Hunting With My Father

Because of hunting I learned; more about myself, respect for my dad and mom, respect for nature and all the critters, to be a good person, and to serve my country and go to war to protect our freedom. <!--break--> <img class="dada-image-center" src="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/migrate_dada/927.jpg"><br>Hunting With My Father We are in that great part of the year that starts the hunting seasons so I would like to tell you a story and talk about safety. You see, each year in this great nation of ours people are killed because of unsafe behavior during the hunting season. This can be stopped. It has gotten much better over the years that I have been alive, but it isn't perfect yet. When I was finally at that age when my father felt I was old enough to start hunting with him, we discussed safety all the time. I would tag along with dad and he would demonstrate how to cross a fence, and how to carry a rifle so that the muzzle was always pointed in a safe direction. Most of all he would talk about game identification and making sure the shot wouldn't harm someone other than the animal you were shooting at. He always told me about looking beyond the animal to see what would happen if the bullet passed through it."Be sure of the back ground before you shot," he said. He made sure that the rifle was not loaded getting in and out of the vehicles. Still I was told, "Treat every firearm like it is loaded all the time." I was to double check every time I unloaded a weapon. Most of all, I marvel at his patience with me, now as I reflect on these years. Then when dad felt I was old enough, I was allowed to carry a .22 rifle along on the hunt. It was a single shot rifle and I had no ammo for it. This was to see that I always kept the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and safely handles this rifle. I did this for three years before I was allowed to hunt with a real rifle and ammo. During this time we learned that the father of one of my class mates was giving a National Rifle Association Class on Hunter Safety. Dad enrolled me in this class. Mr. Levrets had the class out at his home in Bandon, Oregon and we learned all about safety and shooting firearms. I got a card for passing the class and in a few years Oregon required this course for any new hunters. It is still required today. This course, and those who have taken it, have cut down on accidents in Oregon by a tremendous amount. We have had years in Oregon where no one was killed or injured during hunting season. Again we can thank the NRA for this great training and they were ahead of their time in getting it out to the shooting public. I still have that old .22 rifle I packed in those years. It's a Remington Model 510, single shot bolt action. It looks as good today as it did when my dad purchased it right after the Second World War when I was born. I used this same rifle to shoot competition in High School for our Rod and Gun Club. That's right, we had one at Bandon High School, and we brought rifles to school and nobody got shot. We fired the NRA indoor course at the Old Barn in the city park at Bandon. That was so much fun; too bad that our young people can't enjoy these freedoms today. That old rifle will be passed on to my oldest grandchild when she is old enough to handle it safely. For all you anti-gun type's and anti-hunting types, this is the tradition and life style of guns and hunting in America that is so precious to many of us. The memories of hunting and being with my dad are some of the greatest moments I have. I hunted with him every year, except when I was gone in the Navy, right up until he passed away, and we looked forward to that more than anything. It's sad today that many young girls and boys won't have dad's or mom's who will take them hunting and teach them this great life style. I learned more about myself and gained great respect for my dad and mom during these activities. I learned respect for nature and all the critters that lived in the world. Mostly I learned to be a good person and to enjoy our freedoms in American and see the value of them. So I was proud to serve my country and go to war to protect freedom for us and other nations. I learned to handle weapons safely so that no tragedy would harm these memories, Thank God. I miss my hunting partner now, but I know he is in a better place hunting with his brothers and teaching others to be safe, like he did for many years on earth. He was very proud of the fact that he got to teach many other young people this course, and so am I. He was a great teacher and father. God Bless America, God Bless our Troops still in Harms Way. Michael E. Cook, Coos County Sheriff, Retired

<p>Because of hunting I learned; more about myself, respect for my dad and mom, respect for nature and all the critters, to be a good person, and to serve my country and go to war to protect our freedom. </p> <!--break--><p><img class="dada-image-center" src="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/migrate_dada/927.jpg" /><br />Hunting With My Father </p> <p>We are in that great part of the year that starts the hunting seasons so I would like to tell you a story and talk about safety. You see, each year in this great nation of ours people are killed because of unsafe behavior during the hunting season. This can be stopped. It has gotten much better over the years that I have been alive, but it isn't perfect yet.<br /> When I was finally at that age when my father felt I was old enough to start hunting with him, we discussed safety all the time. I would tag along with dad and he would demonstrate how to cross a fence, and how to carry a rifle so that the muzzle was always pointed in a safe direction. </p> <p>Most of all he would talk about game identification and making sure the shot wouldn't harm someone other than the animal you were shooting at. He always told me about looking beyond the animal to see what would happen if the bullet passed through it."Be sure of the back ground before you shot," he said. </p> <p>He made sure that the rifle was not loaded getting in and out of the vehicles. Still I was told, "Treat every firearm like it is loaded all the time." I was to double check every time I unloaded a weapon. Most of all, I marvel at his patience with me, now as I reflect on these years. </p> <p>Then when dad felt I was old enough, I was allowed to carry a .22 rifle along on the hunt. It was a single shot rifle and I had no ammo for it. This was to see that I always kept the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and safely handles this rifle. I did this for three years before I was allowed to hunt with a real rifle and ammo. </p> <p>During this time we learned that the father of one of my class mates was giving a National Rifle Association Class on Hunter Safety. Dad enrolled me in this class. Mr. Levrets had the class out at his home in Bandon, Oregon and we learned all about safety and shooting firearms. I got a card for passing the class and in a few years Oregon required this course for any new hunters. It is still required today. </p> <p>This course, and those who have taken it, have cut down on accidents in Oregon by a tremendous amount. We have had years in Oregon where no one was killed or injured during hunting season. Again we can thank the NRA for this great training and they were ahead of their time in getting it out to the shooting public. </p> <p>I still have that old .22 rifle I packed in those years. It's a Remington Model 510, single shot bolt action. It looks as good today as it did when my dad purchased it right after the Second World War when I was born. I used this same rifle to shoot competition in High School for our Rod and Gun Club. That's right, we had one at Bandon High School, and we brought rifles to school and nobody got shot. We fired the NRA indoor course at the Old Barn in the city park at Bandon. That was so much fun; too bad that our young people can't enjoy these freedoms today. That old rifle will be passed on to my oldest grandchild when she is old enough to handle it safely. </p> <p>For all you anti-gun type's and anti-hunting types, this is the tradition and life style of guns and hunting in America that is so precious to many of us. The memories of hunting and being with my dad are some of the greatest moments I have. I hunted with him every year, except when I was gone in the Navy, right up until he passed away, and we looked forward to that more than anything. </p> <p>It's sad today that many young girls and boys won't have dad's or mom's who will take them hunting and teach them this great life style. I learned more about myself and gained great respect for my dad and mom during these activities. I learned respect for nature and all the critters that lived in the world. Mostly I learned to be a good person and to enjoy our freedoms in American and see the value of them. So I was proud to serve my country and go to war to protect freedom for us and other nations. I learned to handle weapons safely so that no tragedy would harm these memories, Thank God. </p> <p>I miss my hunting partner now, but I know he is in a better place hunting with his brothers and teaching others to be safe, like he did for many years on earth. He was very proud of the fact that he got to teach many other young people this course, and so am I. He was a great teacher and father. </p> <p>God Bless America,<br /> God Bless our Troops still in Harms Way. </p> <p>Michael E. Cook, Coos County Sheriff, Retired</p>