New Law Fulfills Dreams of Hunting
"3 ailing boys will go on big-game hunts now that tags can be
transferred"
(written by)Robbie Sherwood
The Arizona Republic Aug. 7, 2005
Ryan Hayden, 14, dreams of trekking through Arizona's wild
forests, his rifle at the ready, on the hunt for a bull elk. An
18-month battle with leukemia has kept that dream from coming
true for the northern California ninth-grader. But a change in
Arizona law that takes effect on Friday will allow hunters to
donate their big-game tags to youngsters like Hayden who are
battling life-threatening illnesses. Now, Hayden will be among
the first three boys, all from out of state, to benefit from the
new compassionate transfer of hunting licenses law approved by
the Legislature in the spring. "I've been hunting since I was
10, mostly duck hunting with my dad and stuff like that, but
I've never really done a big-game hunt," said Hayden, whose
leukemia is in remission. "We tried, but we've never gotten a
tag. Hopefully I'll at least get to see an elk.
"A non-profit organization in Pennsylvania called Hunt of a
Lifetime has organized and paid for Hayden's hunt in December
below the Mogollon Rim. Guided elk hunts can run anywhere from
$3,500 to $8,000.
Hunt of a Lifetime came about after Phoenix-based Make-a-Wish
Foundation stopped providing big-game hunts over concerns about
safety and liability, and in the wake of negative publicity over
a boy's wish in 1996 to hunt a Kodiak bear in Alaska. Hunt of a
Lifetime has helped nearly 200 seriously ill youngsters go
hunting in the past five years, founder Tina Pattison said.
Arizona hunting tags were not transferable before the change.
Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Gilbert, quietly pushed to change that. But
the real force behind the new law has been Terry Petko, a
48-year-old environmental safety manager and outdoorsman from
Mesa. A friend from Montana had once helped a terminally ill
young man from the East Coast go on a hunt, and Petko wanted to
do the same thing here if he could. He quickly found out from
the state Game and Fish Department he couldn't, not without a
change to the law. Not knowing any lawmakers, or much about the
legislative process, Petko logged on to a legislative Web site
and found out how to submit a bill idea and find a sponsor. "I
started from scratch," Petko said. "I can't tell you how many
people I called."
His search eventually led him to Biggs, who agreed in 2004 to
run the bill. That attempt bogged down, but the pair tried again
this year and this time got the votes.
Now Petko has become Arizona's Ambassador for Hunt of a Lifetime
and is coordinating the first hunts allowed under the new law.
Part of his new role is getting the word out to hunters who
might be willing to donate hunting tags. Petko has so far used
word of mouth, but he plans on giving a talk to a large group of
hunters at a local meeting of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
later this month.
One hunter who has already stepped up is Don Martin of Kingman.
Martin owns Arizona Wildlife Outfitters and has volunteered to
take one of the three boys, who asked not to be identified, on a
guided mule deer hunt this fall on the Kaibab Plateau. Martin
also has offered something even more personally valuable, his
own hunting tag for a special muzzle-loader elk hunt on the
Navajo Army Depot near Flagstaff. Only about four tags per year
are granted for the early hunt, and even avid sportsmen can go
their whole lives without being drawn. "I've been hunting since
I was a kid and this is the first premium muzzle-loader tag I've
ever drawn in Arizona," Martin said. "But it doesn't matter. If
I can be out there with a kid who has those challenges, it truly
would be a hunt of a lifetime. For a special kid, it's a
no-brainer for me."
Ambassadors note: As is often the case with our youngsters,
situations and plans change on a moments notice. Ryan Hayden
wound up going to New Mexico on his Elk hunt and our first Elk
hunter here in Arizona using the new tag transfer provision was
Justin Richardson with a early Bull Elk muzzleloader tag donated
by Don Martin of Kingman.
