There’s even something about all of the preparation that goes into it. From sighting in the gun to gathering all of the appropriate hunting clothes and de-scenting them, many outdoorsmen take for granted the time they spend out in the mountains and valleys of Central Pennsylvania in search of big game.
But for those who have physical disabilities, getting out there is only half of the problem. There is also finding someone who will help out and locating the proper equipment.
For those people, a special place to hunt — and even fish — is in its early stages of development.
Brian DeGuire, president of The Handy Camp Inc. (based in Dagus Mines) started his quest to create an area where those with disabilities could hunt without worry.
According to the camp’s Web site, the quest started like this: “The idea for The Handy Camp started about 25 years ago when some of my friends and I were going deer hunting. While we were getting our gear together, a couple of my other friends came to the house. Mike and Doug were both confined to wheelchairs. Mike was paralyzed from the waist down due to a car accident when he was 5. Doug was born with spinal problems that confined him to a wheelchair all his life. Neither one would ever say that they would like to go hunting or fishing with us, but you could see it in their eyes while we would be getting ready or when we would be talking about our trip.”
From there, DeGuire set to work, taking Doug and Mike hunting and fishing.
Still, he thought there had to be a better way.
Many years later, he began work on The Handy Camp, which is looking for land somewhere in the Northwest or Northcentral portion of Pennsylvania.
Before that acquisition can be made a reality, though, DeGuire is on a hunt of his own, looking funding through other organizations, corporations, individuals and government programs.
A few things are on DeGuire’s side, as he is working with the Clarion Small Business Development Center to develop a business plan.
“They supplied me with a great deal of information and pointed me in the right direction toward the success of this program,” DeGuire said. “I would recommend them to anyone wanting to start a new business.”
DeGuire plans to custom-design each person’s outdoors experience from what kind of equipment is needed, the length of stay, whether they are allergic to anything … all to make for a better stay at The Handy Camp.
“The Handy Camp will supply the equipment for their hunting or fishing adventure,” DeGuire said.
He’s also working with the Physically Challenged Bow Hunters of America in his quest to make outdoor sports accessible to everyone. “They have been a great help to my program,” he said.
As for opening, DeGuire said he hopes it is in the near future, but that will depend upon how fast the funding for the program comes in.
DeGuire has even let the power of the Internet help his efforts to raise money through using GoodSearch.com.
“Goodsearch is a Yahoo! search engine that donates money every time you use it,” DeGuire said.
The search engine uses the same tools as the regular Yahoo! search engine. According to the site, it passes advertiser money from individual clicks on to charities.
Information on the site’s Frequently Asked Questions page explains: “Search engines make most of their money from companies that pay an advertising fee when users click on links during a search. At GoodSearch, we’ve developed a patent-pending way to track and direct these search-generated proceeds to charities.”
DeGuire extended a heartfelt thank-you to everyone who has helped him so far.
For now, he is still in the fund-raising stage, but he said he is hopeful that he will be helping others enjoy the outdoors very soon, just like he did for his friends Mike and Doug.
