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Two weeks ago, I had a chance to spend some time at the Western Virginia Sports Show. Mark Hanger, the producer and owner of the show impressed me with his commitment to conservation and getting families interested in the great outdoors.

When I caught up with Hanger at the show I asked him how the attendance was. He told me it was better than they expected given the economy, then he made an interesting observation.

“The only thing we can point to is they want to be happy for a while, they don’t want to hear any bad news. They want to be enlightened, entertained and come out and spend some time with their family at a reasonable cost and have some good entertainment,” he said.

In his show brochure Hanger said “on your next trip, take a young person with you and teach them to love, respect and enjoy God’s great outdoors.”

I asked him about getting kids into the outdoors.

“There is no doubt about it that that is the most important because it is our future. If we don’t get children in the outdoors, then our sports are going to diminish and be gone forever,” he said.

Hanger pointed out a number of educational elements at the show including the Bucks, Bows and Does, Outdoor Adventure archery education trailer and the show’s wild game display.

A great example of getting kids engaged in the outdoors was the Orange County High School Anglers Club. They are a 4-H and Junior B.A.S.S. Federation Nation club.

The club is made up of students ages 11 to 19 who love to bass fish competitively.

I spoke with Becky Gore, the club’s advisor. Gore is a teacher and a former coach. She is the power house behind the club and a joy to talk with. If every school in the Valley can find a Becky Gore, then fishing will have a very bright future.

Gore told me how she got the club started.

“In 1999, about ten years after my husband had died, I had just gotten my kids in college. I decided I wanted to start fishing again, so I went to the high school principal and said I would like to start a fishing club and she said ‘sure, go for it,’ ” Gore said. “We have three entities, we were first 4-H and the high school together, and then the B.A.S.S. Federation found out about me and they were trying to implement a youth program in Virginia. They called me up and asked me if would I be interested. I asked what they could do for my kids. They said they could advance to a world level. I said ‘Sure, let’s do it.’ Plus, they mentioned the word scholarship and I jumped on it.”

Gore told me what other high schools could do to get do to get the program started. She ticked these items.

“You’ve got to have someone who loves kids and loves being with kids and is willing to do it without getting compensated,” she said. “You’ve got to have some kids that are interested. Once those kids approach that principal and say ‘We want a bass club,’ then that principal may go out or tell those kids, ‘Well, you find a sponsor and then we will do it.’ ”

Gore told me the kids can receive their high school letter if they meet the criteria. She has developed that criteria and told me that all another coach or teacher needs to do is contact her and she would be happy to share it with them.

“And that is the other cool thing about this, it’s parents and kids working together,” she said. “And the other thing I have tried to do is give the kids an opportunity to be with their parents. Be with their dads or moms out on the water on a Saturday or Sunday.”

Gore credits the parents, students and her volunteers for making the program a success. She considers them all family.

Nothing is more important for the future of hunting and fishing than helping the next generation learn about the sports we love. Let’s all do a little more where we can.

A few weeks ago some colleagues of mine sent me a final copy of the Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Plan. The plan provides some great recommendations for conservation in this country.

In the plan, Valley hunters and conservationists can find a number of important policy actions that are important at the federal, state and local level.

It chronicles the efforts and captures the recommendations of the Sporting Conservation Council, a federally charted advisory committee, and others as they worked with the Council on Environmental Quality, the U.S. Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other federal agencies to assist in the implementation of Executive Order 13443: Facilitation of Hunting Heritage and Wildlife Conservation.

In August 2007, President Bush issued the order, directing federal agencies “to facilitate the expansion and enhancement of hunting opportunities and the management of game species and their habitat.”

The plan is the collaborative work product, crafted by members of the Sporting Conservation Council, conservation and hunting organizations, state agency volunteers and others. This final version was released in December.

The chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality was tasked with organizing and holding the White House Conference on North American Wildlife Policy. In addition, the executive order requires that a ten-year Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Plan be prepared.

That was just the first step. The Sporting Conservation Council then started working on a framework for implementing it. Working with a variety of hunting and conservation groups, they drafted research papers on the various issues facing hunting and conservation in the United States.

The next step was to hold a conference with all the various groups to hash out those issues. The conference took place in Reno, Nev., in October.

Participants reviewed the council’s research and offered comments and ideas on how to enhance conservation and hunting in the next ten years.

Staff from the U.S. Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Council on Environmental Quality held meetings and briefings with various stakeholder groups to get more comments and suggestions.

This final plan is the result of many meetings, workshops and discussions with federal, state, local and tribal government officials, members of Congress and their staffs, hunting and conservation organizations and private individuals.

There are seven focus or “topic” areas in the final plan. They are: Increasing Public and Private Funding for Wildlife Conservation; Improving Wildlife Habitat Conservation; Expanding Access to Public and Private Lands; Educating, Recruiting and Retaining Hunters; Coordinating Federal, State, Tribal and International Action; Understanding Climate Change and Wildlife Effects; and Conserving Wildlife and Developing Oil and Gas On Public Land.

All of these are important conservation challenges in their own right. Together, they provide a compelling list of opportunities for the Obama Administration and Congress.

From those seven topics, 58 action items were recommended. Let’s look at a few of these focus areas and actions in more detail.

Funding for fish and wildlife habitat conservation has long been a challenge in our country. Hunters and anglers have helped fund much of the important conservation work of the last century.

Unfortunately, the conservation needs to far exceed the current funding levels. In the future, creative ideas will be needed to fund conservation and outdoor recreation.

The plan recommends looking to climate change legislation and dedicating some of the adaptation funding for wildlife, habitat and conservation education. It also recommends creating incentive-based programs for private landowners to maintain and increase habitat and encourage public access for hunting opportunities.

When it comes to increasing access to private land, the plan offers a key recommendation. To remove uncertainty about liability, create model state legislation so landowners are protected if they provide public access to their property.

For public land the plan recommends establishing a “one-stop-shop” Web site with information on hunting opportunities on federal land. By the way, here in Virginia we already have that for state land.

Hunter recruitment and retention is essential for conservation and outdoor recreation. The plan recommends some important actions.

Taking a page from the fishing and boating community, the plan recommends creating a Hunting and Shooting Heritage Foundation patterned after the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation.

These days it is essential to connect with young people through the medium they use most. Social marketing offers a great opportunity. Action steps in the plan include using tools like YouTube and Facebook to reach the next generation of hunters and anglers.

Another excellent suggestion is waiving or discounting any entrance fees to federal land for veterans and active duty military personnel. The plan recommends this for hunting on federal land. Extending that for all recreation and on state lands, as well also makes a lot of sense.

This plan is full of lots more great suggestions for hunting and conservation. It is well worth your time to read it. Being better informed on what can be done to protect and promote our hunting heritage and protect and conserve fish and wildlife habitat is essential.

For more information on the Executive Order on Facilitation of Hunting Heritage and Wildlife Conservation or the White House Conference on North American Wildlife Policy go to http://wildlifeconservation.gov/

You can get a copy of The Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Plan at: http://wildlifeconservation.gov/documents/RecHuntingActionPlan11009dp.pdf

You can read more of my columns in the News Virginian.