 Michael Marbach writes: Winner gets $1000 scholarship to Hunting and Fishing Adventure Camp
The Christian Outdoor Alliance has announced its third annual essay contest for boys and girls 11-16. The young person who writes the best essay on the topic "The Importance of Our Hunting and Fishing Heritage" will receive a $1000 scholarship to one of the group's summertime Hunting and Fishing Adventure Camps. The scholarship may be applied to any session for summer 2004.
Last year's winner, 16-year-old Cody St. John of Nacogdoches, had the outdoors experience of his lifetime at summer camp, harvesting a buffalo with a bow and catching a nine pound largemouth bass.
Runners up will receive a 10% discount off their camp tuition.
Billed as "The Ultimate Dream Camps," the COA camps give participants hands-on, in-the-field instruction on hunting and fishing, and the opportunity to harvest and process fish and game. Plus, they teach Bible-based respect for nature, and practical lessons in maturity, leadership, responsibility, and integrity.
This summer COA will host a total of 10 sessions of seven to 10 days each, with sessions for boys and girls aged 11-16. The organization's camp lineup this year includes five sessions of its traditional "Hunting and Fishing" camp format, plus five sessions of "specialty" camps.
The curriculum for the camps includes serious hunting and/or fishing, plus advanced skills, game preparation, conservation, sporting ethics and more. Each camper receives daily instruction from a range of experts.
COA's traditional camp format allows campers to harvest exotic does and rams, wild hogs and other game, plus fish for trophy bass and catfish. Specialty camps this summer will include saltwater fishing, freshwater fishing, bow hunting, trophy exotic buck hunting, and a trip to the Rocky Mountains in Idaho, in which campers will harvest buffalo on a private ranch and fish for trophy trout in the wilds of Yellowstone National Park.
The COA is a non-profit organization based in San Antonio. In addition to conducting camps, the organization produces Maximum Outdoors Magazine and supports a grassroots network of members, chapters and local youth groups
Entries should be 250-350 words long, typed, double-spaced, on plain white paper. Please do not include the writer's name on the same page(s) as the essay. Instead, include name and full contact information on a separate page stapled to the essay. Entries must be mailed to:
COA Essay Contest
PO Box 790692
San Antonio, TX 78279
All entries must be received no later than May 15, and the winning entry will be announced on May 17. Eligible contestants must be ages 11-16. The prize scholarship is non-transferable and cannot be redeemed for cash.
A panel of veteran outdoor writers will choose the winning entry.
For more information, or for pre-printed flyers announcing the essay contest to distribute at your school, contact camp director Michael Marbach at 210-490-6529, extension 101, or via e-mail at mmarbach@mycoa.org. E-mailed entries will not be accepted. More information about the COA camps is available online at www.COACamps.org.
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