Hunting Matters

Curt Melcher is the Director of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Curt is a native Oregonian, who graduated from the University of Oregon with a B.S. degree in Biology. He began his career with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife as a temporary employee in 1985. During his time at the Department, he has represented the State of Oregon in numerous regional management forums, including the Pacific Fishery Management Council, Klamath Fishery Management Council, and Pacific Salmon Commission Southern Panel.

Curt served as the Deputy Director for Fish and Wildlife programs from2007 through 2014 and was appointed the Interim Director in September2014. He was hired as permanent Director in February 2015 and is currently the President of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.

Curt is passionate about the conservation of Oregon's natural resources and is an avid hunter and angler.

Chase Glenn is the Director of Business Development for SilencerCo and has been with the company for two years. He oversees all of SilencerCo’s strategic relationships, brand representation, and development of new Licensing and OEM opportunities.

Prior to SilencerCo, Chase spent 15 years in the healthcare industry overseeing program expansion, strategic planning, referral relations, and executive-level mergers and acquisitions. He also oversaw the creation of one of the first nationally recognized and accredited private healthcare facilities to accept VA benefits for Veterans suffering from mental health and substance abuse diagnoses.

The SilencerCo Brand. Since our birth in 2008, our dedication to authenticity and innovation has never wavered. Today, we continue to focus on exceptional customer service and industry-leading products; products that are crafted by people with the utmost dedication to our industry. We are hunters, shooters, and gun enthusiasts, just like you. Our mission is to bring you products that will enhance your shooting experience. SilencerCo manufactures suppressors for hunting, home defense, long range and tactical uses.

Eydin Hansen is an outdoor enthusiast from Texas. He's been shooting air guns since he was five years old and is currently on the pro staff with Umarex Airguns.

Eydin has also been cast as a member of American Airgunner TV. He competed in the Pyramyd Air Cup in 2019 and made the finals in the benchrest competition with a Umarex Gauntlet. His greatest achievement as an air gunner is “introducing people to air gunning and using them to hunt wild game ethically”.

Eydin retired from the United States Air Force and was awarded the military expert in small-arms marksmanship award with the M-16 rifle, and the Military Service Star, denoting expert proficiency in small-arms marksmanship with military issued handguns.

Wesley Newman is the Coastal Prairie Conservancy’s Conservation Director. He is responsible for management and operations of protected lands including overseeing wildlife management and agricultural activities on Coastal Prairie Conservancy holdings, coordinating wetlands mitigation projects, and preparing biological assessments on prospective properties.

Mr. Newman received a Master of Science in Rangeland Ecology and Management (1998) and a Bachelor of Science in Range Science (1990), both from Texas A&M University. He is a member of the Society of Range Management and Society of Wetland Scientists. His areas of focus include prairie and wetland ecology, hunting and its relationship to stewardship, range management, wetlands creation and management, conservation strategies.

Mike Swartzentruber is the co-founder of Hunter’s Blend Coffee.

Mike grew up on a small farm in Iowa and has always loved the outdoors. When Mike was thirteen years old, his brother-in-law Ken came into their family. Ken was an avid outdoorsman and introduced Mike to trapping. Mike never hunted much until about ten years ago when his son took up archery as a middle school student. He took his son for lessons and instantly became enamored with archery. He has been bowhunting ever since.

Mike and two brothers in laws founded Hunter’s Blend Coffee about 5 years ago. Hunter’s Blend Coffee imports the top 6% of the coffee produced in the world. Each batch begins with premium green coffee sourced directly from the farmers who grew it in Central America, East Africa and Southeast Asia.

Brian Murphy is the V.P. of Strategic Partnerships at HuntStand, the largest and most widely used hunting and land management app in North America. Brian has earned several honors including the National Conservation Award from the Australian Deer Association, the E.L. Cheatum Wildlife Excellence Award from The University of Georgia and being named one of Outdoor Life’s Top 25 Conservationists in the United States in 2011.

Brian also is a prolific speaker and writer. He has conducted over 800 lectures and 150 television, radio, and podcast interviews. He also has published more than 125 popular articles as well as 28 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and training manuals. Brian is a wildlife biologist with a B.S. in Range and Wildlife Management from Texas Tech University and a M.S. in Wildlife Resources from the University of Georgia.

Murphy served previously as CEO of the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) for 23 years, during which membership increased from 3,000 to 60,000 and the group became the most respected and influential whitetail organization in North America. He has been married to his high-school sweetheart, Heidi, for more than 30 years and shares his love of the outdoors with his two daughters, Lauren, and Jordan, both of whom are avid hunters and anglers.

Christian Hogg is the Director of Marketing for Fiocchi of America and Baschieri & Pellagri. Christian has been involved with the outdoor industry since 2008, having previously served as the Director of Marketing at Remington Arms Company. Christina will discuss what is new with Fiocchi Ammunition and Baschieri & Pellagri shotshell ammunition.

Fiocchi was founded in 1876 in Lecco, Italy, and has been producing high-quality ammunition ever since. The tradition continues at Fiocchi's Ozark, Missouri and Little Rock, Arkansas facilities - right in the heart of America. Hundreds of hardworking Americans producing some of the highest quality shotshell, centerfire, and rimfire ammunition available. American ingenuity fused with our Italian lineage keeps us focused on quality craftsmanship, innovation, and unequaled customer service.

Baschieri & Pellagri® is recognized worldwide for its design, production, and distribution of premium shotshell ammunition and components. From its custom powders and plastic wads to its innovative Gordon System cases and loaded ammunition, B&P® has a long, demonstrated history of providing high-quality shotshell products for smooth bore guns to the competition and hunting markets.

Mike Slinkard is the President of HECS, LLC. He is also a lifelong bowhunter, former professional archery shooter, and full-time entrepreneur who has started several successful businesses in the hunting and outdoor industry. Born in 1965, Mike grew up shooting and hunting. His father had Mike shooting both bows and firearms at a very early age in fact Mike can’t even remember being taught how to shoot as he was too young. Mikes Grandfather and Uncle were cattle ranchers and Mike spent much of his youth in close proximity to animals both domestic and wild.

Mike began bowhunting big game at age 12 near his Eastern Oregon home of John Day and he was shooting competitive archery at age 17. Mike has been fortunate enough to have hunted all over the world and has taken over 20 species with archery gear including Brown Bear, Cape buffalo and 49 elk to date. Hunting elk with a bow is his true passion. Mike started his first archery Pro shop in John Day Oregon in 1992 and went on to start Winners Choice Custom Bowstrings INC in 2000 which changed the archery industry forever and took the art of bowstring construction to a level never before attained. This set the stage for bow manufacturers to reach new levels of performance that was never possible before due to the limitations of the strings at the time.

Mike Founded HECS LLC in 2010. Which focuses on the emerging science of how animals perceive their electromagnetic environment and Mike and his team were issues 5 US patents and multiple foreign patents on the technology which blocks the human bioelectric signature. HECS technology is used widely in hunting, wildlife, conservation and research arenas as well as under water and military applications.

Mike currently serves as President/founder of HECS LLC and Closer Outdoors INC. He also heads the subsidiary companies HECS Wildlife LLC, HECS Aquatic LLC, and HECS Tactical LLC. Mike is the host of Hunting with HECS TV which has aired on the Pursuit channel for the past 11 years and is currently the most aired outdoor/hunting television show on the air. Mike has a lovely wife of 32 years (Sharrie) and 2 grown daughters and 1 granddaughter.

Peter Churchbourne is an avid outdoorsman, conservationist, and steadfast advocate for all hunters. His passion is anything to do with the outdoors, but most important to him is hunting waterfowl with his labs, chasing turkeys, bow hunting, and introducing new people to the life outside. Peter is a certified NRA shotgun, pistol, and rifle instructor who enjoys competition shooting in USPSA, 3-Gun, and 2-Gun tournaments. Peter is currently the Director of the NRA Hunters’ Leadership Forum where he is engaged in building new NRA hunting programs and fighting for hunters' rights. Before working for the NRA, Peter worked at Ducks Unlimited for 17 years in various leadership positions around the country.

In his first few years at the NRA, Peter was responsible for the production of the award-winning online hunter education course and is also responsible for the creation of the newly released “How to Talk About Hunting” book, and associated communication strategies in support of hunting. Peter sits on several boards for various outdoor organizations and enjoys helping create new leaders within the outdoor professional arena.

Mark Huelsing is the Brand Manager of backcountry hunting pack manufacturer, Exo Mtn Gear and also the host of the Hunt Backcountry Podcast. Mark met Exo Mtn Gear co-founder Steve Speck through the hunting industry over 10 years ago. In the early days of Exo, Steve reached out to Mark for help with the technical aspects of getting the online portion of the business up and running. Over the years, Mark became involved with more areas of the business and eventually left his tech job to fully invest his time and energy into Exo. These days, Mark manages marketing, the podcast, partnerships, customer service, and pretty much anything else you see online that comes from Exo.

Exo Mtn Gear’s mission is to build the best backcountry hunting pack systems available, provide the best service possible, and do it all right here in the USA.