Newspaper Page Text
Page 8C
^Reporter
September 28, 2022
MONROE OUTDOORS by Terry W. Johnson
Primitive weapons season, specialty hunts start soon
Georgia deer hunters are eager for the chance to get to the woods and look for a buck
like this one. Specialty hunts on public lands let some hunters get started early.f Photo/
Georgia Dept, of Natural Resources Steve Kyles)
B y this time of the
year, Georgia
deer hunters are
chomping at the
bit for the Firearms Deer
Hunting Season to open.
However, as a prelude to
the main event the Georgia
Wildlife Resources Divi
sion (WRD) provides hunt
ers with the opportunity to
hunt deer early
by schedul
ing a number
of Specialty
Firearms Deer
Hunts, as well as
a Youth-Only,
and Primi
tive Weapons
Deer Hunting
Seasons.
Since the
Primitive Weap
ons Deer Hunt
ing Season runs
from Oct. 9
- Jan. 9, primitive weapons
hunters can hunt during
the seven days prior as well
as throughout the Firearms
Deer Hunting Season.
In recent years, the
WRD s definition of what
qualifies as a primitive
weapon has expanded.
As a result, the list of
legal weapons that can be
used during the Primitive
Weapons Deer Season
now includes muzzleload
ing rifles and shotguns and
archery equipment, as well
as air bows, and ,30-cal. or
larger air rifles. Scopes are
also legal.
A number of Wild
life Management Areas
(WMAs) also offer Primi
tive Weapons Deer Hunts.
Even though a Primitive
Weapons Only hunt will
not take place at our local
Rum Creek
WMA, hunts
are being held
at the nearby
B.F. Grant and
Sprewell Bluff-
West WMAs.
All bucks
taken on the
B.F. Grant hunt
(Dec. 17-19)
must have at
least 4 points
(one-inch or
longer) on ei
ther antler or a
minimum 15-inch outside
antler spread to be legal.
At the Sprewell Bluff-
West WMA, the hunt dates
are Oct. 9-10 and Oct. Il
ls (Buck Only).
The statewide Youth-
Only Firearms Deer Season
will coincide with the Oct.
9-15 segment of the State
wide Primitive Weapons
Deer Hunting Season. In
order to be eligible to hunt
during this season, young
sters must be 16 years or
younger.
In addition to all of these
deer hunting opportunities,
the WRD has also sched
uled 22 Specialty Deer
Hunts on WMAs across
the state. Such hunts have
evolved over time.
When I began my career
with what was then called
the Georgia Game and
Fish Commission the only
special deer hunts were
called Powder Puff Hunts.
Later these were renamed
Women Only Hunts.
Later a Lather and Son
Hunt specialty hunt was
added. The first Father
and Son Hunt was held on
the Cedar Creek Wildlife
Management Area near
Eatonton. In spite of its
name, which suggested
only boys could take part in
these hunts, they were open
to girls, too.
Senior Citizen Deer
Hunts were also offered.
These events were open to
Honorary and Disability
License holders.
A few years ago, the
WRD lumped all of these
various hunts under one
umbrella and named it the
Specialty Hunt. Specialty
hunts are held on state
WMAs.
According the WRD
regulations, “A specialty
hunt is only for Youth (16
years and younger), Ladies,
Disability License Holders,
Returning Georgia Vet
erans, Honorary License
holders, and hunters over
age 65.”
A Specialty Lirearms
Deer Hunt will be staged
on the Rum Creek WMA
Oct. 4-10.
Two other nearby WMAs
are holding Specialty Lire
arms Deer Hunts this year.
These WMAs are the Big
Lazer Creek (Nov. 19-21)
and Clybel (Nov. 23-28).
Lor more details concern
ing the rules and regula
tions regarding these fire
arms deer hunts, pick up a
copy of the 2022 edition of
the Georgia Hunting Regu
lations Guide at your local
license dealer. The guide
can also be viewed online
at gooutdoorsgeorgia.com.
Terry Johnson is retired Pro
gram Manager of the Georgia
Nongame-Endangered Wildlife
Program. He has written the
informative column Monroe
Outdoors’for the Reporter for
many years. His book, “A Jour
ney to Discovery,” is available
at The Reporter. Email him
at tjwoodduck@bellsouth.net.
TERRY W. JOHNSON
Tar Wars is coming to local schools to fight vaping & tobacco
Vaping Among Students Grades 6-12
25.00%
20.00%
15.00%
10.00%
5.00%
0.00%
■ 2015 ■ 2019
Sctf-Reported Vaping Use Amon& Student* Grade 6-12.2015- 2019 in &bb. Houston. WilViroon. Monroe. Jono. Tniggs. Baldwin. Crawford. Peach.
Laurens. Bleckley, Dodge, Washington. Johnson and Treutlen (GA Student I lea It h Survey. CA Department of Education) * Private schools not included.
Tar Wars Strike Lorce Initiative
is a national program to provide
early prevention tobacco and
vaping education for students. Its
purpose is to combat the grow
ing uptick in vaping device use
among middle and high school
students. A $100,000 grant from
Navicent Health Loundation an
nounced on Sept. 12 will help Tar
Wars reach approximately 20,000
4th and 5th graders in Monroe,
Baldwin, Bibb, Bleckley, Craw
ford, Dodge, Houston, Johnson,
Jones, Laurens, Peach, Treutlen,
Twiggs, Washington and Wilkin
son counties over the next three
school years.
The grant was awarded to
Georgia Healthy Lamily Alli
ance. According to the National
Institutes of Health, 3.6 million
youth — 1 in 5 high school stu
dents and 1 in 20 middle school
students — reported vaping in
2020. In Georgia, 26.1 percent of
high school students reported us
ing e-cigarettes in 2018, accord
ing to the Georgia Department of
Public Health.
Tar Wars educates elementary
school students about the danger
ous health effects of tobacco and
vape use, the costs associated
with using tobacco products
and the effective advertising and
messaging techniques used by the
tobacco and e-cigarette industry
to market its products to youth.
“The Navicent Health Loun-
dation is proud to support the
Georgia Healthy Family Alliance
and the Georgia Academy of
Family Physicians in their efforts
to reach these young children
and help them to make healthy
choices,” said Navicent Health
Foundation President Ellen John
son. “Children are our future and
the more we can do to set them
on a path for a healthy future, the
healthier our communities will
be in the years to come.”
Georgia Healthy Family Alli
ance (GHFA) is the philanthropic
arm of the Georgia Academy
of Family Physicians, (GAFP)
officially launched the Middle
Georgia Tar Wars Strike Force
initiative in Macon.The goal of
the Middle Georgia Strike Force
is to raise $250,000 to bring Tar
Wars to the 15 counties in central
Georgia.
Tar Wars is an evidence-
based, effective, and interactive
educational
program that
has impacted
the lives of
more than 10
million chil
dren world
wide since it’s
development
by family
physicians in
1988. GHFA
and GAFP
provide all
trainings,
lesson plans
and materi
als needed at
no cost to the schools, presenters
and volunteers.
Statewide Tar Wars Manager,
Abbey Carr, is building awareness
of the Tar Wars program. Plans
are to implement Tar Wars into
all Bibb County public elemen
tary schools in Fall 2022. Tar
Wars presenter training sessions
for the PE and/or health teachers
are scheduled for July and will
impact 4th and 5th graders at 20
elementary schools, approximate
ly 4,000 students. Outreach ef
forts to school leadership within
Middle Georgia will be extensive
and ongoing.
GHLA Director of Philan
thropy, Alexis Klima, is meeting
with potential individual donors,
businesses, foundations and orga
nizations for funding support and
outreach.
Georgias statewide average of
students in grades 6th - 12th
who admit to vaping is around 9
percent. There’s specific and ur
gent cause for concern in Middle
Georgia where most of the coun
ties within the Tar Wars Strike
Lorce region are near, or greater
than the statewide average.
Tar Wars has been acknowl
edged on the Georgia Depart
ment of Education’s website as
one of the preferred educational
activities for school children and
designated as one of the CDC’s
“Programs that Work” for to
bacco and vaping prevention.
All funds raised for the Middle
Georgia Strike Porces go directly
back into the communities in
which they are designated. Lor
more information contact Alexis
Klima at aklima@gafp.org.
Pregnancy Center
Continued from Page 5C
opportunities coming with the
ultrasound to the Center, saying
that mothers often first bond with
their babies when they see their
image through the ultrasound.
The Pregnancy Center board
of directors includes Pat McCoy,
chair; Lloyd Strickland, secretary;
Cindy Walker, coordinator of the
Choosing the Best program with
Monroe County Schools; Lynn
Devereaux, finances; Rev. Jar
rell, special events; Mrs. Charlie
Young, fundraising.
An appointment maybe made
at the Pregnancy Center any time
Monday-Saturday by calling 478-
994-3173. Regular open-door
hours are Monday, Tuesday and
Thursday 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Asked if the recent change in
abortion laws has had an impact
on the Pregnancy Center, Ashley
said the number of clients has in
creased and there are calls asking
for information about the laws.
The Center is helping to edu
cate people. A negative impact
has been that some pro-choice
groups have worked through
internet search engines to make it
more difficult to find the Preg
nancy Center on the internet.
Ashley emphasized that the
Pregnancy Center has many ad
vocates (the term that the center
with its new medical designation
is asked to use instead of Volun
teers’) with a variety of experi
ence to relate to different people.
“We love all women wherever
they’re at in their lives,” she said.
That includes women who
have had an abortion in the past,
women in their 40’s who find
themselves pregnant and ques
tion whether they want to start
over with another child and
women who are dealing with
postpartum or other depression.
Donations, especially diapers,
wipes and baby clothes, are
always welcome. And there is
the need for the special individu
als and couples to teach in the
Choosing the Best program,
which includes middle school
and high school. Last year there
wasn’t a teacher for the 7th grade
boys.
Ashley said she is sure God will
send the right people to help in
the mission, which is always to
point people to Christ. She said to
listen because He may be call
ing you for something you don’t
Pictured,
left to right,
are Martin
Ursetti, Jan
Humphrey,
Mike Kuhr.
Vietnam Veterans support CARE Cottage
The Vietnam Veterans of
America Chapter 946 pre
sented a donation of $500 and
made a $500 quarterly pledge
to the Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office Victim Services at the
C.A.R.E. Cottage.VVA Chap
ter president Martin Ursetti
and Vice President Mike Kuhr
presented the donation to Jan
Humphrey, director of the
Victim Services Unit at the
C.A.R.E. Cottage.
“This generous donation will
help provide and support the
various services available to the
victims of crimes in Monroe
County” said Humphrey. “We
are so thankful for the generos
ity of the Vietnam Veterans of
America Chapter 946!”