Safari Club International Recommits to Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies
Safari Club International 01.02.13
Safari Club International (SCI) is proud to once again be a Gold Level Sponsor of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies’ (WAFWA) Winter Meeting and the title sponsor of Friday night’s welcome reception. The 2013 winter meeting takes place Jan. 3-6 in Tucson, Ariz.
“American hunters and conservationists have no greater allies for sustainable use and active management of habitat, than the state game and fish agencies. These meetings are integral to enhancing wildlife conservation efforts and protecting hunters’ interests in some of the most game-rich states for sportsmen,” said SCI President John Whipple. “We are so proud to again be Gold Sponsors for the winter meeting of WAFWA.”
WAFWA represents 23 states and Canadian provinces, spanning from Alaska to Texas and Saskatchewan to Hawaii; an area covering nearly 3.7 million square miles of some of North America’s most wild and scenic country, inhabited by over 1500 premier wildlife species.
Throughout the winter meeting, SCI will welcome all WAFWA attendees to the International Wildlife Museum in Tucson free of charge.
Protecting hunters’ rights and promoting wildlife conservation, SCI’s two areas of focus, historically has been the interest of hundreds of individuals long before SCI was established. But how did SCI as an organization begin?
Forty years ago, there were many safari clubs across the country made up of local, unaffiliated groups of hunters. One such was Safari Club of Los Angeles, which was formed in April 1971 by forty-seven individuals. In early 1972, an out-of-towner from a similar club in Chicago attended one of the monthly Wednesday night meetings, and it was decided that the L.A. club should attempt to combine with the one in Chicago to make it an affiliated chapter. The founder of Safari Club of Los Angeles, C.J. McElroy, went to the Windy City and instituted the new chapter.
Eleven months after the formation of Safari Club of Los Angeles, on March 9, 1972, the name was changed officially to Safari Club International. SCI continued to reach out to other independent safari clubs throughout the United States in an effort to combine them into a single overall organization.
Today, interest in SCI’s two primary missions has grown a worldwide network. Subsequent involvement and promotion of these missions is rooted in each of our 55,000 members, supported through each of our 190 membership chapters found across the globe, and put into action by government representatives and personnel both nationally and internationally.
In this way, we can encourage an appreciation for nature and wildlife so that conservation efforts remain strong, while also fighting to protect our rich hunting heritage. Big changes can be achieved through the endeavors of many who are united in a mission – the mission of Safari Club International.
