Federal Premium® Announces Finalists for the 2011 International Hunter Education Association (IHEA) Volunteer Instructor of the Year Award

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Federal Premium® Ammunition sponsors the International Hunter Education Association (IHEA) and supports volunteer shooting sports instructors who teach hunters education in North America. Students learn rifle, shotgun, handgun and general firearm safety, bow hunting, wildlife management and more. Federal has been sponsoring the IHEA Instructor of the Year Award for four years, and presents this year’s three finalists with a complimentary set of hunter education instruction materials.

ANOKA, Minn. - April 20, 2012--Federal Premium® Ammunition and the International Hunter Education Association (IHEA) have announced the finalists for the 2011 Volunteer Instructor of the Year Award. Mike Grooms of Colorado, Jimmy Peagler of Florida and Floyd Bohler of Missouri were selected from a pool of nominations submitted by coordinators from a number of state and provincial Hunter Education programs.

Federal Premium Ammunition is proud to sponsor the Instructor of the Year award as a way of recognizing the hunters and shooters who donate their time to pass on our heritage. The finalist will receive an all-expense paid trip to accept their award and attend the IHEA conference in Kansas City, MO.

Honoring Hunter Educators
The winner will be announced in conjunction with the IHEA Conference in Kansas City on May 30th. Conservation Manager Ryan Bronson, who oversees youth and conservation programs for Federal Premium Ammunition, will present the award.

The winner will be given a sculpture by John Parsons commissioned to celebrate young hunters and their mentors entitled “Girls' Day Out”.

“All three finalists are real inspirations and role models that have made passing on our hunting and shooting tradition a priority in their lives,” Bronson said. “We are honored to be able to sponsor this award.”

The three nominees taught 75 courses that certified 2,190 students. Each instructor is active in hunter recruitment efforts in their states, including outreach to women, youth organizations and mentored hunting programs. Additionally, they played a critical role recruiting new volunteer instructors to expand the capacity of the hunter education system.

Safety Top Priority
Hunting is a safe activity, and over the last 50 years hunting-related injuries have decreased dramatically. Hunter education classes have played a pivotal role in that safety record. The IHEA is the professional association for 67 state and provincial wildlife conservation agencies, and the volunteer instructors who teach hunter education in North America. More than 70,000 IHEA instructors teach more than 750,000 hunter education students annually.

Since 1949, more than 35 million students have been trained. Courses cover firearm safety, bowhunting, wildlife management, field care of game, responsible hunting, landowner relations, wildlife identification, and much more.

Federal supports numerous conservation organizations, participates in many ammunition royalty programs, and provides many shooting sports educational materials. The company also donated a complete set of hunter education instruction materials to each of the three award finalists. Many educational materials are also available to volunteer instructors at reduced costs through Federal’s website, at www.federalpremium.com/hunters_education/educational_materials

Tags: Federal Premium, 2011 Volunteer Instructor of the Year Award, IHEA, International Hunter Education Association, Hunter Education

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Federal Premium® Announces Finalists for the 2011 International Hunter Education Association (IHEA) Volunteer Instructor of the Year Award