Foundation raises $77,000 during yearly banquet

While some people had their sights on trying to win various art donated by local artists and craftsmen, others like Josh Mason was setting his sights on winning one of the assorted rifles.

A close-to-record amount of money was raised Saturday evening during a yearly event aimed at promoting big game habitat and restoration.

With the final funds still being counted, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Banquet had already raised more than $77,000 in total profit.

The proceeds collected by the foundation that evening will go toward its conservation efforts, said banquet chairman Jeff Day. Each year, the event remains one of the best of its kind across the state.

Phil Bassick and his niece, Ava Bassick, look over one of the original art pieces offered during the Rocky Mountain Elks Foundation banquet on Saturday.

The banquet traditionally remains the largest of its kind in the county, he added. Two years ago, the foundation reached a milestone when it reached the $1 million mark in terms of net funds raised over the years.

"We're now working on our second million," Day said.

More than 360 people packed into the local Elks Lodge to participate in the event. They included people like Bill and Julene Dodd, who marked the 17th consecutive year that they've come to the event in Mountain Home.

They take part in the event as a way of doing what they can to preserve local elk populations and their habitat, said Julene Dodd, whose brother chairs the local foundation.

Chrry and Tom Rosecki have come to the banquet in Mountain Home for the past 15 years.

"It's so much fun, and the money is going back to habitat protection," she said.

But the event wasn't limited to adults. Phil Bassick attended the event with his niece, Ava Bassick. He makes the drive each year from Boise specifically to attend the event in Mountain Home, which also allows him to meet with his brother, who lives in the local area.

In addition to a general raffle, people had the opportunity to participate in live and silent auctions. Items ranging from firearms and sporting accessories to hand-crafted sculptures and art filled the main banquet room.

At one table, Josh Mason was setting his sights on winning a Henry .22 caliber lever-action rifle. It was the second consecutive year that he had attended the banquet here.

"I figured there were not a lot of rifles in the general raffles," said Mason as he dropped in at least 30 tickets in hopes of winning something that evening.

Chrry Rosecki admitted that she hoped to win one of the sculptures on display at one table "so I can add it to my collection," he said. "I need a couple more."

On the other side of the banquet room, Beverly Engelhardt was drawn to a mirror framed by multiple pairs of used cowboy boots. She saw a similar mirror last year and wanted to make her own until she realized that each pair of boots needed to start the project runs make it a little too expensive.

The Dodds admitted that they've been fortunate or downright lucky when it comes to winning these drawings. In past years, they've come away from the banquet with everything from a rifle to a spotting scope.

"It takes just one ticket, no matter how many you put in," she said. "You can buy 100 tickets and come back with nothing."

This year's general raffle was the best in the event's history, featuring more than 120 items ranging from original artwork to various hunting rifles, according to Day. He credited the generosity of local artists and businesses, who donated these items "to benefit a great cause."

As the top herbivore in the food chain, efforts by the hunter's group to protect habitat for elk benefit almost all wildlife. The foundation uses the funds it raises at its banquets around the nation to conserve and preserve wildlife habitat.

Since formed in 1984, the Rocky Mountain Elks Foundation has conserved more than six million acres of prime elk country, helped restore elk to six states and opened more than 650,000 acres of previously off-limits land to hunting.