| Women Bowhunters |

I am thrilled and humbled that someone thought enough of me to nominate me.  Thanks.  The article "Oh the Smell of It"  Tells alot about my beginning.  However,  I am now the mother of two boys,  Jeb 6 and Seth 3.  Since I wrote that article Muzzy has grown to the #1 Manufacturer of Replaceable blade broadheads andBowfishing Equipment, as well as great items like our SlateMate Turkey Call Holder and our new Zero-Effect arrowrest is taking off like crazy.  I am more determined than ever to promote women and kids in the outdoors.  This October and November I am going on 5 Ladies Hunts all sponsored by Muzzy.  The last one in November, We will be taken some lady congresswomen on their first whitetail bowhunt!!!  I am now on the AMO Board of Directors and Chairman of the Legislative Committee as well as being on the Promotional Committee.  I have become very involved with promoting hunting in Washington D.C. to protect and preserve our rights.  I feel this is so important, as the anti-hunters are very active on capitol hill and we must counter that!!.

Oh The Smell of It!

One of my most favorite childhood memories is of the fall hunting season. Any fall hunting season. It would be cold, perhaps some snow flurries. Mom, my brother John and I would wait anxiously for the darkness that would bring my father in from the afternoon hunt. A great big pan of lasagna and a warm fire would welcome him in from the cold along with the inevitable question, "Did you get anything Dad?" 

More times that not the answer was "No". But that was all right. His face, white with a frosty red glow from the cold, he would give us each a kiss and then head for the fireplace. He would rub his hands in the warmth and then take his boots and wool jacket off and place them near the fire to dry the dampness from them. And then, my favorite part (unless, of course, the answer was 'Yes", and we all had to get the flashlights to bring back the venison!). I would bury my face in his jacket and inhale. Oh the smell of it! It smelled like everything good in the outdoors. Hours of still hunting or sitting in a treestand absorbing the freshness,                   the woods, the cold air. Unless you've smelled it you just can't understand. I yearned for the day when I could hunt and experience all that was absorbed in his jacket. 

My brother, John, and I were raised as equals. Yes, I had dolls and he had trucks, but we were both given the same opportunity to fall in love with the outdoors. Every weekend when Dad went hunting, we went as a family together. I credit my Mom for the effort she made to keep us together and give my Dad the opportunity to pursue his love of hunting with his family. When Dad would practice midday, my brother and I would shoot our bows alongside him. Johnny had a 14 lb. recurve and I had a 12 lb. recurve and we were pretty good. 

From time to time when we were getting old enough to sit still for more than a minute, instead of hunting, Dad would take us out in the woods to sit and watch deer as they would come down a trail or into a field to eat. What a thrill! As we got older, it was just a natural progression that we would hunt and we did, as a family. Even my mother, although never taking up bowhunting, is now an avid turkey hunter and did make two trips to Africa with Dad in the early '70's where she was a dead eye with the 7mm rifle. So our home was and is filled with his and her trophies that include fishing as well as hunting. 

Boarding School limited my hunting opportunities during my high school and college years. During this time I pursued my love of horses and competed nationally in hunter and jumper competition. After graduating from Stetson University in 1982, Dad came out of retirement and started MUZZY PRODUCTS. It was time to put my finance degree to work. Both my brother and I became involved with MUZZY, I on the financial and marketing end, Johnny in the manufacturing end. With Dad's patents and our efforts along with the wonderful people who work with us MUZZY, has grown to be the second largest manufacturer of broadheads in the US. This also allowed me to get back into hunting again. 

As a result, I met my husband Jeff in a hunting camp in Georgia. We belonged to separate leases that shared the same camp. During the fall of  '91 we were buddies, hunting together at times as guests on each others leases. With deer season over, Jeff introduced me to his first love, bird hunting. I had never been wing-shooting and it opened my eyes and heart to the thrill of the covey rise and a deep appreciation for good dog work. 

We married in the spring of '93 and are blessed with a son, Jeb. Following my parents example, we continue to hunt as a family. As early as two weeks old, Jeb started coming to hunting camp with us and has for the last two years. The amount of time we spend on stands is less (we take turns watching Jeb at camp while the other is hunting). But our quality time together is priceless. 

During my hunting career I have taken deer with both gun and bow, taken numerous turkey with shotgun and perhaps the highlight was my wild boar which weighed over 400 lbs nd required a 100 yard stalk on my belly, ending in a 20 yard shot with one arrow. The boar ran only 50 yards. I also love to fish, both salt and fresh water. 

As many of you may know, my Dad passed away in July of 1996, but he left his family a thriving company that is dedicated to quality products for the outdoor enthusiast and a legacy of love that includes the great outdoors. I hope my husband and I do the same for our son. I look forward to the day when Jeb is old enough to hunt with us. I hope too, that he will experience and remember the 'Smell of It'!