December 2012 - Parks & Recreation - 62

nrpaupdate
Archery Targets Kids and Families
Grants available to help grow archery in your community

SA ARCHERY, the national governing body for the Olympic sport of archery, works hand-in-hand with organizations like the Easton Foundations and the Archery Trade Association (ATA) to help bring archery
programs to communities across the United States. One community that's had
great success in recent years is the Cullman Parks and Recreation Department
in Cullman, Alabama. This city has introduced archery-one of the safest, most
exciting, and now, most popular sports-to its community with great success.
different archers are engaged in Cullman's various programs, including
ASAP, JOAD, and adult archery clubs.
" We're pleased with the success of
our archery program, " explains John
Hunt of the Cullman Parks and Recreation Department. " Archery gives a
family time to be together; it's nothing
to see a whole family shooting together.
Archery is also an activity for all ages. We
are also glad to be
meeting the needs of
children who [may]
not play other sports. "
Hunt also notes
that USA Archery,
Bowhunters of AlaCullman, Alabama, Archery Park bama, and the local
Van's Outdoor Retail shop helped to
communities. With a grant from the
provide additional assistance to comArchery Trade Association, the Cullplement the signiﬁcant support that
man Archery Park was completed, and
Cullman received from the Archery
programming began for the City of
Trade Association.
Cullman in 2008.
" Think about partnering with othThe same year, Cullman's Parks and
ers, " Hunt advises. In fact, by working
Recreation Department introduced Extogether with other partners in the
plore Bowhunting, a program of the
community, the Cullman Parks and
ATA, and implemented Junior Olympic
Recreation Department was able to host
Archery Development (JOAD) and the
a national archery event, bringing a $4
After School Archery Program (ASAP)
million positive economic impact to
in 2009. Currently, approximately 200
the community.
Cullman's community archery
strategy began in 2006, when the Alabama Department of Conservation,
Division of Wildlife and Freshwater
Fisheries turned to the state's cities
and towns to help bring archery and
bowhunting programs into Alabama's

Parks & Recreation

| DECEMBER 2012 | WWW.NRPA.ORG

Through their partnership with
NRPA, the Easton Foundations (www.
esdf.org) has provided communities
with " Discover Archery " grants to be
used for archery equipment, instructor training, and range development.
For more information and a list of the
Discover Archery grantees, visit www.
nrpa.org/archery.
USA Archery offers several programming options that introduce people to
the fun and excitement of this safe, lifelong sport. For example, ASAP is a great
option for park and recreation departments and other organizations seeking short-term, introductory archery
programming that covers range safety
and basic shooting skills.
Communities that would like a longer-term, progressive archery program
are encouraged to start a JOAD club.
Geared toward archers ages 8 through
20, JOAD offers young people the opportunity to earn achievement awards
for success and the chance to learn
about and participate in competitions.
An excellent ﬁt for park and recreation
departments, JOAD provides all archers
with the chance to shoot recreationally or to gain conﬁdence with local and
national competition opportunities.
USA Archery, with the help of the
Easton Foundations, offers equipment grants to JOAD clubs as well as
assistance with starting a club. USA
Archery also administers the Adult Archery Achievement program, similar to JOAD but geared toward adults,
and facilitates archery instructor certifications. For more information,
contact USA Archery at 719.866.4576,
email joad@usarchery.org, or visit
www.usarchery.org.

December 2012 - Parks & Recreation

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