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The Georgetown Ducks Unlimited Chapter, along with some great folks, hosted a waterfowl hunt and banquet honoring some soldiers and wounded warriors from Fort Bragg NC on the weekend of Dec . 17th, 2011. Dan Ray and Brett Baker with Ducks Unlimited National contacted me with the idea of a warrior hunt at various South Carolina plantation. They asked could we gather together 15-16 warriors for this event, which we were glad to do.
The more we talked with each other the bigger this event grew, and the more excited we all became. I put the word out at Fort Bragg, and slowly the soldiers started signing up. I sent word to my brothers in 3rd Special Forces Group that were deployed that I needed some flags flown there to donate to this event. They sent me multiple flags with signed certificates, along with also getting 2 Berretta shotguns signed by some Special Forces team members provided by Dan Ray. These were to be auctioned off for charity.
From the time we arrived at the Big Tuna, a favorite watering hole for the locals in Georgetown, we were greeted with big smiles, cold beer, and some great food. What a great reception that was, and meeting all the plantation owners these guys would be hunting with was great.
After the meet and greet we were given tours of the plantations, and stowed our geared and relaxed a little. We then met back at the Annandale Plantation owned by Dan Ray for a huge BBQ and some acknowledgments.
After some great food and meeting some wonderful people, we headed down the road to a large barn where a concert by Nashville singer Lee Brice was planned, along with a raffle and live auction for the fundraiser.
The locals came out in force in support of these warriors, and were very excited they were there in Georgetown. The South Carolina Ducks Unlimited Chapter really stepped up their game, and the area Chairman Toby did a super job helping to execute this event. The night was filled with music and laughter, and some good friendships were formed. The warriors from Ft. Bragg were having the time of their lives and glad to be able to relax from work, deployments, and the stress of everything. After a great night of fun, we all split up and headed to different plantations for the night.
Bright and early the next morning we were up before daylight, we enjoyed hot coffee and some snacks before heading out for the hunt. After driving across some flooded fields, we reached our destinations. After loading our gear on the boat, we headed to the blinds we would be hunting at. Once daylight came, the ducks were quick to follow. I have never seen so many ducks in one place in my life. The sky quickly filled with all types of ducks- teal, black ducks, gadwalls, pintails, shovelers and more. This was duck hunting on steroids, but one of the best things about this was being able to hunt with these soldiers, as it always is.
We had a great hunt harvesting some great ducks. When the time came we headed back to Annandale Plantation for a big breakfast, some more good fellowship, and a photo of the group. After presenting Patriot Hunts Plaques to all the plantation owners, along with Brett Baker and Toby the Ducks Unlimited Area Chairman, and a special thanks and plaque to Dan Ray for all his hard work organizing this great event, it was time to say goodbye. We made some great friends, and hopefully shared our mission with a lot of new Patriots in Georgetown SC. I cannot express how grateful I am on behalf of our military for allowing me to bring this group down there for a wonderful time. They are all part of the Patriot Hunts family now, and hopefully we will share some time in the field again soon. We are very proud to have the Georgetown South Carolina Ducks Unlimited Chapter as our new “Legacy Sponsor”. Thanks guys for everything.
Ken Barnard
President
Patriot Hunts |
