My granddaughter, Mariah, is 12 years old. She attended the West Salem Rod and Gun Club Kicking Bear event, hosted by the La Crosse Sheriff's Department. What a fun-filled weekend! There were so many great activities such as rope pulls, gunny sack races, hayrides, water slide, paint ball, and tomahawk throwing—just to mention a few along with a 30-target 3-D course. The games went on well into the evening. There was a great bonfire along with a marshmallow fight and then games such as Kick the Can and Kickball that went on into the wee hours of the morning.

I had the opportunity to meet Tara and Shelly Seiler from the Droptine Divas who came to the camp to take part in the activities and help mentor kids. They brought along lots of their DVD's showing the Diva hunts and handed them to the kids. Mariah had gotten one of these and after watching it, she was "on fire" for hunting! From this camp, there have been several group fishing and hunting trips lined up for these kids who either don't have the opportunity or can't afford to take part in these types of activities.

Mariah's name was drawn as one of the youth who would be able to hunt with the Droptine Divas one on one. The Wisconsin Dells area has special Ag tags because of the over abundance of deer. This is perfect for youth to be able to get out and harvest their first whitetail.

Mariah had gone through Greg Symon's gun hunter safety course. Greg has donated his time to these Kicking Bear kids so they can get their safety courses done and it doesn't cost them a cent as is the case with all the camp activities.

We took and made a life-size cardboard silhouette where Mariah could learn how to follow the back of the front leg line up to the center of the deer for perfect shot placement and that's exactly what she did in practicing on the target. All three rounds from the .243 rifle were placed perfectly right behind the shoulder.

The following day we were on our way. Mariah was so excited you could not take the grin off her face. As we pulled into Tara's yard, Mariah got kind of quiet. When I asked her what was going on, she said that she didn't know what to say or how to act around such famous people even though she had spent quite a bit of time with them having fun at the Kicking Bear event. I said to her, "Just be yourself and have fun and everything would be fine".

The next couple of hours found us hanging around their log home talking about hunting, looking at pictures, and practicing shooting archery in the back yard. It was awful warm out but they had placed the blind on the edge of an alfalfa field in a shady spot. I got to come along and be a part of the hunt because there was enough room in the blind for everyone which may have been a big mistake because shortly after we had gotten Mariah all set up in the blind so she could shoot comfortably, I turned around and started talking into the video camera. Just then—Mariah grabbed hold of me and said, "Grandpa—there's a deer—shut up!" I couldn't believe it. I should probably get the "pineapple award" of the year for that one! The deer stood there just long enough to let me know that I blew it. For about the next hour and a half, I felt about as low as I could get. I blew about a 50-yard "give me" shot for Mariah. As the evening progressed, we were seeing other deer but they were just too far out for a comfortable shot. Then I had to say the words that I had been regretting to say all evening—"Mariah, we're going to have to pack up in about 5 minutes". I felt so bad, but I was thinking to myself that we had all day the next day and I could hopefully make up for my mistake. Just then Shelly said, "There's a deer coming in from the backside of the blind". I looked at the same time Mariah did and sure enough, about 80 yards from us, a large adult doe was walking out into the feeding area. Mariah very quietly got turned around with her gun and the rest and got set up for the shot. What was amazing was how calm and how quiet she was. It was almost like she had done this many times over. I know for a fact I was way more shook up than she was. All I said to her was "Follow that leg line and squeeze the trigger when you're ready". The next few seconds everything went into slow motion and then the gun went off—the deer dropped right in its tracks. It didn't even kick. Mariah watched the deer and then yelled, "I got it, I got it—I can't believe I got a deer!"

Mariah and the Droptine Divas were laughing and high fiving. What an incredible event to be a part of—watching my granddaughter harvest her first deer with two of the nicest mentors she could have ever had the opportunity to hunt with. As they were admiring the deer, Shelly and Tara said, "Mariah, you are the newest and youngest member of the Droptine Divas—welcome to the club!" Mariah just lit up when they handed her a T-shirt with the Droptine Diva logo on it. You couldn't believe how she talked all the way home. We didn't get home until after midnight but when I dropped her off at her house, the big hug, and the kiss on my cheek is one that will long be remembered. Having the opportunity to share God's creation with Mariah and having her understand why these animals are here for us made for a most memorable weekend for me.

Acts 10:13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.

Mariah and I are very fortunate to have met Tara and Shelly. They have a great love for outdoor sports and care about others who are less fortunate than they are.

If you're interested in viewing any of the Droptine Diva's DVS's, please visit their website at www.droptinedivas.com.