First Annual Buckeye Firearms Foundation Spring Youth Shoot a rousing success

Dillon Sportsman Center, in collaboration with the Buckeye Firearms Foundation (BFF), held its first annual Spring Youth Shoot May 20-21st. This event was added to the already existing Fall Youth Shoot due to its popularity and sellout crowds!

The coordination of this event was handled by Boy Scouts of American (BSA) Venturing Crew 45, who meets at Dillon and focuses mainly on shooting sports for youth ages 14-21. The Crew is ALWAYS accepting new members and those interested may visit www.venturecrew45.org for more information. The professionalism of these young men and women was quite evident as the weekend’s events went very smoothly and everyone had FUN, which was most important.

Pictured are the winners of the weekend-long .22 rifle competition from left to right:

1st place Logan Colson

2nd place Autumn Kirkingburg

3rd place Jaclyn Searfos

As always, the youth in attendance, who needed it, had the opportunity to take a firearms safety class and then enjoy unlimited time on the range working with over 15 qualified Safety Range Officers in disciplines such as shotgun, rifle, archery and pistol. BSA member youth were also able to work directly with counselors to complete merit badges.

Amazingly, and thanks to the sponsorship of the Foundation, the cost of this two-day event was only $5.00, which included ammunition, patches, NRA marksmanship rockers, certificates and trophies for those who qualified.

In addition to the youth shoot, Crew 45 held both a rimfire match and a three-gun competition which included participants from the event who showed proficient skills in their chosen discipline. Due to weather conditions, participation was lower than expected. So, as a bonus to those parents who braved the storms and stuck it out all weekend for their kids, they got the opportunity to shoot the three-gun match as well! By all accounts, they had just as much fun as the kids did!

Special thanks must go out to Aaron Kirkingburg for his dedication to this type of programming for youth, and to the BFF for funding this event. A big "thank you" also goes out to Hebron, Ohio's Clay’s Café, which donated food for all the volunteers who worked the event. Additionally, Valley View Awards of Newark, Ohio donated all trophies and medals that were awarded for this shoot.

Those in attendance stated that they had a wonderful time and would most definitely add this event to their annual calendar. For more information about this and other shooting/instructional opportunities, visit Buckeye Firearms Association's EVENTS page.

We hope to see YOU and your family at the next Youth Shoot coming up on the second weekend in September!

Andrea is a hobby photographer, adult Scouter, and firearms enthusiast who has been volunteering at the annual FALL BFF Youth Shoot for several years.