Courtesy photo Veterans, mentors and volunteers pose for a photograph at Rapid River Knifeworks on Friday, May 2

Courtesy photo
Veterans who participated in the SGM (R) Shawn Runkle Great Lakes Turkey Hunt regroup after a successful hunt.

ESCANABA — Heroes’ Harvests, a nonprofit that organizes group hunting events for veterans to bolster camaraderie and get vets into the therapeutic natural environment, was in Delta County recently for the SGM (R) Shawn Runkle Great Lakes Turkey Hunt.

Six veterans from Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois began arriving in the area on Thursday, May 1. Along with mentors an\d volunteers, they met at the Timberdoodle Lodge in the heart of the Upper Peninsula. During the course of the five-day event, meals and materials were provided by sponsors and donors both from the local area and in the greater hunting community.

On Friday, participants awoke at 4 a.m. to conduct a scouting mission that would a plan for the hunt the next day. Local property owners had offered up some 3,000 acres of private land for Heroes’ Harvests to use for the event.

Following the scouting mission, vets, guides and other volunteers visited Rapid River Knifeworks to check out their inventory and ­taxidermy. The group then made their way to the Rod and Gun Club (otherwise known as the Mead Sportsmans Association) in Escanaba Township for a meeting that included discussions of safety and turkey calls, plus a round of trap shooting for the hunters.

Day three, Saturday, brought the first day of hunting. With the Ensign Township Hall as a base, hunters began seeing success, with half the group bagging toms to bring back. The gang enjoyed lunch at the hall and in the evening were joined for dinner by the local landowners who had granted access to their lands.

While those still holding tags went back out and had “many close calls” while tracking birds the following days, the turkeys eluded capture on Sunday and Monday.

Regardless of the number of tags filled, it was a successful week. The mission of Heroes’ Harvests is to provide active and retired service members “a dynamic therapeutic environment through exclusive hunting, fishing, and outdoor experiences.”

In addition to the the SGM (R) Shawn Runkle Great Lakes Turkey Hunt, other events organized by Heroes’ Harvests have included fishing in North Carolina, elk archery in Colorado, turkey hunting in Idaho, Lake Superior fishing off Grand Marais, ice fishing in Wisconsin, turkey hunting in Florida, therapy with horses in Wisconsin and more.

Recently, the nonprofit’s founder, Mitch Vazquez, announced that he intended to soon step down from the position of executive director at Heroes’ Harvests, but for now, he continues to fill that role until new leadership is found.