Hunting Matters

Kerrie Cox Romero is a proud born and raised New Mexican. With a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Agricultural Economics from New Mexico State University, she cut her teeth in the corporate world as a Credit Analyst for Farm Credit of New Mexico and later as a Senior Analyst with the Bank of Texas.

In 2013 she accepted an advocacy position in the outfitting industry as a lobbyist advocating hunting and fishing. She immediately fell in love with the industry. The 2023 legislative session will be Kerrie's 11th year advocating the rights of hunters and nonresident hunter opportunity.
She currently serves as the Executive Director of the New Mexico Council of Outfitters and Guides. She is also the Board Secretary for the Professional Outfitters and Guides of America. Kerrie enjoys all things outdoors including hunting, fishing, horseback riding, and she is an avid alpine skier. She lives in Stanley, New Mexico with her husband and 3 children.

Jamison Smith is the owner of the Gun Cleaners of Houston and serves on the HSCF Board of Directors as Secretary. He is also the HSCF Firearms Chairperson. He has been a passionate hunter and outdoorsman since his father first took him hunting when he was three years old on their south Texas deer lease. He has continued this legacy his whole life and continues to hunt with his father, as well as his children. Jamison has hunted all over Texas, the United States and several international locations. His travels have enriched his passion and understanding for conservation.

Jamison owns and operates The Gun Cleaners-Houston and is involved in many conservation groups, including Safari Club International, Ducks Unlimited, Back Country Hunters and Anglers, and The Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Fund, just to name a few.

Justin serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the Texas Wildlife Association (TWA). Founded in 1985, TWA represents the interests of private landowners and hunters and provides conservation education to youth and adults around the state.

Justin is an avid hunter and angler who fell in love with the outdoors at an early age hunting the brush country of south Texas with his family. Before joining TWA, Justin spent seven years with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department where he served as the Private Lands and Public Hunting Program Director. He is a Certified Wildlife Biologist with a bachelors and master’s degree from Texas A&M University.

He and his wife Rachael live in Austin, TX with their daughters June and Jill.

Ted Koch is Executive Director of the North American Grouse Partnership. He received a B.S. in Biology from Southern Connecticut State University and an M.S. in Zoology from Idaho State University. He served as an endangered species biologist for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service for 30 years, working on all kinds of plants and animals, including sage grouse and lesser prairie-chickens. Ted resides in Garden Valley, ID.

North American Grouse Partnership is working with landowners to conserve southwestern Great Plains grasslands for lesser prairie-chickens and other species. Lesser prairie-chickens are about to be listed under the Endangered Species Act.

Dakotah Richardson is a sales professional who leads business development for the Beretta Gallery in Dallas, Texas. He is also a member of the Beretta Pro Staff. 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. He specializes in high value transactions and planning and executing hunting excursions for corporate leaders. He began his career with Beretta in 2015 and represents all 36 Beretta brands, with a focus on specialty sporting firearms.

Land Tawney is president/CEO of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, a North American membership-conservation organization based in Missoula, Montana. BHA is dedicated to serving as the voice for our wild public lands, waters and wildlife.

As BHA president/CEO since 2013, Tawney has overseen expansion of the organization from 1000 members and a handful of chapters to nearly 30,000 members and chapters that cover 48 states and Washington, D.C., two Canadian provinces, and one territory. Tawney works every day with a talented staff and 700-plus volunteer leaders to make sure all North Americans have access to public lands and wares and the fish and wildlife habitat when they get there.

Tawney was raised in Montana, where he hunted and fished from an early age. He earned a PHD in “Post Hole Digging” on the family spread and a bachelor's degree in wildlife biology from the University of Montana in 2000. His conservation career now spans two decades. Prior to working at Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Tawney worked for other conservation organizations including the National Wildlife Federation and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. He lives in Montana with his wife Glenna, two kids (Cidney-14) and (Colin-11) and five-year-old black lab Tule.

Brett Jepsen is a co-host of the Target Rich Environment television show. He was born in the DFW Metroplex and was raised hunting in North and East Texas. With a variety of game to chase in all types of Texas landscapes he grew up hunting all types of game but always had the itch for ducks and a passion for waterfowl.

While hunting with his Dad at a young age, who mainly hunted whitetail, there were many mornings Brett was dropped off at the duck pond while the rest of the family went to sit in their deer blinds. As the years passed, he wanted to find a way to provide for his family while also being able to chase the migration all season long.

In 2013, Three Curl Outfitters was born. Brett started Three Curl Outfitters and was focused primarily on duck and dove hunts at the time. Brett still focuses on the waterfowl hunting at Three Curl, along with a lot of other help. He also manages the team for all other types of hog hunts, upland hunts, and annual clubs and leases Three Curl Outfitters now offers to their clients. Target Rich Environment can be seen on Sportsman Channel.

Sue Tidwell is the multi-award-winning author of Cries of the Savanna, winner of a Reader's Favorite Gold Medal, the Professional Outdoor Media Association's Pinnacle Award, a Kindle Book Review non-fiction semifinalist and The Wildlife Society's 2022 Conservation Education Award.

An outdoorsy adventuresome type, Sue has long enjoyed capturing her escapades on paper exclusively for the eyes of family and friends. her Tanzanian safari, however, lit a fire in her gut, compelling her to share her adventure and journey of awareness with the world. Cries of the Savanna is a result of that passion. When not at the keyboard, Sue can be found pining for Africa, atop a paddle board, enjoying her grandchildren's antics, or engaged in the latest outdoor excursion with her husband Rick.

Brandon Maddox, CEO and owner of Silencer Central, is recognized as a national thought leader on Class 3 firearms. What began as Maddox’s home-based Federal Firearms License (FFL) evolved into a Class 3 Dealership and has grown into the nationwide brand it is today. Maddox’s NFA expertise makes him a popular voice for the industry, and he speaks regularly at National Compliance Conferences.

Before his work with Silencer Central, Maddox practiced pharmacy and served as a marketing executive in the pharmaceutical industry. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and holds a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Duke University. Megan, Maddox’s wife, is a 5th generation South Dakotan, and together they have two daughters. Maddox is passionate about varmint hunting and has spent more than a decade honing his expertise in the Western Dakota prairies.

This Week on HSCF’s “Hunting Matters” Radio & Podcast: Mike Arnold, Author, Bringing Back The Lions: International Hunters, Local Tribespeople, and the Miraculous Rescue of a Doomed African Ecosystem

Houston Safari Club Foundation (HSCF) and “Hunting Matters” welcomes Mike Arnold, Author, Bringing Back The Lions: International Hunters, Local Tribespeople, and the
Miraculous Rescue of a Doomed African Ecosystem. Native Texan Mike Arnold is a research scientist and outdoor writer with more than 140 published articles, including feature pieces in such magazines as Sports Afield, Hunter’s Horn, Safari Magazine, and African Hunting Gazette.

Mike recently released his new book titled Bringing Back The Lions: International Hunters, Local Tribespeople, and the Miraculous Rescue of a Doomed African Ecosystem.
The hunter’s horn blew early for Mike. Taking his first whitetail near San Saba while hunting with his father at the age of five was a transformative experience. From that time forward, Mike has spent months each year pursuing game animals – from quail and rabbits behind his parents’ house, to kudu and leopard in Africa. Mike combines his love of writing, science, and hunting to record his adventures. He often covers the role hunters and their organizations play in ecosystem restoration and conservation. He has produced a series of articles on key stakeholders highlighting how sport hunting leads to the conservation of habitats and wildlife. To learn more about Mike visit https://arnoldoutdoorwriter.com.