This news brief is our annual mailing providing a quick update as to what is happening with the Parma Rod and Gun Club.
Please make it a habit to check the WEB SITE CALENDAR for dates and times the range might be closed for certain range activities. The web site is maintained on a very frequent basis and it will provide you with the most accurate information. Our web master is also the person to contact to schedule events at the gun club site.
THE WEB ADDRESS HAS CHANGED PLEASE MAKE
A NOTE:
Please find attached with this news brief
your application for membership for the year 2005. The gate lock combination
will change the 3rd weekend in February this year. Please get your
memberships as soon as possible. Also note our new mailing address as: PO Box
1414, Caldwell Idaho 83606. This address change better accommodates our person
who will be processing member applications now and in the future. She lives in
Caldwell and will be able to respond to correspondence much quicker this way.
For many years one of our founding
members, Frank Lee, has been the person who has processed membership
applications. Frank was also very involved in the Wild game dinner and in the
clubs Hunter Education program. Frank is a WW 11 veteran and like all of our
WW 11 vets he has gotten older and has had some serious health problems this
past year and will be unable to continue in these responsibilities. We wish
Frank the very best and extend our great appreciation to him for his many
years of service to the club and Parma Idaho community.
For the past couple of years, Ken Blanscet
Jr., has been involved helping Frank Lee with the hunter ed program. Ken is a
certified hunter ed instructor and he has stepped up to take over the program
that Frank Lee has run for these many years. Ken has a full hunter ed program
scheduled for the coming year. The PRG board of directors appreciates Ken’s
taking this important program. If you know of some young person who needs
hunter ed you can reach Ken at 208-722-7219.
The PRG Wild game dinner is slated for
January 22, 2005. Location is the Parma Senior Citizen Center and the door
opens at 6PM with dinner at 7pm with the Auction starting around 8PM. We would
encourage club members to come and support this dinner. Tickets are $25.00
dollars per person. This includes the chance at a nice door prize and of
course an exotic dinner. This is on of the major fundraisers for our
organization and the money it generates goes along ways to helping fund the
many improvements we have been able to do at the range over the years. We are
also always looking for good help in the kitchen and in setting up for the
dinner.
For tickets you can contact any board
member or officer. You can also call Dottie Neher at 208-454-2136 or Neill
Goodfellow at 208-452-4183 to reserve tickets. Please come and support your
club. There will be no ticket sales at the door.
RANGE IMPROVEMENTS AND PROJECTS
This past year a number of improvements
have been made. First the dedicated Hunter Education site has been
constructed. The metal structure with the concrete floor is in place. We hope
to be able to complete it to the point that it will be usable for the several
hunter ed programs that will be held at the range this coming year. In line
with that project the BOD has discussed further expansion of that site to
include covers and concrete flooring east and west of the present structure.
Not only can hunter ed programs be conducted there, but any out door shooting
program could conceivably use the same facility.
The board made the decision this past year
to get out of the archery program. It has been a challenge to keep this
program alive in the sense of having interested people run it. As such the
club sold off all of the archery 3-D targets and other items used in the
archery program for $2,000.00. These targets and gear went to an organization
that will use them and we felt we got a very good price for the items
involved.
The red storage container has been
renovated into a storage and maintenance building. Located therein are the
several pieces of equipment we own including the DR Mower, the lawn tractor,
sprayers, burners, and other tools. It has been wired for electricity with
lights and outlets and we have also installed an air compressor. The target
storage next to the red container was also wired with outlets and lights and
outdoor lighting this past year.
Another of the clubs projects is expansion
of the shooting pits with a large pit being scraped out just south of the red
container. This pit is planned to have two additional wing pits one on each
side of the main pit. Eventually we plan on have good covers at these pits, or
at least the main pit. The main pit will have the potential of being a 100
plus yards in depth and will also contain a bank of pneumatic controlled
targets that could be used by a number of disciplines including local law
enforcement and in the MGM Match, which is being held at the PRG Club site.
This year PRG, Inc. will host two major
matches. The first is the MGM Ironman 3Gun match. This is a major 3Gun match
and brings shooters in from all over the country as well as some from other
countries. This will be the 4th year that the MGM Match has been
held at PRG. The second major match is the first State IDPA match ever held in
the state of Idaho. IDPA stands for International Defensive Pistol
Association. We have a very active group of IDPA shooters in the club and the
key people within this group have taken on the challenge of putting this match
on in September of 2005
Of course during the balance of the year
we have the standard shooting such as the Trap and Sporting Clays program that
is run by member Craig Thebo. This program has been running at PRG for many
years. Craig has been adding several new target throwers to this program
making it fun and interesting for those shot gunners that have come out and
given it a try.
A small group of CMP shooters are still
shooting the 100 yard reduced Course of fire anticipating the day when we will
be able to field a full 600 yard CMP program.
Another group of riflemen, the LRTR
shooters, that’s Long-range tactical rifle, are holding 3 or 4 shoots each
year. This group just completed their winter shoot, which is usually the
second or so weekend in January. This year’s furthest target was just over
950 yards. Their next shoot will take place in April but will be off the range
at another location.
Finally, IAWAC, Idaho Automatic Weapons
Collectors Assn. also holds a number of shoots during the year at Parma the
first of the year being the up-coming tracer shoot being held on the 29th
of January. This is a great bunch of folks, many who are members of both
clubs, who enjoy collecting shooting legal full auto firearms. Many of these
firearms are weapons used in both world wars, Korea, Vietnam and in other
sundry places around the world and will be on display and fired on the 29th
of this month. If you have not seen a tracer shoot, it’s a lot of fun and
very interesting.
It is time for the election of Officers.
That election will take place at the regular scheduled club meeting on the 27th
of January this year. A couple of board positions are being vacated this year
so if you are interested in serving or know some one who might be please
contact one of the club officers. There is a considerable amount of work and
other considerations involved in running an organization such as this and the
club needs its membership to be involved.
One last item of business does need to be addressed. This club has very low membership dues. It provides a great place to bring yourselves, friends and family to go shooting and to enjoy the shooting sports in a pleasant and safe location. There are a few people though that frankly, are just plain old pigs. These folks bring junk target material to the range, set up at the 50 or 100 yard line, make a general mess of things and then just leave the junk, boards, cardboard and other target material behind on the range. PLEASE CLEAN UP AFTER YOUR SELVES. There is a dumpster and garbage cans to dispose of these materials. YOU CAN ALSO TAKE THE STUFF HOME. We do not have paid employees that clean up this place. It’s other club members. Several things need to be done:
1. PLEASE PICKUP YOUR SPENT CENTERFIRE CARTRIDGES DO NOT LEAVE THEM ON THE RANGE.
2. IF THE GARBAGE IS FULL, UNHOOK IT FROM THE CHAINS THAT HOLD THE CAN FROM BEING BLOWN AWAY AND TAKE IT TO THE DUMPSTER.
3. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR TRASH TARGET MATERIAL DOWN RANGE, GO PICK IT UP AND PUT IT IN THE DUMPSTER OR TAKE IT HOME WITH YOU.
4. NO DRINKING ALCHOHOL ON THIS RANGE.
One project we are working on is a system
of target holders and equipment that could be left in place, under the covers,
for membership use. Several ideas have been put forward and this project is in
the research stage. If any member has any ideas that might be helpful to this
end, please contact Neill Goodfellow, Club secretary.
We hope this letter finds you and your
family well and we all look forward to a new and exciting year.
Regards,
Parma Rod and Gun Club, Inc., officers and board of directors.
Copyright © 2004-2005 Parma Rod & Gun Club