The Skyline Newspaper

Photo: Range and Wildlife Club officers John Kinsey, vice president, Josh Popham, vice president, Abel Guevara, president, Lisa Guevara, secretary, and Stacy Duckett, treasurer. Photo by Sara Schultz

Range and Wildlife Club Recognized

By Jason Hennington
News Writer

Sul Ross State University's Range and Wildlife Club was recently recognized as the National Chapter of the Year by the Wildlife Society.

The Wildlife Society awards the National Chapter of the Year to encourage and recognize outstanding achievements by chapters of the Wildlife Society.

This year the club was chosen for its accomplishments, participation in various activities and impact on members and the resource management profession.

"We are all really, really excited. We beat out a lot of big schools like Mississippi State, Texas A&M, and Arizona State, just to name a few," said club president Abel Guevara, Del Rio. Guevara said the club has participated in various activities on campus, as well as in the Alpine community.

"We are very big in the community," Guevara said. "We like to tell people what we enjoy doing."

The Range and Wildlife Club has been a part of various events including its annual turkey shoot, a highway clean-up, spotlight counts at Elephant Mountain, the Sul Ross Range and Wildlife Wild Game Dinner and Big Game Awards and booths at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Expo, staffed by Sul Ross club members. As a part of homecoming activities, the club helps to collect wood donated for the annual bonfire. The club also placed second in last year's homecoming parade.

Louis Harveson has been advising the Range and Wildlife Club for ten years and believes they have improved every year. 

"I'm very proud of our club and its membership and officers," Harveson said.

"Sul Ross State University and the Alpine community have everything to do with our success.  We are indebted to the West Texas landowners, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, biologists, the Nature Conservancy staff, and everyone else who has enlisted the help of our wildlife students."

The Wildlife Society is an international non-profit scientific and educational association dedicated to excellence in wildlife through science and education. Their website (www.wildlife.org) provides information about the society including jobs, history of the society, and schools that are members.

Guevara found Sul Ross through the Wildlife Society website and came here for hands-on experience.

"What I've done here in a year puts me ahead of the game," Guevara said.

"We get to do the things you see on TV and get to see interesting things most people won't ever get a chance to see."

He explained that what is done here at Sul Ross during undergraduate work is the same thing done at other institutions as a part of their graduate curriculum.

Sul Ross State University is a part of the Southwest Section Chapter of the Wildlife Society, along with Texas State University, Stephen F. Austin University, Tarleton State University, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech University.

The National Wildlife Chapter of the Year award is given annually to schools with leadership in their community, active club membership, and members who advocate wildlife.

"We are giving back to Sul Ross and Alpine, especially Alpine," Guevara said.

The Range and Wildlife club has also participated in intramural sports here at Sul Ross; they call themselves the "Wildlife Rangers."

"We work hard and have a lot of fun and establish life-long friendships.

We have experiences that also last a lifetime," Guevara said.

The Range and Wildlife club will be traveling to Tucson, Ariz., for the Wildlife Society's 14th annual conference and trade show Sept. 22-26 to accept their award.

"This is definitely an accomplishment for the members of the club who worked hard," Guevara said.

"It was very good for the club when the award was received."

Last year the Range and Wildlife Club took 12-15 students to the annual conference in Alaska and would like to have 20 plus students on stage representing Sul Ross as they accept their award this year.

The Range and Wildlife Club is open to everyone and welcomes all majors.  For more information, contact Guevara, (432) 837-8488.