2022 Quail Forever Banquet - Willie McRae / Boone Hall

Congresswoman Nancy Mace with 
Quail Forever CEO Howard Vincent

Quail Forever is a national conservation group that is working in South Carolina to establish and increase quail habitat acreage though financial support and with staff members. The local Chapter of Quail Forever hosted the Willie McRae Wildlife Benefit at the Cotton Dock at Boone Hall Plantation on Friday afternoon, completing Day One of the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition. QF's President and CEO Howard Vincent was in the Lowcountry, along with QF Chief Conservation Officer Ron Leathers, in order to support the local leadership. This exclusive event was limited to donors and drew other QF National Board Members, Congresswoman Nancy Mace, and even a gentleman that is 91-years old and is still quail hunting (which is something that anyone can aspire to achieve). 

Commemorative decorum

Local chapter leaders Tim Askins and David Clifford put together and evening that included live music and catering by Jamie Westendorff. The unseasonable warm temperatures made for extended time on the dock overlooking the creek that is itself a reflection of conservation, jam packed with wildlife, and presenting one of the quintessential locales for watching the sun set. A silent auction and raffle captured the attention of sportsmen vying for shotguns, artwork, and souvenirs. The QF National leadership took time to keep raising awareness behind the scenes by doing a live podcast with Englis Glover. A spirited live auction raised money to fund the cause of quail conservation in the Lowcountry.

QF National Board Member John Kohler
with his family at Boone Hall

My interview with QF's Howard Vincent touched on the fact that they have 300 wildlife professionals working in 30 states presently, and that three of them are in S.C., with another three set to go to work here.  This was his first time to SEWE, and said that the dates often overlap with their own National Quail Classic Event. "I believe that we are at a tipping point for positive energy regarding quail habitat in South Carolina," said Vincent. "Habitat is our answer on how to benefit bobwhites, and we want more acres under management that includes prescribed fire, timber thinning, plus soil and water conservation." Even pollinators are on the mind of Vincent, and he proposed that involving youth in insect conservation, could lead them to become upland hunters one day? If possible, in my opinion that would be a groundbreaking WIN! 

Artist Amy-Lauren Lum Won supports QF

To view past blog entries about quail hunting click Moree's, S.C. - Shenandoah Plantation, Alabama - Barnsley Gardens, Georgia - Airy Hall Plantation, South Carolina - Buchanan Shoals, North Carolina - Jones Preserve, Tennessee - Pine Top Plantation, SC - Featherhorn Farm, SC - Deux Cheneaux Plantation, SC - Quail Hunting 101

To view past blog entries about bobwhite quail management click 2014 S.C. Quail Initiative - National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative - 2009 SE Quail Study Group - 2009 Quail Unlimited / Indian Creek Award