422
00:24:29,370 --> 00:24:33,690
ago. I have mentored one of the
first times with him and I
423
00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:36,870
posted on Facebook man I love
this program. I would love to do
424
00:24:36,870 --> 00:24:39,690
this in the future if I could do
this full time I would but truly
425
00:24:39,690 --> 00:24:42,240
like that that set the ball in
motion for me like I said, I
426
00:24:42,240 --> 00:24:46,170
love working with kids. I love
the space. And it just took
427
00:24:46,170 --> 00:24:49,110
someone like Mike to say will
come along with me. You and
428
00:24:49,110 --> 00:24:51,090
that's what it was. I was
interning at Big Brothers Big
429
00:24:51,090 --> 00:24:55,050
Sisters at the time. Not really
giving back to a lot of kids. I
430
00:24:55,050 --> 00:24:57,780
was matched at the time, but
that was about it. He goes well
431
00:24:57,810 --> 00:24:59,970
why don't you come take some
kids honey I need some more lady
432
00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:02,910
is to take these young girls
out. So I thought well, okay, I
433
00:25:02,910 --> 00:25:06,900
can try that. And I mean
drastically changes a projection
434
00:25:06,900 --> 00:25:08,100
of my life. Certainly.
435
00:25:09,569 --> 00:25:12,989
Wow. Yeah. Okay. Mike,
436
00:25:13,200 --> 00:25:14,460
go and follow that up, Mike.
437
00:25:16,440 --> 00:25:18,120
Unknown: Well, it was it was
really interesting. Yeah. When
438
00:25:18,120 --> 00:25:23,310
I, when I took the job with Big
Brothers Big Sisters. I really
439
00:25:23,310 --> 00:25:25,800
didn't know much about them. The
first hunt that we did with Big
440
00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:30,000
Brothers Big Sisters in Oh 999.
Rather, I had a neighbor that
441
00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:33,000
said, Hey, you're involved with
these outdoor groups. Can you
442
00:25:33,000 --> 00:25:35,460
take can you find some
volunteers to take some kids out
443
00:25:35,460 --> 00:25:38,160
on the first upland season they
had for youth in Kansas, and I
444
00:25:38,160 --> 00:25:41,970
said, sure, but I didn't know
anything about Big Brothers Big
445
00:25:41,970 --> 00:25:45,270
Sisters. I've never worked with
kids, underprivileged like that
446
00:25:45,270 --> 00:25:47,760
before, because I raised two
boys, they went to scouts, they
447
00:25:47,760 --> 00:25:50,520
went to soccer, they were in
karate, and all those kinds of
448
00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:54,810
things. But I never had any
interaction with kids, that
449
00:25:54,810 --> 00:25:57,000
we're being served by
organizations like Big Brothers
450
00:25:57,000 --> 00:26:00,930
and Big Sisters. And when we did
our first hunt, it was an upland
451
00:26:00,930 --> 00:26:05,220
hunt. And we took some kids out
pheasant hunting. And I figured
452
00:26:05,610 --> 00:26:08,910
these 1314 year old kids are
going to walk our tail off,
453
00:26:08,910 --> 00:26:12,210
we're not going to be able to
keep up. But what was shocking,
454
00:26:12,210 --> 00:26:17,100
we walk to fields, and these
kids were physically done. I
455
00:26:17,100 --> 00:26:20,070
mean, they, they couldn't go to
another field. I was walking
456
00:26:20,070 --> 00:26:23,610
along with this one young man.
He was a little pudgy. But he
457
00:26:23,610 --> 00:26:26,850
wasn't, you know, wasn't fatter.
He hit me just a little on the
458
00:26:26,850 --> 00:26:31,980
pudgy side, little shape. And
he's read in the face, and
he's
459
00:26:31,980 --> 00:26:35,220
huffing and puffing. And I said,
Do you want me to carry your gun
460
00:26:35,220 --> 00:26:38,970
for you? And he said, Oh, yeah,
please. But, but the thing that
461
00:26:38,970 --> 00:26:41,610
struck me when we got done with
the hunt, and we were talking
462
00:26:41,610 --> 00:26:43,980
about it, and everybody was
talking about the birds, they
463
00:26:43,980 --> 00:26:46,950
shot and everything. Every one
of those kids wanted to go
464
00:26:46,950 --> 00:26:50,490
again. They were physically
exhausted, and they couldn't
465
00:26:50,490 --> 00:26:53,940
wait to go again, that really
kind of struck things where
466
00:26:53,940 --> 00:26:56,370
there might be something to
this. This was this was pretty
467
00:26:56,370 --> 00:26:56,760
cool.
468
00:26:57,210 --> 00:26:59,820
Michael Proctor: Yeah, it goes
to show like setting up events
469
00:26:59,820 --> 00:27:02,520
for kids. I feel like we all
have to think we have to have
470
00:27:02,520 --> 00:27:06,210
these unrealistic expectations
and the standards of shooting a
471
00:27:06,210 --> 00:27:10,260
trophy buck or hitting a bag
limit of pheasants. They just
472
00:27:10,260 --> 00:27:13,470
simply want an invitation and
the opportunity to ask questions
473
00:27:13,470 --> 00:27:16,230
and experience something they've
never experienced before.
474
00:27:16,230 --> 00:27:18,120
Because that's what happens
every time you go outdoors. I
475
00:27:18,120 --> 00:27:20,640
don't care how many times you've
been you learn something new,
476
00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:24,450
you see something new every time
you go. And so imagine it being
477
00:27:24,450 --> 00:27:28,200
such a green kid. Oh, going out
there. Yeah, I mean, you can see
478
00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:31,950
their heads explode sometimes
like wow, I had no idea that was
479
00:27:31,950 --> 00:27:35,100
a thing, I had no idea my hips
would be burning so badly trying
480
00:27:35,100 --> 00:27:37,920
to trunk through this, this
thick grass, you know, upland
481
00:27:37,920 --> 00:27:40,530
hunting, I can't carry my gun
anymore. My arms are tired.
482
00:27:41,250 --> 00:27:44,610
They've just never experienced
that before. But the important
483
00:27:44,610 --> 00:27:47,220
thing there is that they just
have an invitation to go, you
484
00:27:47,220 --> 00:27:48,450
have the opportunity to go.
485
00:27:50,430 --> 00:27:54,750
Unknown: It's really fun to
watch these kids when you when
486
00:27:54,750 --> 00:27:58,980
you put the put a gun in a kid's
hand. That's not been around
487
00:27:58,980 --> 00:28:03,480
guns very much the the self
confidence that it builds in
488
00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:06,390
those kids and the
responsibility that they start
489
00:28:06,390 --> 00:28:11,460
to feel, you can see the change
just right then and there. But
490
00:28:11,460 --> 00:28:16,320
it's really amazing. Kids are
are capable, a lot more than
491
00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:18,510
what I think a lot of people
give them credit for being able
492
00:28:18,510 --> 00:28:22,860
to do. And again, when you put a
gun in a kid's hand, especially
493
00:28:22,860 --> 00:28:26,130
in today's society, where guns
kind of have a four letter word
494
00:28:26,130 --> 00:28:31,110
meaning to them. It it's a big
thing for these kids. I'm
495
00:28:31,110 --> 00:28:34,110
putting a gun in this kid's
hand, and I'm trusting him not
496
00:28:34,110 --> 00:28:37,830
to shoot me. And I mean, that's
a big thing for kids. And the
497
00:28:37,830 --> 00:28:40,800
responsibility they take in this
in the self confidence they come
498
00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:43,860
away from that with really
translates into a lot of other
499
00:28:43,860 --> 00:28:46,200
things in their life and makes
makes things better for them.
500
00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:50,160
They walk into school the next
day. And look what I did. Look
501
00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:53,430
what I did. Pretty is pretty
special stuff. Yeah.
502
00:28:54,810 --> 00:28:58,020
Michael Proctor: So do you think
it has more to do with who's
503
00:28:58,020 --> 00:29:02,820
putting the gun in their hand?
Or the trust that is required to
504
00:29:02,820 --> 00:29:03,810
put the gun in their hand?
505
00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:08,130
Unknown: I think that a lot of
both. I mean, certainly with our
506
00:29:08,130 --> 00:29:12,300
program. We're working with
mentors who are loved the
507
00:29:12,300 --> 00:29:15,000
outdoors and that kind of thing
there. That's a certain type of
508
00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:18,030
individual that's that's working
with these kids. But just
509
00:29:18,030 --> 00:29:20,910
putting a gun in their hands and
trusting them with they're going
510
00:29:20,910 --> 00:29:23,370
to be safe with that. That's a
big thing for kids.
511
00:29:23,879 --> 00:29:26,819
Michael Proctor: Yeah. You mean
You mean I can be trusted to be
512
00:29:26,819 --> 00:29:28,349
responsible? Right.
513
00:29:28,379 --> 00:29:30,389
Unknown: Yeah. I mean, in
today's society, there's there's
514
00:29:30,389 --> 00:29:32,819
not enough of that. I don't
think No, there's not enough of
515
00:29:32,819 --> 00:29:36,299
that. I'm, I'm on the older side
of things. So things were
516
00:29:36,299 --> 00:29:39,419
different when I was growing up,
but I don't think kids accept
517
00:29:39,419 --> 00:29:42,569
the same type of responsibility
or have the opportunity to
518
00:29:42,569 --> 00:29:44,999
accept the same type of
responsibility that I did when I
519
00:29:44,999 --> 00:29:47,999
was a kid. I was driving a
tractor when I was 12 years old
520
00:29:48,269 --> 00:29:52,589
plowing field. You don't see
that as much today. And that
521
00:29:52,649 --> 00:29:55,229
it's a lot of responsibility
that you guys trusted me to
522
00:29:55,229 --> 00:29:56,189
plant his crop.
523
00:29:56,820 --> 00:29:59,310
Michael Proctor: Yeah. And just
then the ownership and pride
524
00:29:59,310 --> 00:30:03,510
that comes along Along with
taking that first step, right? I
525
00:30:03,510 --> 00:30:05,790
don't know if you've ever been
beside a kid who's ever shot
526
00:30:05,790 --> 00:30:09,240
their first deer or shot their
first pheasant and that dog
527
00:30:09,240 --> 00:30:12,660
brings it back. I mean, truly
the It's electric. They're just
528
00:30:12,660 --> 00:30:16,710
like vibrating with energy of
positivity. And you can you
529
00:30:16,710 --> 00:30:20,040
know, the moment you get back in
the truck, they are, they are on
530
00:30:20,040 --> 00:30:22,830
their phones, they are
Snapchatting. They're FaceTiming
531
00:30:22,830 --> 00:30:25,470
their parents look what I did,
look what I'm bringing home. And
532
00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:30,180
that confidence I don't think
can be given to them any other
533
00:30:30,180 --> 00:30:33,630
way than just allowing them the
chance to go fail, but also
534
00:30:33,630 --> 00:30:38,580
learn and then find success. And
it's pretty special. Mike has a
535
00:30:38,580 --> 00:30:40,920
really good story, I'm going to
make him tell it because I think
536
00:30:40,920 --> 00:30:43,590
it's important. I think it's
really important for people to
537
00:30:43,590 --> 00:30:48,600
hear. And I think it also turns
the table on hunting can be seen
538
00:30:48,600 --> 00:30:51,150
as a pretty lucrative sport,
right? So we talked about
539
00:30:51,150 --> 00:30:53,250
disposable income, if you don't
have it, you're probably not
540
00:30:53,250 --> 00:30:55,440
going to be hunting lunch,
right? If you do, you could
541
00:30:55,950 --> 00:31:00,690
spend a pretty good penny in
this sport, whether it's been on
542
00:31:00,720 --> 00:31:04,350
buying licenses, firearms, ammo,
you know, paying outfitters to
543
00:31:04,350 --> 00:31:07,410
take you across country, right?
Like, you can spend as much as
544
00:31:07,410 --> 00:31:12,360
you want to. But for some of
these kids, just the opportunity
545
00:31:12,360 --> 00:31:16,260
to put protein in their freezer
is pretty profound. And Mike has
546
00:31:16,260 --> 00:31:19,530
a really good story about that.
And I want him to tell it
547
00:31:19,530 --> 00:31:23,010
because it's really important, I
think, really paints a landscape
548
00:31:23,010 --> 00:31:26,850
to the main reason why we need
this program is it's not about
549
00:31:26,850 --> 00:31:30,240
shooting a trophy buck. It's
truly about teaching principle
550
00:31:30,270 --> 00:31:31,680
and responsibility.
551
00:31:32,490 --> 00:31:36,810
Unknown: All right. And I'll
probably my voice will probably
552
00:31:36,810 --> 00:31:41,790
break as I tell this because it
happens every time I do. But I
553
00:31:41,790 --> 00:31:44,250
had a guy when I was working at
Big brothers had a guy called me
554
00:31:44,250 --> 00:31:48,750
in. And he had heard me on a
radio show, talking about our
555
00:31:48,750 --> 00:31:53,370
program. And he called up and he
said, Mike, I heard that your
556
00:31:53,370 --> 00:31:56,040
story about what you're doing.
And he said God spoke to me and
557
00:31:56,040 --> 00:32:00,840
said I needed to get involved.
And I haven't had a lot of folks
558
00:32:01,200 --> 00:32:05,070
that I've met that God talk to
you like that. So I didn't
559
00:32:05,070 --> 00:32:10,680
bother calling him back. But he
was pretty persistent and sent
560
00:32:10,680 --> 00:32:15,210
me an email and, and finally got
me on the phone and and because
561
00:32:15,210 --> 00:32:17,040
I was working through Big
Brothers and Big Sisters. I
562
00:32:17,040 --> 00:32:20,940
said, Okay, listen, he lived up
into Kansas City. I said, go to
563
00:32:20,940 --> 00:32:24,690
the big brothers office, sign up
as a mentor, and they'll match
564
00:32:24,690 --> 00:32:28,320
you up with a kid and you can go
hunting. And big brothers does a
565
00:32:28,320 --> 00:32:31,440
great job of screening all their
volunteers. So I thought, if
566
00:32:31,440 --> 00:32:34,680
this guy is a bit on the loony
side, then getting screened out
567
00:32:34,680 --> 00:32:39,210
we wouldn't have to worry about
so. But he calls me up later and
568
00:32:39,210 --> 00:32:44,610
he gets matched with a little
kid named George. And Bruce was
569
00:32:44,610 --> 00:32:48,990
the guy that called me in. Bruce
took this kid on every hunting
570
00:32:48,990 --> 00:32:51,840
opportunity that I provided. I
mean, he lived up in the Kansas
571
00:32:51,840 --> 00:32:55,380
City area, he took him on to
pheasant hunts in Abilene. We
572
00:32:55,380 --> 00:32:58,440
did a pheasant hunt in Garden
City, he drove across the state
573
00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:01,890
to take this get on a pheasant
hunt. And I mean every
574
00:33:01,890 --> 00:33:06,480
opportunity that I had, Bruce
was signing up George floor. And
575
00:33:07,170 --> 00:33:12,360
shortly after they had been
matched for a while. George came
576
00:33:12,360 --> 00:33:19,230
home with report cards. And it
said the principal said we don't
577
00:33:19,230 --> 00:33:22,860
know George anymore. George has
completely changed the
578
00:33:22,860 --> 00:33:26,820
competence, the self assuredness
that he was showing in school.
579
00:33:27,000 --> 00:33:31,560
It was a different kid. And
Bruce belong to a hunting club
580
00:33:31,560 --> 00:33:35,490
up there and they had a lease
and and they had this big nine
581
00:33:35,490 --> 00:33:40,710
point buck on trail camera. And
the guys had leased that they
582
00:33:40,710 --> 00:33:43,410
tried archery, they tried
muzzleloader. They tried all.
583
00:33:43,950 --> 00:33:48,690
Nobody had managed to harvest
that buck. And Bruce asked if
584
00:33:48,690 --> 00:33:52,290
it's okay if he took George out
and they said yeah, and by the
585
00:33:52,290 --> 00:33:54,660
way, because he was just going
to harvest the dough. You just
586
00:33:54,690 --> 00:33:57,420
wouldn't. You know, most of the
hunts we do for deer we just for
587
00:33:57,420 --> 00:34:01,830
our harvesting dose. But they
said it's that big
Brett comes
588
00:34:01,830 --> 00:34:06,540
out you have George take a shot
at it. Well, shears world that
589
00:34:06,540 --> 00:34:12,210
morning. This big buck comes out
and George harvested. So it was
590
00:34:12,210 --> 00:34:15,390
a big deal. I mean, everybody
was all excited about and they
591
00:34:15,390 --> 00:34:19,260
went back and they they Georgia
didn't have his family didn't
592
00:34:19,260 --> 00:34:22,500
have the wherewithal to take it
to a processor. So Bruce took it
593
00:34:22,500 --> 00:34:25,230
his house and they they
butchered the deer and they were
594
00:34:25,230 --> 00:34:29,010
grinding up some of the meat in
the burger and George asked him
595
00:34:29,010 --> 00:34:29,430
he said
596
00:34:33,389 --> 00:34:34,829
Michael Proctor: well, it's a
powerful story.
597
00:34:35,429 --> 00:34:36,599
Unknown: I'll let you finish it.
598
00:34:37,799 --> 00:34:40,019
Michael Proctor: Oh, no, you
gotta finish it. Oh, God.
599
00:34:40,230 --> 00:34:43,590
Mike Christensen: The kid says,
Would this be good in Hamburger
600
00:34:43,590 --> 00:34:49,680
Helper? And Bruce said Well,
yeah, be great. kid said, Well,
601
00:34:49,680 --> 00:34:52,260
that's. That'd be really good.
He said we haven't. We've been
602
00:34:52,260 --> 00:34:54,990
eating hamburger helper for
months and haven't had any meat
603
00:34:54,990 --> 00:34:58,080
to put in it. I mean, it's,
yeah.
604
00:34:58,500 --> 00:35:02,340
Michael Proctor: Wow. In Korea.
doubly impactful, I mean, the
605
00:35:02,370 --> 00:35:05,250
the cracking in your voice and
the emotion there is is
606
00:35:05,280 --> 00:35:09,780
authentic, you know, and it's
it's just the reality that so
607
00:35:09,780 --> 00:35:14,760
many of the the these kids face
in living in poverty, right is
608
00:35:14,760 --> 00:35:17,370
that you know you and I might
don't have to worry about Mike
609
00:35:17,430 --> 00:35:19,830
as well don't have to worry
about we have chicken at home,
610
00:35:19,830 --> 00:35:23,430
we have hamburger at home, we
have resources to go to the
611
00:35:23,430 --> 00:35:27,030
store, if we don't have that at
home to cook for the evening. A
612
00:35:27,030 --> 00:35:29,640
lot of these kids love these
families just don't, I mean,
613
00:35:29,670 --> 00:35:32,970
they just don't have the access
to the income to go purchase it.
614
00:35:32,970 --> 00:35:35,730
And they certainly don't have
the experiences and
615
00:35:35,730 --> 00:35:39,090
opportunities that George was
awarded to go on, and actually
616
00:35:39,090 --> 00:35:42,930
harvest this year that provided
multiple meals, not just one
617
00:35:42,930 --> 00:35:46,380
hamburger helper meal, right,
multiple meals for his family.
618
00:35:46,380 --> 00:35:50,370
And I don't know where George is
today. But imagine if we call
619
00:35:50,370 --> 00:35:53,310
him I think he'd probably
reflect on that same experience,
620
00:35:53,310 --> 00:35:56,880
the same way you do. Certainly
seen with Bruce, is how
621
00:35:56,880 --> 00:35:59,280
impactful that is when you zoom
out and realize the bigger
622
00:35:59,280 --> 00:36:02,550
picture here, right? Like we're
living on borrowed time. And we
623
00:36:02,550 --> 00:36:06,000
get caught up in some really
silly thing sometimes. And when
624
00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:09,330
you look at what's important, it
is just putting a handout and
625
00:36:09,330 --> 00:36:12,660
serving somebody else and saying
how can I help you and watching
626
00:36:12,660 --> 00:36:13,320
that unfold?
627
00:36:14,550 --> 00:36:16,500
Mike Christensen: I keep telling
Brittany, this would make me
628
00:36:16,500 --> 00:36:18,990
tell that story because I break
up every time and this was
629
00:36:19,530 --> 00:36:24,480
probably 10 or 12 years ago that
this happened. But it's a pretty
630
00:36:24,480 --> 00:36:25,530
powerful story. I
631
00:36:25,530 --> 00:36:27,660
Michael Proctor: think it's
everything. I mean, I think it's
632
00:36:27,660 --> 00:36:31,500
the reason why our program
should exist not only in in
633
00:36:31,500 --> 00:36:35,100
Kansas, but across the country.
Because there are a lot of
634
00:36:35,100 --> 00:36:37,530
Bruce's out there, there are a
lot of George's out there who
635
00:36:37,530 --> 00:36:41,580
are longing for that opportunity
and those resources, and we've
636
00:36:41,580 --> 00:36:42,900
got the opportunity to give it
to him.
637
00:36:43,620 --> 00:36:47,580
So what I heard between that
relationship, and the program
638
00:36:47,580 --> 00:36:52,830
facilitating that is Bruce was
able to so in value to George,
639
00:36:53,430 --> 00:36:57,330
at a level that nobody else in
his world was able to do. First
640
00:36:57,330 --> 00:37:04,080
of all, second of all, I would
imagine that George harvesting
641
00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:06,870
that deer or any other whatever
other animals went in the
642
00:37:06,870 --> 00:37:11,100
freezer to provide for the
family went a long way towards
643
00:37:11,100 --> 00:37:17,220
breaking the poverty cycle
mindset. Yep. And more than
644
00:37:17,220 --> 00:37:22,410
that, probably, I would hope,
move Georgia into a place of
645
00:37:22,650 --> 00:37:27,210
saying, wow, I've been able to
be trusted with these kinds of
646
00:37:27,210 --> 00:37:30,540
experiences, this level of value
has been sowed into me, and how
647
00:37:30,540 --> 00:37:35,700
can I pass that on. So when he's
older, but to recognize, you
648
00:37:35,700 --> 00:37:38,820
know, the people in his world
might be doing the best they can
649
00:37:38,820 --> 00:37:41,730
with what they've got.
Absolutely. And this program is
650
00:37:41,730 --> 00:37:46,230
so cool, because we get to have
people that have more resources,
651
00:37:46,230 --> 00:37:51,000
more ability more time to come
in, so into kids who really are
652
00:37:51,000 --> 00:37:57,150
starving for it. And in some
cases, like they actually also
653
00:37:57,150 --> 00:37:58,500
really need some meat.
654
00:38:00,239 --> 00:38:03,089
Unknown: Mentoring is such a
powerful thing. And again,
655
00:38:03,119 --> 00:38:07,619
before I got involved with this
program, way back when I had my
656
00:38:07,619 --> 00:38:11,939
kids took them to practice to
care, my kids, coach, some
657
00:38:11,939 --> 00:38:15,839
little league and some soccer
but until you spend some time
658
00:38:16,019 --> 00:38:19,319
with a young boy, or young girl
in the blind, and you hear their
659
00:38:19,319 --> 00:38:23,039
stories and and you're able to
share with them what you have,
660
00:38:24,029 --> 00:38:26,879
that mentoring really can make a
huge difference in a young man's
661
00:38:26,879 --> 00:38:31,619
life, young girls life. And I
think in today's society,
662
00:38:31,649 --> 00:38:35,639
especially we need to have more
and more men step up and warm
663
00:38:35,639 --> 00:38:39,119
women, everybody step up and do
more mentoring give these kids
664
00:38:40,589 --> 00:38:43,319
understanding of what what
really happened, what what they
665
00:38:43,319 --> 00:38:44,519
can achieve in the world.
666
00:38:45,330 --> 00:38:47,730
Michael Proctor: It's amazing
what a kid can do when they hear
667
00:38:47,760 --> 00:38:50,880
I believe in you, I'm here for
you, you know, how can I help
668
00:38:50,880 --> 00:38:55,200
you? And that's what it's not
about shooting that a big book
669
00:38:55,260 --> 00:38:57,540
that was great for George, I'm
really happy for him. But
670
00:38:57,900 --> 00:39:02,580
there's more more to that. And I
think he probably found a lot of
671
00:39:02,580 --> 00:39:05,790
self confidence in that and has
hopefully been able to steward
672
00:39:05,790 --> 00:39:08,640
that to somebody else too.
That's the bigger thing, right
673
00:39:08,640 --> 00:39:11,550
is is making generational
impact, you know, potentially
674
00:39:11,550 --> 00:39:15,810
breaking cycles of generational
poverty, but also generational
675
00:39:15,810 --> 00:39:19,080
cycles of serving others. I
think we live in a pretty self
676
00:39:19,080 --> 00:39:22,020
serving world. We have social
media that you know, is
677
00:39:22,020 --> 00:39:25,350
constantly promoting self
promotion, right? This kind of
678
00:39:25,350 --> 00:39:27,780
shakes that tree pretty
aggressively and says no, like
679
00:39:27,780 --> 00:39:29,820
you're gonna get out there and
you're gonna go sit with
680
00:39:29,820 --> 00:39:32,070
somebody in a blind and you're
just going to be there for them
681
00:39:32,130 --> 00:39:34,920
with without anything else
making noise in the background.
682
00:39:35,340 --> 00:39:39,300
Yeah. So both Liam and Coulson
got their first year last year.
683
00:39:39,300 --> 00:39:42,420
Yeah. And we're still eating
that meat love it actually
684
00:39:42,420 --> 00:39:45,300
looked at the reason again, I
really had to defrost it because
685
00:39:45,300 --> 00:39:50,580
some of it's getting like
frozen. Yes. I don't know.
686
00:39:50,640 --> 00:39:55,500
Anyways, that's, that's gonna
might be challenging, but they
687
00:39:55,530 --> 00:39:58,260
it's we looked at it this year,
and we're like, Okay, do we want
688
00:39:58,260 --> 00:40:00,720
to go do those like we still
have all this deer from last
689
00:40:00,720 --> 00:40:04,080
year, the two you got? And
they're like, no, we want to go
690
00:40:04,080 --> 00:40:08,160
try, you know, hunting for geese
this year. And so that's, that's
691
00:40:08,160 --> 00:40:11,580
what we're going to try to do
for ourselves, but they get so
692
00:40:11,580 --> 00:40:13,770
much pride when they're like,
Well, I think this one's my
693
00:40:13,770 --> 00:40:15,030
deer. I think it's my deer.
694
00:40:15,300 --> 00:40:16,530
Tonight. That's my bird.
695
00:40:16,830 --> 00:40:19,320
Because it's all kind of mixed
in there. And we don't really
696
00:40:19,320 --> 00:40:22,950
know. But like, yeah, you guys
both put meat in the freezer.
697
00:40:23,520 --> 00:40:27,690
And, actually, so when Daniel
came over, and he talked about,
698
00:40:27,690 --> 00:40:32,310
he's like, he's like, You guys
put meat in the freezer. I mean,
699
00:40:32,310 --> 00:40:35,250
he really made it a big. So
like, you're a provider?
700
00:40:35,370 --> 00:40:38,970
Exactly. He's like you provide
for your family? And you know,
701
00:40:38,970 --> 00:40:43,020
not that that's that burdens on
their shoulders. But, but still,
702
00:40:43,020 --> 00:40:46,830
I mean, that's a big deal, you
know, that they're like, is, is,
703
00:40:47,190 --> 00:40:51,810
it's kind of like grabbing the
mic moment. But like, so Liam
704
00:40:51,810 --> 00:40:54,900
started doing Rubik's Cubes. He
started sewing cubes earlier
705
00:40:54,900 --> 00:40:57,240
this year. And it started off
with he got to keep for
706
00:40:57,240 --> 00:41:01,920
Christmas. And then a government
leaders like, Hey, Dad, do you
707
00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:06,420
think you think I can do this?
But that's what every kid's
708
00:41:06,420 --> 00:41:09,600
asking the question. Do you
think I've got what it takes.
709
00:41:10,200 --> 00:41:13,590
And whether it's a Rubik's cube
or hunting, putting meat in the
710
00:41:13,590 --> 00:41:18,390
freezer, stepping up to the
plate? Hey, Dad, you think I can
711
00:41:18,390 --> 00:41:22,320
do this? Yeah. And in the time
that we spent in the blinds,
712
00:41:22,320 --> 00:41:24,300
because we had to spend quite a
bit of time and there was a lot
713
00:41:24,300 --> 00:41:28,830
of really drives, and a lot of
gas burn. But we got it. And
714
00:41:28,830 --> 00:41:33,480
man, they were just over the
moon. But for for all the kids
715
00:41:33,480 --> 00:41:36,120
that don't get to experience
that, let alone somebody they
716
00:41:36,120 --> 00:41:40,290
look up to and like spend
quality time. And this kind of
717
00:41:40,290 --> 00:41:44,040
leads into I guess this does
lead into maybe a new segment
718
00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:49,710
that we can talk about in
this
podcast of what does it look
719
00:41:49,710 --> 00:41:53,160
like for us to live the best
life possible with the time we
720
00:41:53,160 --> 00:41:57,240
have left? Because time is
limited, we only have so much of
721
00:41:57,240 --> 00:42:00,990
it. And when we're selling time
into others that that conveys
722
00:42:00,990 --> 00:42:07,590
value in ways that nothing else
will. Right. So, Mike, what what
723
00:42:07,590 --> 00:42:10,110
do you do? Or what does it look
like for you to live the best
724
00:42:10,110 --> 00:42:11,640
life possible at the time you
have left?
725
00:42:12,750 --> 00:42:16,650
Unknown: You know, I'm in my 70s
now and people say hey, are you
726
00:42:16,650 --> 00:42:21,900
going to retire? And, you know,
I tell them, I don't think I can
727
00:42:21,900 --> 00:42:26,940
have this much fun if I retired.
So probably not anytime soon.
728
00:42:28,620 --> 00:42:33,270
But it's the self satisfaction
that you get from seeing these
729
00:42:33,270 --> 00:42:38,160
kids harvest their first deer or
shoot a pheasant or catch a bass
730
00:42:38,160 --> 00:42:44,910
or have that outdoor experience.
That that's just, I get to do
731
00:42:44,910 --> 00:42:51,060
that all the time. And see that
all year round. It's just
732
00:42:51,060 --> 00:42:55,740
tremendously rewarding, being
able to help kids have those
733
00:42:55,740 --> 00:43:00,330
types of experiences. And I
think anybody would express
734
00:43:00,330 --> 00:43:03,180
that. I mean, anybody that loves
to coach, that's what they do it
735
00:43:03,180 --> 00:43:06,570
for. They like seeing those kids
succeed. And that's what this
736
00:43:06,570 --> 00:43:09,750
mentoring program lets people do
it lets them get out there and
737
00:43:09,750 --> 00:43:13,170
help a kid succeed. And we just
need to have more and more of
738
00:43:13,170 --> 00:43:16,230
that it does so much for these
kids that build their self
739
00:43:16,230 --> 00:43:19,380
confidence and, and their self
worth and all those kinds of
740
00:43:19,380 --> 00:43:23,250
things. That gives them the
impetus to go ahead and be
741
00:43:23,250 --> 00:43:24,270
successful on their own.
742
00:43:26,610 --> 00:43:31,350
Michael Proctor: Yeah, yeah.
Yeah. Yeah, I think there's a
743
00:43:31,350 --> 00:43:36,240
lot to be said about serving
others. I certainly think that's
744
00:43:36,270 --> 00:43:40,530
kind of my angle on that as well
as what can I do today to better
745
00:43:40,530 --> 00:43:44,280
the life of somebody else?
Whether that be in our camp,
746
00:43:44,280 --> 00:43:46,710
which is serving kids, or if
it's in my husband's camp
747
00:43:46,710 --> 00:43:50,010
serving young adults with
intellectual disabilities or you
748
00:43:50,010 --> 00:43:53,940
know, even in your role helping
those steward their finances for
749
00:43:54,630 --> 00:43:58,200
an impactful future for their
families or entirely into their
750
00:43:58,200 --> 00:44:01,410
church, whatever it looks like,
right? It's how can we set our
751
00:44:01,410 --> 00:44:04,380
own agenda down and say, you
know, Lord, what do you want me
752
00:44:04,380 --> 00:44:06,930
to do with this? What do you
want me to do with my my talent,
753
00:44:06,930 --> 00:44:10,350
you've given me my the treasures
you given me to serve others to
754
00:44:10,350 --> 00:44:13,590
make an impact, because we are
not going to be here forever. We
755
00:44:13,590 --> 00:44:17,910
have borrowed time, always
borrowed time. So I get excited
756
00:44:17,910 --> 00:44:21,480
about thinking through that lens
every day. I certainly tried to.
757
00:44:21,870 --> 00:44:26,430
Yeah. And I have no idea maybe
where the answer on this
758
00:44:26,430 --> 00:44:30,450
question will end. But Mike, you
know, so you named it pass it
759
00:44:30,450 --> 00:44:35,430
on? Did you have a mentor that
pass things on to you? My dad,
760
00:44:35,580 --> 00:44:37,620
your dad is Yeah,
761
00:44:37,710 --> 00:44:40,140
Unknown: I had some, some
coaches that were pretty good,
762
00:44:40,140 --> 00:44:43,950
but my dad was the one that I
looked up to for everything.
763
00:44:44,340 --> 00:44:49,050
Okay. And then you know, a lot
of kids don't have that today. I
764
00:44:49,500 --> 00:44:53,070
when they talk about growing up
privileged I, I feel like I grew
765
00:44:53,070 --> 00:44:55,440
up privileged. We didn't have
money, we didn't have a lot of
766
00:44:55,440 --> 00:44:57,570
things, but I had a mom and dad
that were there all the time.
767
00:44:58,230 --> 00:45:01,710
And, again, I think that's where
Mentoring can play such a huge
768
00:45:01,710 --> 00:45:07,470
role in today's society is. So
many kids don't have that kind
769
00:45:07,470 --> 00:45:12,090
of privilege like I did. And
having a mentor in your life
770
00:45:12,090 --> 00:45:16,320
that can help you see what, what
you're capable of. That's a huge
771
00:45:16,320 --> 00:45:16,620
thing.
772
00:45:16,980 --> 00:45:19,590
Michael Proctor: Yeah, I think
it's really easy to idolize
773
00:45:19,590 --> 00:45:22,740
public figures, right? Like,
let's talk about Taylor Swift
774
00:45:22,740 --> 00:45:26,070
for a second, when was last time
you open the internet or turn on
775
00:45:26,070 --> 00:45:27,990
the TV and it wasn't talked
about, but it's like, man, it's
776
00:45:27,990 --> 00:45:31,680
so easy to idolize these people
who aren't in our lives, like
777
00:45:31,740 --> 00:45:35,100
those people aren't interacting
in our day to day lives. And
778
00:45:35,130 --> 00:45:38,760
it's just so important to seek
out people who are in person who
779
00:45:38,760 --> 00:45:42,300
can pour into you. And that's
exactly what mentorship does.
780
00:45:42,300 --> 00:45:44,910
It's exactly what these kids are
looking for. So when they
781
00:45:44,910 --> 00:45:48,420
finally find that person to do
it with them, right to go in the
782
00:45:48,420 --> 00:45:52,230
outdoors to experience hunting,
to disconnect from their phones,
783
00:45:52,230 --> 00:45:55,710
it's like, oh, this is a lot.
This is deeply rooted. This is
784
00:45:55,710 --> 00:45:59,010
not superficial anymore, right?
Like this is a connection I can
785
00:45:59,010 --> 00:46:01,020
carry on for a long time.
786
00:46:01,380 --> 00:46:03,240
Travis Kelce is really putting
her on the map.
787
00:46:04,469 --> 00:46:07,799
I love it. I had to bring that
up. I mean, it just it it was
788
00:46:07,829 --> 00:46:10,199
very relevant in today's
conversation. I think
789
00:46:12,390 --> 00:46:14,160
Unknown: you can't do anything
without bringing up Travis
790
00:46:14,160 --> 00:46:14,880
Kelce. And
791
00:46:15,180 --> 00:46:18,240
Michael Proctor: I am a huge
fan. I don't hate you or Swift.
792
00:46:18,240 --> 00:46:21,360
So I'm just gonna camp out in
the middle. But I would love to
793
00:46:21,360 --> 00:46:22,260
stop hearing about it.
794
00:46:23,969 --> 00:46:26,699
My youngest brother, he was
actually a Taylor Swift Fan,
795
00:46:26,729 --> 00:46:33,779
possibly before he was achieved.
Okay, okay. He's here for it. I
796
00:46:33,779 --> 00:46:36,509
saw that I sent it to him his
first person I thought of, I was
797
00:46:36,509 --> 00:46:37,589
like your dreams come true.
798
00:46:40,110 --> 00:46:42,030
You can't go up from here. This
is it.
799
00:46:43,860 --> 00:46:50,040
Anyways, back back on. Yeah. To
talk about Yeah. Yeah. And
800
00:46:50,040 --> 00:46:54,390
that's so that's so great to
hear that you grew up with a dad
801
00:46:54,390 --> 00:46:59,040
who was president who sewed into
you? I think something that's
802
00:46:59,040 --> 00:47:02,340
helpful for me to keep in mind
is how am I showing up to be
803
00:47:02,340 --> 00:47:08,160
present for my kids for my for
my boys rally? Because it's so
804
00:47:08,160 --> 00:47:11,820
easy to get sucked into? Okay,
how can we distract ourselves?
805
00:47:12,660 --> 00:47:16,290
How can we do something without
really having to do anything?
806
00:47:17,280 --> 00:47:19,680
And how can we have a
conversation without talking
807
00:47:19,680 --> 00:47:26,970
about anything? Okay. But it's,
you know, whether it's in a
808
00:47:26,970 --> 00:47:30,990
blind or even just riding in the
car, we don't listen to music,
809
00:47:30,990 --> 00:47:33,870
we just we can talk. So we're
all kind of stuck in the same
810
00:47:33,870 --> 00:47:37,830
spot together and within
earshot. And that's, so that can
811
00:47:37,830 --> 00:47:41,580
get good but but how do we how
do we stay present? How do we
812
00:47:41,580 --> 00:47:45,660
really so into those that we
shouldn't be sowing into that or
813
00:47:45,660 --> 00:47:49,860
looking to us for that we can
stay top, stay present in our
814
00:47:49,860 --> 00:47:50,970
mindset for them.
815
00:47:51,840 --> 00:47:54,600
Unknown: You know, I think a lot
of folks hear about mentoring
816
00:47:54,600 --> 00:47:57,180
and they think, Gosh, I couldn't
do that I don't have anything to
817
00:47:57,180 --> 00:48:02,580
bring to the table. And what
they don't understand is, it's
818
00:48:02,610 --> 00:48:06,810
time. Time is the most important
thing. I I spend a lot of time
819
00:48:06,810 --> 00:48:09,120
Mike Pierce used to be the
writer for the Wichita Eagle
820
00:48:09,120 --> 00:48:12,900
outdoor stuff. And he came on on
a bunch of our hunts with us
821
00:48:12,900 --> 00:48:22,380
and, and he told me once kids
spell love, T I me and that
822
00:48:22,380 --> 00:48:26,220
really stuck. You know, that's,
that's all the mentors are
823
00:48:26,220 --> 00:48:29,460
looking to spend some time with
these kids. You don't have to be
824
00:48:29,460 --> 00:48:32,490
the best deer hunter in the
world is the best target shooter
825
00:48:32,490 --> 00:48:35,850
in the world. Just spend time
with these kids and give them
826
00:48:35,850 --> 00:48:37,950
opportunities to find themselves
out there.
827
00:48:38,820 --> 00:48:41,400
Michael Proctor: Is Liam
highlighted they actually prefer
828
00:48:41,430 --> 00:48:42,750
if they're better than you.
829
00:48:44,340 --> 00:48:46,260
Unknown: Well, I told all the
kids that I mentored I said as
830
00:48:46,260 --> 00:48:48,660
soon as they started shooting
better with an idea that I was
831
00:48:48,660 --> 00:48:55,140
gonna go get another one. That
never happened. So they did
832
00:48:55,140 --> 00:48:55,710
quite well.
833
00:48:58,830 --> 00:49:05,730
Michael Proctor: Good. What is
what's one of the biggest
834
00:49:05,730 --> 00:49:09,390
questions you get when people
are asking you about pass it on?
835
00:49:13,680 --> 00:49:18,000
They biggest question we
probably get is twofold, about
836
00:49:18,030 --> 00:49:21,450
about mentorship, and it's
usually around not having the
837
00:49:21,450 --> 00:49:24,840
confidence to go or commit to
that or being worried about not
838
00:49:24,840 --> 00:49:29,220
having, you know, enough time to
commit. Right. And the other one
839
00:49:29,220 --> 00:49:31,530
is, you know, how are y'all
floating your boat? How are
840
00:49:31,530 --> 00:49:33,840
y'all funded? What do you what
do you do? What are your next
841
00:49:33,840 --> 00:49:37,140
steps? How do people like the
average Joe to folks like you,
842
00:49:37,140 --> 00:49:40,560
Mike, who have sponsored our
program, you know, get involved
843
00:49:40,560 --> 00:49:43,530
in? I would say those are the
biggest questions we field.
844
00:49:44,640 --> 00:49:46,890
Probably because we do a good
job as you can tell, telling
845
00:49:46,890 --> 00:49:49,470
stories about these kids and
their experiences.
846
00:49:51,989 --> 00:49:53,969
Unknown: Yeah, the whole
question about mentorship, but
847
00:49:53,969 --> 00:49:57,149
just just, it's just a matter of
time. Just come into it. Yeah,
848
00:49:57,179 --> 00:49:59,309
we're not looking for the
greatest hunters in the world.
849
00:49:59,999 --> 00:50:03,449
If you don't know how to feel
rested, you're come out anyway.
850
00:50:03,449 -->
00:50:06,449
We got other volunteers that can
help you with that. Yeah. So
851
00:50:07,230 --> 00:50:09,150
Michael Proctor: yeah, kids
don't need perfect they need
852
00:50:09,150 --> 00:50:11,550
present like you mentioned.
That's all they need. Yep.
853
00:50:12,000 --> 00:50:15,930
One of the most freeing quotes I
ever heard about parenting is
854
00:50:15,930 --> 00:50:19,950
that you actually only have to
get it right like 40% of the
855
00:50:19,950 --> 00:50:23,910
time, seriously, like, you only
have to not screw up 40% of the
856
00:50:23,910 --> 00:50:29,520
time as a parent to raise
healthy adjusted kids. And that
857
00:50:29,520 --> 00:50:32,970
feels pretty good. Feels a
couple the other percentage with
858
00:50:32,970 --> 00:50:36,030
love. And there's a lot that can
be, you know, accomplished there
859
00:50:36,030 --> 00:50:38,010
for sure. Yeah, for sure.
860
00:50:38,219 --> 00:50:41,999
You just know how to love
another little person. You know,
861
00:50:42,479 --> 00:50:46,919
when you screw up, I want to
apologize. Yeah. Make amends and
862
00:50:46,919 --> 00:50:50,519
shove it under the rug. Yeah,
absolutely. Now we're talking
863
00:50:50,519 --> 00:50:50,999
about all kinds
864
00:50:51,000 --> 00:50:55,020
of No, I think that's super
replicable. And then the mentor
865
00:50:55,020 --> 00:50:57,720
space do. I mean, I don't know
how many times I've sat there
866
00:50:57,720 --> 00:51:00,810
and told kids, I don't know how
to answer your question. I'm
867
00:51:00,810 --> 00:51:03,030
going to try to look it up or
find someone who can answer it
868
00:51:03,030 --> 00:51:06,720
for you, whether it be about
hunting or about navigating a
869
00:51:06,720 --> 00:51:09,570
life crisis. Right. Like, I
think that's really important
870
00:51:09,570 --> 00:51:11,280
that you're transparent, honest
with kids.
871
00:51:12,540 --> 00:51:16,860
And they, they catch that. You
want kids to be transparent with
872
00:51:16,860 --> 00:51:20,400
you honest with you. Yeah. Well,
why don't we start by
873
00:51:20,460 --> 00:51:23,310
leading with that? Yeah, time to
be vulnerable folks. Yeah,
874
00:51:23,370 --> 00:51:24,540
absolutely. Yeah.
875
00:51:26,670 --> 00:51:30,060
Talk about where you see this
headed, how many states are in,
876
00:51:30,840 --> 00:51:36,540
like how its funding? Limited to
some extent, right. But we're,
877
00:51:36,570 --> 00:51:38,340
what's the future of pass it on?
878
00:51:39,239 --> 00:51:42,899
Unknown: I, I'm excited about
it. I really don't see a ceiling
879
00:51:42,929 --> 00:51:47,579
for what we're trying to do. The
high school trapshooting program
880
00:51:47,579 --> 00:51:51,389
where we started with this
thing. Is continues to grow
881
00:51:51,389 --> 00:51:55,289
across the country. We haven't
even started reaching out to
882
00:51:55,289 --> 00:51:58,139
other cohorts out there. Like
the National Archery in the
883
00:51:58,139 --> 00:52:00,869
Schools program. There's a
million kids across the country
884
00:52:00,869 --> 00:52:04,289
shooting, archery in school.
These kids all have an
885
00:52:04,289 --> 00:52:08,909
opportunity to get outdoors.
There's a program called
886
00:52:08,909 --> 00:52:12,179
outdoors tomorrow foundation
that's teaching outdoor
887
00:52:12,179 --> 00:52:16,019
adventure classes in schools,
Mays High School has won. All of
888
00:52:16,019 --> 00:52:20,189
these different organizations
have kids that need to have
889
00:52:20,189 --> 00:52:22,499
further opportunities to get
outdoors. And that's where
890
00:52:22,949 --> 00:52:27,359
acetone really is making our
mark. These kids are trapped
891
00:52:27,359 --> 00:52:29,339
shooters, let's give them a
chance to get out in the field
892
00:52:29,339 --> 00:52:32,069
and go hunting. These kids are
done archery, let's give them a
893
00:52:32,069 --> 00:52:34,289
chance to get in the field.
These kids have gone through an
894
00:52:34,289 --> 00:52:37,589
outdoor adventure class, let's
get them in the field. And and
895
00:52:37,589 --> 00:52:40,259
we don't want to give them just
as many different opportunities
896
00:52:40,259 --> 00:52:43,139
as they want to go. So they've
been deer hunting once and they
897
00:52:43,139 --> 00:52:46,199
want to go again. Great. Let's
go again. They've been doesn't
898
00:52:46,199 --> 00:52:49,289
honeymoon. So they want to go
again. We don't have any
899
00:52:49,289 --> 00:52:51,809
problems with that. We want to
get these kids out as many times
900
00:52:51,809 --> 00:52:55,589
as we can. So it's, you know, we
see us going into other states
901
00:52:55,589 --> 00:52:59,669
and just continuing to grow as
fast as financial resources will
902
00:52:59,669 --> 00:53:00,449
let us basically,
903
00:53:01,290 --> 00:53:03,750
Michael Proctor: do you have
more kids than you do have hunts
904
00:53:03,750 --> 00:53:04,260
right now?
905
00:53:04,890 --> 00:53:08,220
Unknown: Not yet. Not yet. And
that's one of the things that's
906
00:53:08,220 --> 00:53:12,150
really stellar about our
program. Yeah. You know, our
907
00:53:12,180 --> 00:53:15,330
program coordinators are making
these opportunities available.
908
00:53:15,330 --> 00:53:18,870
And when people hear about our
program, they call and say, Hey,
909
00:53:19,860 --> 00:53:24,570
come from my property. I mean,
it's really been amazing. As our
910
00:53:24,570 --> 00:53:27,480
program has grown, we had a guy
call us from Southwest Kent or
911
00:53:27,480 --> 00:53:30,510
southeast Kansas and say, Hey,
can you get 50 kids down here to
912
00:53:30,510 --> 00:53:36,090
hunt deer? 50 Well, I don't know
if I get that many. Yes. 50 he
913
00:53:36,120 --> 00:53:37,890
his properties over Mumba deer?
914
00:53:39,150 --> 00:53:40,260
Michael Proctor: The opposite?
Oh,
915
00:53:40,500 --> 00:53:43,260
yes. Some depredation issues
going on there.
916
00:53:45,239 --> 00:53:47,639
Unknown: But we we just continue
getting more and more
917
00:53:47,639 -->
00:53:48,809
opportunities. So
918
00:53:49,590 --> 00:53:53,880
Michael Proctor: Okay. Talk
about what what it looks like
919
00:53:54,150 --> 00:53:59,580
for kids or parents to get so So
Kate. Katie tabi is going to be
920
00:53:59,640 --> 00:54:02,820
a guest on the next one or two,
which will be well doesn't
921
00:54:02,820 --> 00:54:05,190
matter the day of the week. But
anyway, so she's come on next by
922
00:54:05,190 --> 00:54:08,010
sharing your information with
her because she had an interest
923
00:54:08,010 --> 00:54:11,760
but what are the qualifications
for kids to get involved? What
924
00:54:11,760 --> 00:54:17,070
do they need to do like, like
describe that because I would
925
00:54:17,070 --> 00:54:20,430
hear if I don't have if I don't
have guns if I don't have land
926
00:54:20,430 --> 00:54:22,650
if I don't have access, and I've
experienced that I've never done
927
00:54:22,650 --> 00:54:25,530
hunters education myself as a
parent. I'm sitting back
928
00:54:25,530 --> 00:54:29,760
thinking I don't even Yeah,
that's not attainable. Is the
929
00:54:29,760 --> 00:54:30,840
first thought through my mind.
930
00:54:30,870 --> 00:54:36,300
Yeah, yeah. So what is great
about living in modern day and
931
00:54:36,330 --> 00:54:39,720
with great technological
advancements is hunter education
932
00:54:39,720 --> 00:54:43,260
is readily available. So any
kids 11 years of age, you know,
933
00:54:43,950 --> 00:54:47,070
we even serve some kids into the
the college range depending on
934
00:54:47,070 --> 00:54:49,710
their involvement or what their
you know, their life looks like
935
00:54:49,710 --> 00:54:55,530
but you can take on or read in
person. Safe hunters.com yep.com
936
00:54:55,560 --> 00:54:59,970
Safe hunters.com Go there, look
up your state you can get a look
937
00:55:00,000 --> 00:55:03,300
First of all in person classes
and see if there's availability
938
00:55:03,300 --> 00:55:07,140
if not there, the NRA has done a
great job of creating an online
939
00:55:07,140 --> 00:55:10,200
platform to where you can take a
very interactive, I've walked
940
00:55:10,200 --> 00:55:13,200
through it very interactive
online Hunter ed course and
941
00:55:13,200 --> 00:55:16,620
become certified that way. So
that you know, checks off the
942
00:55:16,620 --> 00:55:19,590
first qualifying thing that you
need to be right 100 certified,
943
00:55:19,590 --> 00:55:23,640
and that is a insurance reason.
And also, we don't ever want to
944
00:55:23,640 --> 00:55:27,240
syndicate out into the field,
not prepared, right? Sure. You
945
00:55:27,240 --> 00:55:29,640
don't put a kid on a bicycle
without training wheels first.
946
00:55:29,730 --> 00:55:32,010
Well, maybe sometimes there are
some of those kids, some kids
947
00:55:32,010 --> 00:55:34,440
who excel that way, right? But
we're not going to do that for
948
00:55:34,440 --> 00:55:36,840
that kiddo. We're not going to
do that to the mentor, we're
949
00:55:36,840 --> 00:55:39,360
just not going to take on that
liability, that kind of
950
00:55:39,870 --> 00:55:44,340
situation. But outside of that.
Looking at our calendar, it's
951
00:55:44,340 --> 00:55:47,520
super easy to navigate, you can
search for all the events we
952
00:55:47,520 --> 00:55:50,010
have on our calendar by a zip
code. So you can see what's
953
00:55:50,040 --> 00:55:52,740
what's in my area within 30
miles. And that's on your
954
00:55:52,740 --> 00:55:57,360
website. Yeah, outdoor mentors
dot o RG. Search it sign up for
955
00:55:57,360 --> 00:55:59,820
it right then in there. It takes
about two minutes maybe to sign
956
00:55:59,820 --> 00:56:02,910
up for an event. And then you're
you put directly in contact one
957
00:56:02,910 --> 00:56:05,100
of our coordinators who's
responsible for that event,
958
00:56:05,610 --> 00:56:08,820
making sure they know, you know,
Hey, Mike, we saw you signed up
959
00:56:08,820 --> 00:56:11,850
for a upland hunt, okay, you
need this hunting license, you
960
00:56:11,850 --> 00:56:15,510
can buy it here, you need this
waterfowl stamp, or this, this
961
00:56:15,510 --> 00:56:19,230
hip stamp or this deer tag or
this turkey tag. Here's how you
962
00:56:19,230 --> 00:56:21,420
take all those steps to get
that, Oh, you don't have a
963
00:56:21,420 --> 00:56:23,700
firearm. And that's okay.
Because we're going to make sure
964
00:56:23,700 --> 00:56:27,180
this is vetted with really good
mentors who have resources and,
965
00:56:27,330 --> 00:56:31,680
and things such as ammo,
firearms, maybe ablaze orange
966
00:56:31,680 --> 00:56:34,080
vest, if you don't have one. So
we're going to make sure you're
967
00:56:34,080 --> 00:56:35,820
taken care of through that whole
process.
968
00:56:35,969 --> 00:56:39,779
So this is set up to where
they're going to take them under
969
00:56:39,779 --> 00:56:42,089
their wing and help them get
that done so long as they're at
970
00:56:42,089 --> 00:56:45,089
least 11 with a license or
headhunters education
971
00:56:45,089 --> 00:56:50,729
certificate. You're talking,
talking about scalability and
972
00:56:50,729 --> 00:56:55,709
looking to add new states? What
if somebody's like, Hey, we've
973
00:56:55,739 --> 00:56:58,619
either had an idea similar, and
you guys have built the
974
00:56:58,619 --> 00:57:01,979
platform, you have the program,
you're gaining a lot of steam, a
975
00:57:01,979 --> 00:57:05,519
lot of reputation. Who should
they reach out to? If they're
976
00:57:05,519 --> 00:57:08,519
like, You know what, I think we
can get some going over here.
977
00:57:10,140 --> 00:57:10,950
Unknown: Yeah, Brittany a call?
978
00:57:10,980 --> 00:57:13,440
Michael Proctor: Yeah, yeah,
we're always entertaining
979
00:57:13,440 --> 00:57:16,350
conversations. We get emails
probably on a weekly basis. I am
980
00:57:16,350 --> 00:57:19,890
in. I'm in South Dakota, y'all
have programming plans up here
981
00:57:19,890 --> 00:57:23,400
soon. Because I want to, I want
to be part of it. We certainly
982
00:57:23,400 --> 00:57:26,100
love that you never know how,
where a conversation will lead.
983
00:57:26,100 --> 00:57:30,360
You never know what steps follow
after that. So certainly please
984
00:57:30,360 --> 00:57:33,240
reach out to us. All of our
social media is very engaging,
985
00:57:33,270 --> 00:57:35,430
you know, send us a message on
there, we'll get back to you.
986
00:57:35,850 --> 00:57:38,460
All of our email addresses and
phone numbers are on our website
987
00:57:38,460 --> 00:57:41,280
as well, too. So you can connect
with us pretty, pretty directly
988
00:57:41,310 --> 00:57:41,910
pretty quickly.
989
00:57:42,029 --> 00:57:45,689
Awesome. Talk about funding,
what are your funding goals? And
990
00:57:45,689 --> 00:57:46,709
what's that look like?
991
00:57:48,120 --> 00:57:53,610
Yeah, well, we are big funding
goals, always. So we run a lot
992
00:57:53,610 --> 00:57:56,340
of different raffles throughout
the year. People ask us this all
993
00:57:56,340 --> 00:57:59,010
the time, where do you get your
money, right? Raffles, we host
994
00:57:59,040 --> 00:58:02,490
special fundraising events like
a sporting clays event, a golf
995
00:58:02,490 --> 00:58:06,780
tournament? We're writing grants
often. And we're always pitching
996
00:58:06,780 --> 00:58:10,170
to folks who are in a corporate
sponsor situation, right where
997
00:58:10,170 --> 00:58:14,160
they might need to or want to
steward some of their income or
998
00:58:14,160 --> 00:58:16,770
revenue and just say, hey, we
just like what you're doing,
999
00:58:16,770 --> 00:58:19,800
keep doing what you're doing. So
we have various items, or
1000
00:58:19,800 --> 00:58:23,220
various avenues we can run down
there for donations, we also
1001
00:58:24,330 --> 00:58:27,900
take just straight donations as
well. Like if you have ammo that
1002
00:58:27,900 --> 00:58:30,060
you're trying to get rid of,
because you don't have a use for
1003
00:58:30,060 --> 00:58:34,080
it. Or if you have some some
extra cash flow you ran into and
1004
00:58:34,080 --> 00:58:36,660
you want to steward that. We'd
love to connect with you and
1005
00:58:36,660 --> 00:58:39,870
just chat with what chat with
you about what that goes to
1006
00:58:40,740 --> 00:58:43,110
sharing the stories that we're
sharing today. I think that's
1007
00:58:43,110 --> 00:58:46,950
really important. Mike
mentioned, you know, roughly 125
1008
00:58:46,950 --> 00:58:49,710
grand, you know, per program
coordinator. So it is a numbers
1009
00:58:49,710 --> 00:58:53,460
game. If we want to scale and
create sustainability, you know,
1010
00:58:53,460 --> 00:58:55,980
that number just has to keep,
you know, increasing. So we're
1011
00:58:55,980 --> 00:59:00,180
certainly trying to do an
active, take an active role and
1012
00:59:00,180 --> 00:59:03,840
doing a better job at creating
that sustainability for us.
1013
00:59:05,969 --> 00:59:08,009
Sounds like you're doing a great
job of pulling
all the levers
1014
00:59:08,039 --> 00:59:11,519
that are available between grant
state funding through the
1015
00:59:11,999 --> 00:59:17,069
stewardship are the PR dollars,
and then corporate sponsorship.
1016
00:59:17,099 --> 00:59:19,349
And you've got some big
corporate sponsors too, right?
1017
00:59:20,370 --> 00:59:24,180
Yeah, yeah. Very thankful for
corporate sponsors. You know,
1018
00:59:24,180 --> 00:59:27,180
Savage Arms, Remington federal
ammunition, Walmart, Inc, which
1019
00:59:27,180 --> 00:59:30,720
is here in Wichita. These folks
all recognize we're serving a
1020
00:59:30,720 --> 00:59:33,900
target audience, which are their
future customers, which is
1021
00:59:33,900 --> 00:59:37,440
really great for them because if
kids aren't growing up hunting,
1022
00:59:38,010 --> 00:59:40,470
people don't need to buy Savage
Arms anymore. They don't need to
1023
00:59:40,470 --> 00:59:43,530
buy Remington ammunition. They
don't need to buy processing
1024
00:59:43,530 --> 00:59:46,890
equipment to butcher their own
deer at home. So they see the
1025
00:59:46,890 --> 00:59:50,850
importance of funding
organizations like ours, because
1026
00:59:50,850 --> 00:59:54,480
that is going to fund their
future. You know, revenue as
1027
00:59:54,480 --> 00:59:59,010
well. Yeah. Target Audience Yes,
target audience buzzword
1028
01:00:02,760 --> 01:00:06,180
Well, Mike, you want to close it
up with maybe just sharing
1029
01:00:06,480 --> 01:00:09,330
something you learned from from
your best mentor?
1030
01:00:10,889 --> 01:00:13,349
Unknown: You know, Dad was
always getting those kids out
1031
01:00:13,349 --> 01:00:16,709
anytime he could. He was always
there for us. And that's what we
1032
01:00:16,709 --> 01:00:19,409
want to have the mentors to be
somebody that's there for these
1033
01:00:19,409 --> 01:00:25,079
kids and can help them show the
way in the outdoors. I, in
1034
01:00:25,079 --> 01:00:28,229
working with Big Brothers all
these years, one of the things
1035
01:00:28,229 --> 01:00:31,769
that they tell everybody, and
that you hear from the mentors,
1036
01:00:32,219 --> 01:00:36,749
is the mentors get more out of
it than the kids do. And that's,
1037
01:00:37,559 --> 01:00:41,309
that's a true story, folks. When
you mentor a kid, when you spend
1038
01:00:41,309 --> 01:00:44,189
time with them, you're gonna get
more out of it than the kids do.
1039
01:00:44,489 --> 01:00:47,759
Every time. So step up, give us
a call.
1040
01:00:48,239 --> 01:00:51,569
Michael Proctor: Awesome.
Awesome. Yeah, actually, I'm
1041
01:00:51,569 --> 01:00:57,689
about to go head to lunch with
one of my mentors. Yeah, well,
1042
01:00:58,319 --> 01:01:02,819
thank you, Brittany and Mike are
for everything that you do. And
1043
01:01:03,299 --> 01:01:10,439
all the value you're sowing into
tomorrow's leaders and dads and
1044
01:01:11,279 --> 01:01:12,419
moms and all that.
1045
01:01:12,989 --> 01:01:16,319
Yeah. Well, thanks for creating
a platform to share that and for
1046
01:01:16,319 --> 01:01:17,039
doing what you do.
1047
01:01:17,430 --> 01:01:21,750
Yeah. And Brittany, you run a
podcast as well. Yeah, yeah. We
1048
01:01:21,750 --> 01:01:22,230
didn't even talk.
1049
01:01:22,260 --> 01:01:26,190
Yeah, yeah. Well, I just I like
storytelling. I like talking. I
1050
01:01:26,190 --> 01:01:28,440
got the gift of gab. So that's
yeah. It's called the Great
1051
01:01:28,440 --> 01:01:32,520
Plains outdoors podcast with my
co host, Rob MacDonald. And we
1052
01:01:32,520 --> 01:01:35,610
just share stories all across
the Great Plains, whether it be
1053
01:01:35,610 --> 01:01:39,540
about a national conservation
organization or talking to fish
1054
01:01:39,540 --> 01:01:42,810
biologists who are in charge of
breeding trophy walleye and some
1055
01:01:42,810 --> 01:01:45,720
of the lakes around us. It's a
few far and in between just
1056
01:01:45,720 --> 01:01:47,970
really good content on there.
Yeah. Thanks.
1057
01:01:48,210 --> 01:01:50,700
All right. Well, I'll link that
in the show notes description as
1058
01:01:50,700 --> 01:01:55,770
well. Yep. So this has been Mike
proctor with leading edge
1059
01:01:55,770 --> 01:01:58,710
financial planning as the
sponsor for real wealth podcast.
1060
01:01:59,520 --> 01:02:06,360
On up just exploring, pass it on
outdoors, outdoor mentors, and,
1061
01:02:07,650 --> 01:02:11,490
yeah, let's invest in tomorrow's
youth. I'd encourage you to
1062
01:02:11,490 --> 01:02:15,420
follow the link to donate if you
feel so compelled to steward
1063
01:02:15,420 --> 01:02:19,650
some of your money to help
multiply value into tomorrow's
1064
01:02:19,650 --> 01:02:24,030
youth. And definitely like and
subscribe and stay tuned for
1065
01:02:24,030 --> 01:02:24,720
more upsets