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2011 One Shot Event There will not be a 2011 One Shot Hunt Club SA event scheduled in South Africa
The following article was prepared for publication in the "Hunter" magazine published by Wisconsin's SCI chapters. IN MEMORY OF HECTOR On September 3rd, Hector Kitscha passed away at the age of 80 following an extended illness. Hector was well known by many members of the local chapters of the SCI as he was a key founder of the Wisconsin Chapter of the SCI, its first President and a long-time supporter of SCI programs. Hector was born in Laredo, Texas and lived his youth with his grandmother. At 18, he saw an ad for an electrician course in a magazine for Milwaukee School of Engineering. He came to Milwaukee, applied for the course and successfully completed it. Hector so impressed his instructors that they convinced him to take advanced courses which eventually led to his earning a degree in 1952 in Electrical Engineering. As a young engineer, he was hired by Cutler-Hammer where he spent his business career. He started in the Development and Engineering Department where he eventually became its head. He moved to general management when he became the manager of the Industrial Controls Division. He finished his career at Eaton-Cutler Hammer, retiring in 1993 as a Vice-President with international responsibilities. Hector and his wife Marcy touched many people in the worldwide hunting community by helping them to plan trips throughout the world when they ran Custom Travel. Hector was always available to answer questions and to give valued suggestions. He was unique for his vast knowledge of foreign gun laws, foreign travel issues and the international hunting community. Hector’s own love for hunting and the hundreds of relationships he had developed with outfitters, guides and hunters made many people more comfortable in venturing into the far corners of the world. Hector stories, his laughter, his camaraderie and his hunting experiences will be missed by many. Hector had a keen interest in hunting organizations. He remained an active member of SCI. He joined the One Shot Hunt of Lander, WY where he became its president. After his retirement, Hector created the One Shot Hunt Club of South Africa and its affiliated U.S. based OSHC Foundation. These charitable organizations recognized his love for Africa, his desire to help the native children and his wish that international hunters continue to be accepted by Africans as an important part of their culture. Hector is survived by his beloved wife, Marcy of 60 years, daughter Glory (John) Wynsen of Brookfield, son David (Sun) Kitscha of Mukwonago, daughter Joy (Jerry) Hertlein of New Berlin, son John (Pat) Kitscha of Brookfield; 8 grandchildren: Jennifer, Jessica, Michael, James, Emily, Andrea, Steven, and Gabrielle. He is loved and will be greatly missed by his family and friends. Private funeral services were held on September 7, 2010 at the Heritage Funeral Home, 4800 S. 84th St., Greenfield WI, 53228. If desired, memorials can be sent to the Aurora VNA Zilber Family Hospice, 1155 Honey Creek Parkway, Wauwatosa, WI 53213, 414-615-5900. The following article was published in the Summer 2009 edition of the Free Wheelchair Mission's newsletter. ![]() Notes from South Africa Program Manager Whitney Blaesser travelled to South Africa last fall. While there, she visited the nearby town of Bushbuck Ridge… I was taken to meet a little girl named Mecryu. She is 10 years old and has been physically and mentally disabled her entire life. She smiled and I felt a special connection. There she was, in the dirt, unable to walk, and smiling. I sat down and played with her, and I knew that Mecryu is truly a special daughter of God. Without being able to talk, or walk, or interact like all the rest, she just beamed. She was so beautiful. God’s light radiated from her little face. I felt so strongly that she knew the love He has for her – I believe that has made all the difference. We didn’t have a wheelchair for Mecryu that day – we were surveying the town to assess the need. I hoped we would be back, that we could help. When I said goodbye to Mecryu that day, I told her that the next time I saw her, she would be lifted up off the ground – she would be in a wheelchair. Mecryu changed my life. I had seen the need, but she helped me understand. People around the world find joy in the knowledge that God will provide – I am so humbled and inspired by this smiling child of God. The good news – our new partner in South Africa, Forever Resorts, followed up on my promise to Mecryu and she got her wheelchair a few months later! n
The following article was published in the Winter 2008 edition of the Free Wheelchair Mission's newsletter.
The following article was published for a book co-authored by Jeffery Engel, Sherol Engel and James Swan on hunting. The book entitled "Chasing the Hunters Dream" has been published. We are in the book! The book’s ISBN number is 978-0-06-134382-7. Many of the readers of this book will have already enjoyed the unique big game hunting experiences that are only available in Africa. For many others, an African safari remains as an unfulfilled dream to be realized when time and circumstances permit. To help hunters remaining to be welcome in Africa in the coming years, a group of international hunters and African outfitters has created a program that provides a way for hunters to directly benefit local African communities. This group’s members believe that highly visible support by hunters of local communities is critical for hunting to retain African community and political support. This group conducts its programs through two organizations that are called the One Shot Hunt Club South Africa and the OSHC Foundation Inc. The One Shot
Hunt Club South Africa (OSHC SA) began in the year Ten teams of two shooters each competed in the event which included shooting competition, bushman dancers, banquets and an awards ceremony. The species hunted by the teams was springbok; an animal which is similar in both size and difficulty to hunt to the North American pronghorn. Since that original event, competitions have been added for a one shot bow hunt and a one-shot pistol hunt for those wishing to use these types of weapons. Hunters from New Zealand, North America and South Africa have participated in these annual events. For the hunts, shooters are
divided into teams of two hunters each. Each pair of hunters is accompanied by a
PH who serves as the official time keeper and scorer for the hunters as well as
functioning as a guide. Once the hunt begins, team members alternate the right
to hunt every Scores for each team are based on the number of one shot kills and the time taken by the team to complete its shots. The winning team is the one which has two one shot kills in the shortest period of time. The challenge presented by these one shot hunt rules is evidenced by the fact that fewer than half the teams who have ever competed have successfully killed two animals with one shot each. Beginning in Following the
successful staging of the first OSHC SA event in Believing that they would like to return something to the country that had provided them with so many hunting opportunities over the years, the One Shot Club’s members began a program to collect tennis shoes and funds for maize meal to be distributed to needy school children during the next year’s event. Conversations
with school and government officials during the The virtual non-existence of computers available for teaching students was seen as a major impediment for these schools. The frustration felt by both the teachers and school officials caused by the lack of teaching computers was very evident. Identification of the seriousness of these needs resulted in the club substantially increasing its programs to support the schools during the next year. Providing support for needy South African school children was adopted as the primary mission of the club. Efforts were initiated to encourage the donations of computers and school supplies which could be given to the school systems. Before the In Funding for the club’s activities has been provided both by direct cash contributions and by donated hunts, services or goods which are auctioned by the club. Most of the funds received by the club are used to purchase items – such as mealy, blankets and medical and school supplies - locally in Africa for distribution and to support the club’s activities. One of the newer programs of the club is to create partnerships with African outfitters and local communities to market donated hunts. For these partnerships the outfitters donate their daily fees, the community donates the trophy fees and the club then sells the hunts. When a hunt is sold, all of the net receipts are transferred directly to the local community. Sales of hunts donated under this program have provided support to a village in Mozambique and to the Mpembeni Community in Zululand. Perhaps the
greatest value provided by the club has proved to be its ability to serve as an
organization for arranging the direct distribution to needy communities and
individuals in Africa of donated goods. Examples of such distributions have
included computers, shoes, text books and hearing aids. Its newest program is to
work with its African members to arrange the distribution of The club has been able to successfully conduct the activities involved in receiving and distributing donated goods in large part because it has registered non-profit corporations in both South Africa and in the United States. Both corporations have as their formal mission the providing of support to needy African school children and their communities. Both have also been recognized by their respective governments as publicly funded, non-profit corporations. The United
States registered corporation is used to receive funds, goods or services which
are donated by U.S. based individuals and organizations. Because it is
recognized by the IRS as a The South
African corporation is recognized as a Section Neither the club nor the foundation has any paid employees and all of its officers and directors contribute both their time and travel expenses without either being paid or reimbursed. For hunters who are planning to be in South Africa, participating in the one shot event is great way to contribute to the children and future of South Africa, meet others of similar interests and to broaden their contacts within South Africa. For those who do not wish to hunt but would like to participate in some of the activities of the event, there are options available; including tickets for attending one or both of the banquets which include auctions of donated hunts, artwork and many other items. Individuals and organizations who may wish to contribute to the U.S. based foundation without participating in the activities of the annual event may do so by contacting any of the club’s U.S. officers. The club’s
United States South Africa Hector Kitscha Sandy McDonald Custom Travel
Ltd. PO Box Hales Corners, WI Tele: ( E-mail: ctravel@execpc.com E-mail: enquires@mcdonaldhunt.com Jack Hagen Grafton, WI Tele: ( E-mail: hagenjg@sbcglobal.net
Article published in the African Indaba newsletter July, 2007 African Indaba eNewsletter Volume. 5, Number 4 Page 5 For hunter-conservationists and all people who are interested in the conservation, management and the sustainable use of Africa’s wild natural resources. The distribution of African Indaba is supported by the International Council for Wildlife Conservation CIC and Conservation Force One Shot Hunt Club South Africa By Howard Knott Concern has been increasing within the hunting community regarding the negative image in which the media often portray hunting and in how it is perceived in some political circles. Many in the hunting community believe that this continuing negative portrayal seriously endangers the future of sport hunting in Africa as well as in other countries around the world. To counter this trend, a group consisting of international hunters and African outfitters and PHs has created a program that provides a way for hunters to directly benefit local African communities. This group’s members believe that highly visible support is critical for hunting to retain African community and political support. This group conducts its programs through two organizations that are called the One Shot Hunt Club SA and the OSHC Foundation Inc. The One Shot Hunt Club South Africa began in the year 2000 when several veterans of the One Shot Hunt Club of Wyoming decided that they wanted to start a similar club in South Africa. The Wyoming club has been in existence for over 60 years and it has become famous for its one shot pronghorn hunt. The planning came to fruition in May of 2001, when the One Shot Hunt Club South Africa (OSHC SA) held its first event at the Wintershoek game farm near Kimberly. Ten teams of two shooters each competed in the event. The animal hunted by the teams was the springbok; an animal which is similar to the North American pronghorn in both size and difficulty to hunt. Since the first year’s event, additional competitions during the event have been added and the attendees now compete in sling shot, shotgun, air rifle, and timed target shooting as well as spear throwing and the one-shot-hunt itself. For the 2005 event, a one shot bow hunt was being added. Hunters from New Zealand, North America and South Africa have participated. Beginning in 2005, the OSHC SA moved its annual South African event to the Aventura Tshipise Resort northeast of Polokwane. In this area, the species hunted is impala. Following the successful staging of the first one-shot hunt, in South Africa, several officers of the club had the occasion to visit a few community grade schools in the Kimberly area. The needs of the school children and the shortage of resources available were dramatically obvious. Even though it was South Africa’s winter, many of the school children were without shoes and many came to school hungry because their families couldn’t afford to provide them with breakfast. Believing that they would like to return something to the country which had provided them with so many hunting opportunities over the years, the club’s members began a program to collect tennis shoes and funds for maize meal which could be distributed to needy during the next years hunt. Conversations with school and government officials indicated that most of the schools had very few working computers available for teaching, text books were usually shared among several students and students didn’t have enough money themselves to purchase such basic school supplies as pencils and paper. The virtual non-existence of computers was seen as a major impediment. The frustration felt by both the teachers and school officials caused by the lack of teaching computers was very evident. This resulted in the club substantially increasing its programs to support the schools during the next year and it was adopted as the primary mission of the club. Efforts were initiated to encourage the donations of computers and school supplies. Before the 2003 one-shot-hunt, a number of organizations in the United States provided very generous donations of computers, software, text books and school supplies which required 20 full pallets to ship. Federal Express air freighted the pallets to Johannesburg free of charge. Since then, officers of the club have worked in conjunction with the Educational Ministry of the Free State to maximize the utilization of the computers, text books and school supplies within the school system. This effort eventually resulted in the creation of a computer training center near Christiana for which a local school provided the facility, the club provided the computers and a local resort funded the wiring and computer infrastructure. In 2004, the club distributed another shipment that included computers, text books, school supplies, tennis shoes and first aid supplies as well as blankets and corn meal that were purchased by the club in South Africa with donated funds. In 2005, the club launched a new effort to donate programmable hearing aids to needy individuals with hearing impairment. As these hearing aids cost typically cost over $2,000 each in South Africa. This hearing aid program has been continued thanks to the donation of 25 additional hearing aids each year by a generous USA citizen and the support of a Polokwane hearing clinic which assists the club in identifying qualified individuals and which fits the hearing aids to the recipients. In 2007, the club duplicated this successful partnership model when it donated 11 laptop computers for use in a computer training center which is being established in the Tshipise area. One of the newer programs of the club is to create partnerships with African outfitters and local communities to market donated hunts. For these partnerships the outfitters donate their daily fees, the community donates the trophy fees for the animals and the club then sells the hunts. When a hunt is sold, all of the proceeds are transferred directly to the local community. Sales of hunts donated under this program have provided support to communities in Mozambique and South Africa. The newest OSHC SA program is to work with its African members to arrange the distribution of free wheelchairs that are provided by another charitable USA based organization. This program began early in 2007 when the club received its first shipment of 550 wheelchairs in Durban. The club’s responsibilities include: receipt of the wheelchair shipments and their storage in South Africa, identification of appropriate organizations and individuals for receipt of the free wheelchairs and providing documentation of the distribution of the wheelchairs to the USA organization that supplies them. The response within South Africa to this free wheelchair program has been outstanding and it appears that there is a much greater need for wheelchairs than had been anticipated. The club is planning to continue and possibly expand this program within South Africa and in other countries such as Mozambique. Funding for the club’s activities is provided by direct cash contributions from businesses and individuals and by the sale of donated hunts, services or goods. Funds received by the club are used to purchase items such as maize meal, blankets, and first aid and school supplies. There are no paid employees and the officers and directors of the club are obligated to pay their travel and other expenses on their own without reimbursement. To-date, the value of the monies and goods donated for the club’s charitable programs in Africa exceeds $500,000 USD. To successfully conduct the activities involved in accepting both cash and goods and in distributing donated goods, the club has registered non-profit corporations in South Africa and the United States. Their formal mission is providing of support to needy African school children and their communities. Both have also been recognized by their respective governments as publicly funded, non-profit corporations. The US-registered OSHC Foundation, Inc. is used to receive funds, goods or services which are donated by USA based individuals and organizations. Because it is recognized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as a 501 (c) (3) organization, donations are fully tax deductible. The South African One Shot Hunt Club SA is registered as a Section 21 corporation and serves a similar purpose for South African individuals and businesses donating funds, goods or services. Additionally, the South African corporation provides an organization that can import donated goods duty free which is next to impossible for a foreign chartered non-profit corporation. For hunters, participating in the one-shot-hunt is a great way to contribute to the children and future of South Africa, help to insure the future of sport hunting, meet others of similar interests and to broaden their contacts within South Africa. For those who do not wish to hunt but would like to participate in some of the other activities of the event, there are options available; including attending the banquets or participating in the school programs. Individuals and organizations who may wish to contribute to the South African programs without participating in the activities of the annual event may do so by contacting the South African directors of the club. Howard Knott, phone +27 (15) 539-0720, email howard@greaterkuduland.co.za or Sandy McDonald, phone +27 (15) 289-9288, email enquires@mcdonaldhunt.com. Further information; including schedules of future activities, listings of the current club and Foundation directors, officers and members, pictures from past events, newsletters, club sale and auction items and event registration forms is available on the club’s website www.oneshot.com. Polokwane Newspapers May, 2007
Hunting Report March, 2006
HEARING AIDS FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA The following articles were published in the local Polokwane newspaper in 2205. They briefly discuss the distribution of programmable hearing aids which have been held at a clinic in Polokwane. A total of 22 hearing have been distributed by the OSHC SA with a total value in RSA of over R350,000.
SHOES FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
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