I hope everyone is having an incredible spring. For many of you, spring turkey season is in full swing as well as some great fishing. If you have any cool pics/hunting stories/etc...send them to us as we would love to spotlight our members on our IG page or in the newsletter.
Membership meeting: One week from today, we will host our first virtual membership meeting on May 12, 2026 at 7pm ET on Zoom.
We will be giving away some swag for those that attend as well.
Here is a link to the zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82414318278?pwd=Oz8oPB9Ha1J7z4mQNCK1bfsUWiaLRe.1
Meeting ID: 824 1431 8278
Passcode: 878233
CONGRATULATIONS to RANDY S, the winner of our 2027 Gana River Horseback Moose hunt. Randy will be chasing Yukon Moose in the NWT with Harold & Gana River Outfitters in September of 2027. We look forward to showing off his anticipated success in the fall of next year.
Key Happenings:
2026 Sheep Show - This was our second year at the sheep show, we were better prepared and made the most of the 4 days. Besides meeting a ton of awesome people, we were able to connect with several outfitters and venders for future hunt raffles and/or an auction. This event also helped drive significant online raffle sales for the chapter.
Conservation investment - We are wrapping up the creation of a formal RFP process for the SE Chapter. By introducing this process it will formally allow us to dedicate our money to projects focused on Disease research, habitat conservation, population monitoring, predator-prey dynamics, genetics, translocation, human-wildlife conflict, and innovation. This will launch in June.
Are you interested in serving on our Board of Directors? As a reminder, to serve on the BOD your primary residence must reside in the Southeast (VA to FL, KY to LA and everything in between. Please email southeastwsf@gmail.com. We will have a BOD election in June including officer elections for our 2027 FY (July 1, 2026 - June 30th 2027).
Would you like to lead a key initiative within the chapter? We need volunteers! Key areas we need volunteers: Fund raising, local events coordination, social media/comms, partnership, conservation, and membership.
Finally, a repeat from the last newsletter...our membership is currently at 150+ members (thank you!), but we need your help to grow it. I would challenge each of us, as a chapter, to be at 300+ members by the end of 2026. My ask is that each of you recruit at least 2 people.
We will be launching a membership drive with some awesome giveaways/prizes later this month.
Your Feedback:
The majority of the feedback/questions I have received are on one topic, "When will we have a banquet?". There is not a magic button for this one. As of now we do not have a full banquet planned. Essentially, we need more members and a larger following to make a banquet financially feasible. We are also one of, if not, the largest geographically dispersed chapters. This creates some challenges as well. We also need the support & volunteers to create/organize/execute an in-person banquet. We continue to explore options, like smaller regional gatherings or an online auction/virtual event for now, but with a goal for an in-person banquet in 12-24 months.
As a reminder, here are the key focus areas through the 1st half of 2026:
More engagement from members, finding future BOD members and committee leaders
Raise money and create a formal process to fund WSF/C&A projects
Launch Regional informal get-togethers/events to drive engagement/fundraising/membership within the Southeast.
Other Items:
We have 2 active raffles, an Ibex hunt in Mongolia and a Chamois hunt in Spain. Please send to friends and family and support these key fundraising efforts. We have 2 more incredible hunts we will offer once these are sold out.
Please help us by officially joining, recruiting new members, renew your membership or upgrade your membership. For new life members or founding life members, you will receive your choice of a SEWSF branded grey fleece zip-up jacket or SEWSF branded tumbler glasses. We have about 40 remaining founding life memberships available. Contact us if you have any issues as the online membership process can be clunky.
Finally, what would you like to see in newsletters or on social media? How would you like to be more involved? Drop us a note at southeastwsf@gmail.com or contact via the webform.
With Gratitude,
Jesse Riggleman
President – Southeastern Chapter of the Wild Sheep Foundation
