Stay in Touch with MDC news, newsletters, events, and manage your subscription
Xplor reconnects kids to nature and helps them find adventure in their own backyard. Free to residents of Missouri.
A monthly publication about conservation in Missouri. Started in 1938, the printed magazine is free to residents of Missouri.
SIDNEY, Mo. - The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), in partnership with the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) invites youth ages 6-15 to register for a day of FREE outdoor skills instruction at Union Ridge Conservation Area.
The NWTF JAKES program, or Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics and Sportsmanship, works with MDC to get youth outdoors and provide opportunities to pass on traditions of responsible hunting, principles of habitat management, and hunting ethics and safety.
The event on Saturday, Sept. 28, will take place from 8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Union Ridge Conservation Area, Parking Lot E, on Lilac Road.
Participants will have opportunities to learn and practice shotgun shooting, fishing, archery, safety instruction, and a turkey calling demonstration. Participants may bring their own shotgun for trap shooting, but firearms, ammunition, fishing gear, bait and all other equipment will all be provided. Lunch will also be provided at no cost.
“We are looking forward to a second annual outdoor skills event in partnership with the Locust Creek Longbeards,” said Conservation Agent Sean Ernst. “This will be a great opportunity for kids to learn a little bit about turkey hunting before the Fall Firearms Turkey Hunting Season opens on Oct. 1. We want our young hunters to have fun shooting shotguns, bows and arrows, as well as catching fish at the nearby lake.”
Preregistration is required by Sept. 27 at mdc-event-web.s3licensing.com/Event/EventDetails/169261. For more information about this event, contact Agent Ernst at (573) 673-7588.
Learn more about NWTF JAKES programs for youth at nwtf.org/about/hunting-heritage/jakes, and find more information about how MDC works to provide all Missourians with free opportunities to discover nature at nature.mdc.mo.gov/
