MIKE BRAUN Disabled can hunt and fish

Enjoying outdoor activities should not be the exclusive privilege of the physically fit and active.
There are plenty of outdoor activities that on the surface seem difficult or downright impossible for the physically challenged to take part in.
Imagine someone with physical limitations being told he or she can't enjoy hunting or fishing because he or she can't handle a walk in the woods or access to water.
To make such activities possible for those who find it difficult is not as hard it might seem. A few Northeast Ohio outdoor clubs are actively making it happen.
From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 16, the Hill N' Dale Hunt Club in Medina County and the Medina County Strutters Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will be host of the first annual Wheelin' Sportsmen Event.
The event will provide disabled men and women the chance to participate in such activities as skeet, trapshooting, 5-stand, shotgun still target and fishing. Lunch will also be provided.
The event is free for the disabled and $40 for others.
Event organizers say reservations should be made early as space is limited and registration is required.
Find out more: More information on this event and the Wheelin' Sportsmen is available from Drew Hutzel at (330) 722-3758 or from Jon Fairburn of Niles, a member of Buckmasters Disabled, at (330) 652-6221.
Wheelin' Sportsmen became a division of the National Wild Turkey Federation in fall 2000. The organization, which promotes outdoors sports for the disabled, was started by Kirk Thomas, an Alabama hunter who was paralyzed in an accident. For more information on the organization, log on to www.wheelin-sportsmen.org.
The Hill N' Dale Hunt Club is at 3605 Poe Road, Medina.