Reprinted with permission from NRA Clubs and Associations: Club Connection
State Association Spotlight: Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Assoc.
The Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association's Junior High Power Rifle Team Camp Perry
We have been very busy over the past several months working towards the goal of putting together what we think is the best junior high power rifle program in the country. A poll and impromptu vote was conducted and we have adopted a new name. We are now known as The Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association’s Junior High Power Rifle Team - The Steel Eagles. We needed a more distinct identity, and I have grown weary of having people ask us what our team name is when I go to register at Perry and Butner. We are very excited about this and we have been receiving nothing but positive feedback on this new name!
Next we have been doing an incredible amount of fundraising and work towards securing the “groceries” needed to participate in this sport. The following companies have signed on as sponsors: Bushmaster, Remington, Geissele Automatics, White Oak Armament, Ray-Vin, Nosler, Custom Slings by JHW, Morton Enterprises, Reece Supply, Walter G. Anderson, Shields Service Rifle Slings, along with the PRPA, the CMP, the NRA and a host of other enterprises which have generously donated either cash or supplies.
The budget was $0 when I became the director of this program two years ago. PRPA generously contributed $8,500 during the first year. Last year, I was able to offset this with some NRA grants, and our total budget increased to approximately $11,500 with the PRPA contribution remaining constant. The BOD of the PRPA accepted my request to increase the PRPA’s contribution to $13,500 for 2010. The expectation is that this will be offset partly by grants, which I expect to be approximately $12,000 of the $30,000 I have applied for. The total raffle income of approximately $17,000 brought our total expected annual budget to nearly $40,000. I think this is the most important first step in creating the best junior high power rifle program in the country!
The Pennsylvania Rifle and Pistol Association’s Junior High Power Rifle Team - The Steel Eagles
Along with the fundraising, I have identified nearly 400 junior participants who are interested in checking out our sport. Out of those 400, we had 25-30 individuals who can’t wait to join our ranks. The most common comment we heard was, “I had no idea there was a team like this in PA.” This was of no surprise to me as this was the first wholehearted effort to market our program in the greater gun community that I was aware of.
Our marketing effort included gun show appearances at Monroeville, Oaks, Valley Forge, Allentown, and Greensburg. All together we visited six shows. We met thousands of people, some of whom have offered to help out our program. I cannot express my gratitude to the many folks who came out to help us with these efforts. We spent thousands of man hours selling raffle tickets, bringing in new members to the organization, and introducing our sport to those who would surely be interested, but were unaware for so long. We will continue to promote our sport in the future as we have in the past few months. We look forward to meeting more folks out there both on the range and in the convention halls around Pennsylvania!
If you wish to be considered as a participant on the “Steel Eagles”, please contact the Programs Director Bob Eikey at (412) 874-6402 or bob_eikey@comcast.net. The team currently consists of 15-20 juniors between the ages of 14-20. Boys and girls are invited to participate. Currently most of the equipment needed is provided as well as financial assistance.
To learn more about Pennsylvania grants, please visit http://www.friendsofnra.org/StateGrants.aspx?sid=39&sc=PA