Heidi Lyn Rao was hired by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) in 1998 and has recruited, trained, and retained volunteers, as the Hunter Education Specialist for Southeast Texas. In 2010 she also assumed the role as statewide Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) Coordinator.

During her TPWD career, she developed many partnerships and organized many education & outreach events. She started “Take Me Outdoors Houston” in 2009, when the Texas Wildlife Expo ended, and brings this annual family-friendly, free, hands-on outdoor event to Discovery Green, Downtown Houston. She hosts wildlife workshops ranging from alligators to big game. She promotes hunting and outdoor safety to groups ranging from elementary school aged to flying offshore via helicopter to speak to oil and gas employees in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico on a platform. From teaching firearm safety to Rodeo Clowns during the Houston Rodeo, to hosting Hunter Education classes at the Sam Houston (horse) Raceway, conducting National Archery in the Schools Program and Student Air Rifle certifications, and partnering with many hunting, shooting and conservation organizations across Texas.

She has coordinated twenty-seven statewide BOW workshops across Texas, including the first-ever VIRTUAL BOW in 2020. She has reached over 7,000 Ladies who have attended BOW and continued their outdoors skills ultimately becoming hunters, anglers, and archers, especially through mentored BOW hunts. To date, 10 Texas Outdoor Women Network (TOWN) groups have launched across the state because of the statewide BOW.

She received IHEA’s Professional of the Year; IHEA’s Executive Director’s Award; TPWD’s Terry Erwin Hunter Education LEGACY award, Houston Safari Club Educator of the Year and she is also in the Texas Hunter Education Halls of Fame.

She and her (now retired) TPWD Game Warden husband of 25 yrs., John, have 4 boys: Dominic is 21 and works for Laser Shot Simulations in Houston; Matthew is 20 and is a sophomore at the University of Arkansas with a 4.0 and on his way to be a large animal vet; JohnJohn is 17 and is a Junior; and Luke is 14 and is in 8th grade. The Rao’s are avid hunters and enjoy camping, trapping, and the shooting sports together.


WEBSITE: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/hunter-education

SOCIAL MEDIA: https://www.facebook.com/tpwdoutdoorwoman

Chris Dorsey has been called the 'brand-father' of outdoor television having helped create and launch almost 60 series in the outdoor genre and an equal number of series in mainstream television, including for such networks as ABC, Discovery Channel, History Channel, HGTV, Travel, DIY, ESPN, WGN America, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, Destination America, Oxygen, and all the outdoor networks.

Dorsey formerly served as editor in chief of Sports Afield and Ducks Unlimited magazines, is the author of twelve books, and is a regular contributor to Forbes. His work also has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, Newsweek, and The Robb Report. He is among the world's most widely traveled hunters having taken the twenty-nine big game species of North America, the deadly seven species of Africa, the spiral horns of Africa and the wild turkey world slam. He is a member of the Outdoor Legends Hall of Fame and is a recipient of the Ray Scott Trailblazer Award as well as the Curt Gowdy Memorial Award.

Dorsey has also served in board and advisory positions of numerous conservation and sporting advocacy organizations. Chris is the producer and host of Sporting Classics with Chris Dorsey television show airing on Outdoor Channel, CarbonTV, Waypoint TV, Outdoor America, and Wild Television Network.

Sarah Hall; Project and Events Manager Sarah focuses on planning and executing our fundraising events. Sarah is a product of the athletes we support, starting her shooting career in 4-H and then becoming a scholar-athlete with the University of Kentucky Rifle Team. Sarah has been with the Foundation for 6 years.

Dani Farris; Marketing Manager Dani markets all the programs of MidwayUSA Foundation, from the website to social media, to digital and print advertising. Dani also works closely with Sarah to plan and execute events. Dani has been with the Foundation for 10 years and is passionate about the important life lessons our youth gain when they participate in sports and are part of a team.

Dakotah Richardson is the National Sales Manager for RC Cartridges. Dakotah is a former United States Olympic resident shotgun athlete, competing for Team USA Shooting, and a member of the 2013 World Cup Acapulco Team.

James Lofton has spent the last 25 years as an ambassador for the hunting and shooting sports. In addition to being a member of HSCF, he is a Benefactor Member of the NRA, a Life Member of the North American Hunting Club as well as a member of the Congressional Sportsman Foundation and Gun Owners of America, among others. He has a passion for introducing new hunters to our sport and preserving our hunting and gun rights. James is eager to put his skills and passion to work for the HSCF.

James has a history of volunteering and leading charity events and groups. He was the founder and chairman of the DFW Oilman’s Tactical Shoot from 2009-2017, which donated proceeds to support military and veteran’s groups such as Combat Marine Outdoors. CMO takes purple heart recipients on hunting and fishing trips as part of their recovery process. Sharing a camp with these hero’s is one of the highlights of James’ hunting experiences. James also was the Chairman of the Shoot from the Heart Brazos Valley Sporting Clays Tournament from 2004-2007.

After graduating from Texas A&M, James spent the last 28 years in the oil and gas industry. He is a managing partner of JAN Resources, LLC, an oilfield service company that specializes in water treating and completion chemicals. He was a member of the FW SPE Board of Directors for 5 years, serving as President and Scholarship Chairman during that time. James and his wife Kathryn (HSCF Member also) were fortunate to win the bid on several of the hunts and items sold at the HSCF Annual Convention dinners and Gazelle’s Luncheon auctions, including 2 safaris in Namibia which they completed in the summer of 2019. He was also able to share this hunt with his father, who was instrumental in starting James’ passion for hunting. James learned from his father that the woods, prairies, mountains, lakes and rivers we all enjoy are a great place to teach others about life lessons and gain an appreciation for the outdoors.

Michael Sabbeth is a lawyer, lecturer, consultant and author. He lectures nationally and internationally on hunting and shooting ethics, rhetoric and the art of persuasion. Mr. Sabbeth consistently presents at International Hunter Education Association conferences, Texas Hunter Education Instructors Association and at major hunting and shooting conventions including Safari Club International, the Dallas Safari Club and the Namibia Professional Hunters Association.

He writes for about one dozen national and international print and on-line hunting and shooting magazines. He volunteers with organizations that support hunting and shooting opportunities for disabled people including veterans. He has written two books related to ethics and promoting hunting: “The Good, The Bad & The Difference: How to Talk with Children About Values” and “The Honorable Hunter: How to Honorably & Persuasively Defend & Promote Hunting”. Mr. Sabbeth lives in Denver, Colorado. His website is www.thehonorablehunter.com

Dr. Ed Ashby, a legend in the archery hunting community for dedicating more than 27 years to the study of arrow performance and broadhead lethality on six continents. Thanks to Dr. Ashby and his crew, his Natal Study helped legalize archery hunting in South Africa. Many sub-Saharan countries followed suit. The Natal Study was the definitive document used to successfully lobby for bowhunting legalization.

Dr. Ashby is also the co-founder of the Ashby Bowhunting Foundation, the leading global authority on arrow and broadhead lethality.

Alfredo (Rick) Franco is the Co-Founder of Four Branches Spirits Company. Rick is a U.S. Marine (Ret.) with 20-plus years of leadership, organizational management, and entrepreneurial experience. Rick’s career has been extremely diverse, from being a graduate of the prestigious Virginia Military Institute and later a Marine Infantry Officer, to one of the first Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection contractors with Booz Allen, to a covert protective agent for the U.S. intelligence community with more than 30 deployments to hostile areas.

Rick’s leadership experience as a Marine Infantry Officer enabled him to quickly become a lead contractor for one of the government’s most extensive covert protective contracts. During his tenure as a contractor, his leadership ability, drive and critical thinking resulted in his being awarded the Agency Seal medal for hostile actions encountered.

After stepping away from contracting, Rick went on to become the Chief Operating Officer for Heroes and Horses, a non-profit for combat veterans with PTSD based in Montana. Aside from being a decorated Marine and government contractor, Rick is also a co-founder and partner of a successful hunting decoy manufacturing company. Currently, Rick is the Director of Safety and Security for the Troubadour Club, a Discovery Land Company development in Tennessee.

Corey Meyer and his co-founder and long-time friend Charlie Pehrson started Steelhead Outdoors when they had children and wanted to store their firearms securely. They weren't satisfied with what they found on the market and decided to make their own safes. Meyer combines his natural ability and passion to create modular gun safes that firearms owners can take with them when they change residences. The durable safes can be passed down to the next generation. Corey draws upon his mechanical engineering background and hands-on experience in the automotive industry to design innovative products using premium components. All products are Made in the USA in Minnesota. Gun safes, pistol lock boxes, gun cabinets and accessories are available at steelheadoutdoors.com.

As the old Lone Star saying goes, real-life cowboy and cattle rancher Anthony Thomas wasn’t born in Texas, but he got here as soon as he could. As a kid, he dreamed of being a rodeo cowboy in Texas, raising cattle and owning a ranch. Now that he’s here, the ‘Aussie-Texan’ is working on getting his fellow Texans to eat better beef.

In 2020, Thomas found his award-winning professional rodeo career sidelined by the COVID-19 epidemic. The pro rodeo circuit was dormant while the pandemic surged worldwide and Thomas began reassessing the road ahead with a young family to think of.

After meeting his wife and settling in the Bayou City, Thomas established the Thomas Cattle Co. and began ranching west of the city, extolling the virtues of locally grown, chemical-free, ethically produced Angus beef. Thomas conveys the importance of buying directly from a ranch in Texas, cutting out the corporate middleman, and knowing where your beef is coming from.

Thomas’ history as a teenage Australian ranch hand, butcher and later a bull rider touring the United States informed his current incarnation as a bespoke cattle baron. He has discovered that his decades of ranching, rustling and riding horses and bulls could give him an edge when it came to running his own cattle business.