You read that headline right…I won this gun!
It’s a Ruger 10/22 rifle. Saturday night (Feb 4th), I was invited to the NWTF annual banquet, held at the Dubuque County Fairgrounds.
The NWTV is the National Wild Turkey Federation. The local chapter holds a banquet every year, complete with a raffle, silent auction, games, and a fantastic meal. They are called the Dubuque Struttin’ Spurs. They have a simple mission statement:
“The NWTF is dedicated to the conservation of the wild turkey and the preservation of our hunting heritage.”
I’d invite you to learn more about this organization by checking their website out. (give the logo a click)
Now, let’s get to my gun! I was invited to the event by my brother-in-law, who owns the Video Games Etc! company. He discovered the NWFT through a friend at the Bellevue Sand & Gravel Co. As a part of sponsoring a table, you get raffle tickets. You put those into buckets, according to what kind of prize you want to go for. I put mine in a bucket for a fire-pit, one for a TV, and my lucky ticket, in the gun bucket! Oh yeah, Video Games Etc! was also a game and prize sponsor of the night. While I didn’t officially compete in the Duck Hunt set up, I took a few shots!
The banquet probably gives away 7 to 10 guns throughout the night, along with well over a hundred other prizes. Very fun.
So, the night ends, I have my pick-up slip, and Tuesday, I had to journey over the bridge to pick up my gun at 3 Nails Gunsmithing! Hey, I know these guys!
Bill, who owns and operates 3 Nails Gunsmithing in East Dubuque has been a long running advertiser on 97.3 The Rock. I invite you to stop over at his shop in East Dubuque. Cool place, nice people, and a great selection of new and used guns!
Always nice to make a new friend! This is Luke Kovacic, Chief of Police in East Dubuque. Supporter of NWTF, and 97.3…my kind of dude!
Was a great night out. Oh, I should have mentioned, that I have never turkey hunted. In fact, I haven’t been hunting since I was a kid. I enjoy hitting the shooting range, and we have a nice collection of guns (that will be another conversation), but haven’t been out for a real hunt in forever. I’ll be making that a priority in 2023 for sure.