On June 24, 2025, fifteen students completed the Wisconsin Hunter Education course that was held at the Owen-Withee Public Schools. The class took approximately 17 hours to complete, and covered the following topics: Responsibilities of hunters; firearms safety in the home and in the field; knowledge of firearms and hunting equipment; wildlife management; and marksmanship. Volunteer Instructor hours totaled approximately 160 hours (including preparation time) when combined for all the participating instructors.
These students were successful in completing the class: Kaden Brubaker, Amara Gudmundson, Adelaide Hopkins, Chloe Krueger, Kasil Mueller, Jacob Nelson, Sahwn Sensenig, Cora Simenson, Alfredo Velasco, Kayanna Gwiazda, Mike Wells, McKenzie Wilson, Tanner Windle, Leah Wojcik and Trevor Zimmerman.
Certified DNR Hunter Safety Instructors conducted the course. They included: Mr. Gary Lindgren, Ms. Heidi Bower, Mr. Mike Kessling, Mr. Aaron Ruggles, Mr. Danny Bakke, and Mr. Lance Batchelor and Mr. Noel Barteck co-lead instructors. Conservation Warden Kevin Christorf met with the class and discussed his role in law enforcement and recreational safety. Junior Instructor Easton Ruggles also assisted with conducting the class.
Students successfully completed the course and received a distinctive embroidered emblem and a hunter safety graduate certificate. Each student also received a gun lock courtesy of the O-W Police Department and Project ChildSafe.
The hunter safety certificate is valid in lieu of a small game-hunting license for one season. It also is a lifetime certificate which is required for hunting in many states and provinces. Young certified students will be able to hunt and use firearms without a parent or guardian present when they reach age 14. Graduates who are 12 or 13 years of age must still be accompanied “within sight and sound” by an adult hunter, and those who have not yet reached 12 will still need to be a “mentored hunter.” Mentored hunters must be within arm’s reach of an adult during the hunt, and there can only be one weapon present while hunting.
Each student will be expected to log on to the Go Wild page on the DNR website and print their own card. Multiple copies may be printed in the event a student should lose their card.
All participants want to say a big “Thank You” to the Lublin American Legion for donating the 20 gauge and 12 gauge shells and the .22 cartridges that were used in target shooting, and to the Owen-Withee Police for the use of their target range.