When you think of hunting, you normally don’t think you’re making the world a better place. Sure, you’re helping the environment, assisting in conservation efforts to maintain the ecosystem’s balance. Most of the time you’re thinking about what hunting does for you, increasing your endorphins so that you’re almost floating on a cloud reconnecting with the world around you, finding yourself in the wilderness like so many Americans before you.
However, if Pennsylvania’s Hunters Sharing the Harvest program has its way, the whole mentality behind why we hunt might change. Instead of pursuing it as a hobby or passion that lifts us up as individuals, instead we might do it to help those in need. As we are set to ring in 2016, now is the time to reflect on how hunting can help those in need.
According to their website, “Hunters Sharing The Harvest (HSH) is Pennsylvania’s charitable venison donation program for hunters who share their extra venison via a statewide network of participating butchers to Food Banks across Pennsylvania.” The last few years have been a great one for the program.
According to Natasha Lindstrom of Triblive.com, “Pennsylvania’s Hunters Sharing the Harvest program boasted a near-record amount of donated venison last year – largely because of hunters, butchers and emergency food distributors in the region. The statewide program, in its 24th deer-hunting season is on track to surpass 1 million pounds of deer meat donated since its inception.”
1 million pounds of deer meat is quite the haul. It is clear that the program has been doing a good job providing meat to the needy across the state. Jonathan Peffer, a butcher in Ellwood City, approved by the program, said, “We have a lot of people that benefit tremendously from this, especially families with children. There’s not much better lean protein that you can feed your kids with venison.”
That is the true message of the season, helping those that are less fortunate. Next time you are out hunting think of how you can use hunting to improve society. For more information on the program, click here, and from all of us at Tioga Boar Hunting we wish you a safe and happy New Year.