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Welcome to the website of the
NWTF Michigan State Chapter
State News
New Turkey Patches Available!
Click the Patch Above to Purchase Today
The 2024 NWTF/DNR Michigan Wild Turkey Management Cooperator Patch is now available. This patch must be ordered and purchased online by clicking the patch above and going through the online purchase process. The 2024 patch will only be available through the end of the year. To learn more about the Cooperator Patch program or to submit a design for the 2025 patch click here.
Questions?
Questions about the patches or patch program can be directed to miturkeypatch@gmail.com or send questions to:
Michigan NWTF
P.O. Box 471
Schoolcraft, MI 49087
Legislative Turkey Hunt
Michigan State Legislators and staff recently participated in a turkey hunt at Fort Custer. They were paired with NWTF members and staff that guided them on the hunt. Three of the seven participants were successful in harvesting turkeys.
Michigan Senate Passes Resolution Recognizing NWTF Impact
(L to R) Chris Stewart, Morgan Register, Jon Gray, Brandon Nutt, Sen. Jon Bumstead, Bert Vander Weele, and Ryan Boyer accept the Michigan Senate resolution at the sportsmen’s Legislative caucus breakfast.
EDGEFIELD, S.C. — The Michigan Senate recently passed Resolution No. 26 commemorating NWTF’s 50th Anniversary and recognizing the organization’s conservation impact in both Michigan and nationally.
“We are incredibly honored to be recognized by our elected officials for our 50-year anniversary,” said Bert VanderWeele, NWTF Michigan State Chapter president. “We have an incredible partnership with MDNR conserving wild turkeys and preserving our hunting heritage. Since 2014, the NWTF has been awarded over $1.45 million to help conserve more than 7,000 acres of wild turkey habitat in Michigan. We are proud to be recognized for this work and our immense history as a conservation organization.” Read more.
In Memory of
Pete Demos
1928-2023
With the passing of Pete Demos, the NWTF and the state of Michigan lost a longtime conservation and education supporter. Pete was active in conservation projects at the local and state level and was a champion of the Presque Isle Turkey Trackers chapter scholarship program. Because of that, the NWTF Michigan State Chapter has renamed the state scholarship program in his memory. The scholarship will now be known as the Michigan NWTF Pete Demos Memorial Academic Scholarship.
Pete was posthumously honored by the MUCC for his more than 50 Years of Conservation. Read more here.
2022 Award Winners
The NWTF Michigan State Chapter awarded individual and chapter awards at the Awards Banquet, held at the Michigan State Chapter Convention, January 14, 2023. Click here to see a complete list of award winners.
NWTF Chapters Receive National Outstanding Achievement Awards
EDGEFIELD, S.C. — For outstanding achievement in helping the National Wild Turkey Federation enhance hunter recruitment efforts, two chapters received a national award.
Representatives from the Michigan and New Jersey NWTF state chapters accepted Save the Hunt Awards during the NWTF 50th anniversary celebration at its 47th annual Convention and Sport Show, sponsored by Mossy Oak.
The Michigan State Chapter was awarded for the highest cumulative number of recruited hunters.
(L to R) Chris stewart, morgan register, al stewart, steve sharp, becky humphries, bert vanderweele
Michigan State Chapter Announces Scholarship Winner
The NWTF Michigan State Chapter would like to congratulate Elizabeth Romel from the Preque Isle Turkey Trackers Chapter on being the scholarship winner for 2022. Elizabeth received a check for $2500 and will be recognized at the NWTF State Convention in Flint, January 14, 2023.
Scholarships are available through many local Michigan NWTF chapters that have scholarship programs. The deadline to submit an application to a local chapter is February 1. Local chapter winners will be considered for the Michigan State Chapter scholarship of $2500, and the state winner will be considered for the National NWTF Dr. James Earl Kennamer Scholarship of $10,000! Scholarship application can be found by clicking here.
Click here to find out more about the NWTF scholarship program.
RARE ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION UNDERWAY
Since 2014, the NWTF has been awarded over $1.45 million to help conserve more than 5,000 acres of critical wild turkey habitat throughout Michigan, like the ongoing pine barren restoration projects. (Read More)
R3 - Recruit, Retain, Reactivate
R3 is the nationwide effort to recruit new hunters, retain the hunters we currently have, and reactivate hunters that have left hunting. NWTF is taking the lead at the national and state level. Steve Sharp is Michigan's R3 Coordinator and leads the effort to help meet the national goal of 1.5 million new hunters over ten years, 200,000 of those in Michigan. How can you help? One thing you can do is to mentor a new hunter, the next step is to report it. One of the biggest hurdles is counting all of the new hunters that NWTF members mentor every year. Use the links below to report your R3 event, report a mentored hunt, or just find out what R3 is all about.
What is the NWTF?
The NWTF — a national nonprofit organization — is the leader in upland wildlife habitat conservation in North America.
Founded in 1973, the NWTF is headquartered in Edgefield, S.C., and has local chapters in every state.
The NWTF is dedicated to the conservation of the wild turkey and the preservation of our hunting heritage.
Through vital partnerships with state, federal and provincial wildlife agencies, the NWTF and our members have helped restore wild turkey populations throughout North America — from a mere 30,000 in the entire United States to more than 7 million across the United States, Canada and Mexico.