Quaker Boy Calls’ Chris Kirby on the Turkey THUG Little Friend Call

Author’s note: Chris Kirby, the president of Quaker Boy Calls (http://www.quakerboy.com), has won every major turkey calling championship in the nation including the U.S. Open, the World-National, and Grand National Turkey Calling Championship. He is also the creator of the Mossy Oak Turkey THUGS (www.mossyoak.com) line of calls.

Quaker Boy has two push-button calls in the THUG line, the Little Friend and the H2O Yelper that’s waterproof. Many hunters think a push-pull call is a child’s call, because it’s so simple to operate. So, they wonder why I always carry one and advise other hunters to do the same, even after they’ve mastered diaphragm calls and all the friction calls. Here’s why:

Push-button calls make entirely different hen sounds than diaphragm calls, slate calls, or box calls do. A hunter then sounds like a hen a gobbler hasn’t talked to previously, a big advantage when hunting in areas where the turkeys have been hunted heavily.
The Little Friend and H2O Yelper give a hunter the advantage of sounding like two hens calling at the same time. You can push the peg on one of these push-button calls and yelp with a diaphragm call at the same time.
A turkey may gobble relatively close to you early in the season, and you may not be confident that you can make that perfect yelp, cluck and purr to answer the gobbler. But you’ll get that perfect yelp, cluck or purr immediately with the Little Friend or H20 Yelper.
These calls allow you to purr softly when a turkey is really close, and you know you can’t make a mistake. You can give that gobbler those encouraging little sounds that will bring him within gun range.

One year while hunting in New York State, I had a gobbler I’d been working for two or three hours. I moved stand sites several times. Finally, I made one more move and got in close to the gobbler. I stopped all my other calling and just clucked and purred on the H2O Yelper. That ole gobbler came marching right into gun range. I had used every trick I knew to try and get that bird in close, but not until I started clucking and purring on the Yelper did I convince that gobbler to come in close enough for me to take.

John E. Phillips

John, the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors.

Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27 radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and wrote for a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips was Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 24 years. Phillips was also the executive editor for "Great Days Outdoors" magazine for 3 years.

The author of almost 30 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a founding member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and an active member of the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA). Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.

Phillips conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.

While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded more than 30 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.

Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.

EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.

EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 34 years as a freelance writer, photographer, editor, book author, lecturer and daily-content provider for websites. Currently, Phillips is a field editor for Game and Fish Publications; serves on the editorial board of Grandview Media; is a regular contributor to 12 internet magazines and a daily content provider for 8 websites.

WRITING AWARDS: Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA; Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation; Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984; Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association 3rd Place; Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA; 2007 - inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame as a Legendary Communicator; 2008 - received award naming him 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the Year from the Crossbow Manufacturers' Association; 2009 - GAMMA Honorable Mention for Consumer/Paid Best Essay for July/August 2008 in "Southern Sporting Journal."