Parks & Recreation, Texas Wildlife Association to host second annual youth hunt – Crossroads Today

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VICTORIA, Texas – If you are a young hunter looking for more experience and lessons on how to safely hunt, here is your chance to participate in a program that will provide those experiences.
The City’s Parks & Recreation, in partnership with the Texas Wildlife Association, will host the second annual Texas Youth Hunting Program deer and hog hunt. This event, funded through TWA scholarships and Parks & Recreation, will take place from Nov. 21 through Nov. 22 in Riverside Park.
The City invites the local youth, ages 12 through 17, to apply for the program. You can create an account at www.tyhp.org. Parks & Recreations will begin reviewing applications and select up to six applicants on Tuesday, Nov. 8.
The organizations will give priority to first-time hunters and applicants without access to traditional hunting opportunities. Parks & Recreation will also help participants obtain their hunting licenses if needed.
The Texas Youth Hunting Program, conducted by the TWA, provides youth Texans with safe, educational outdoor experiences.
The event will kick-off on Monday with lessons on firearm safety and shooting practices. Then, on Tuesday, participants will participate in morning and afternoon hunts, with additional lessons on wildlife conservation and survival skills.
Trinity Oaks, a San Antonio-area nonprofit that arranges hunting and fishing experiences for underserved groups, will teach students how to process their game. Each participants will get to keep one deer. Trinity Oaks will then donate any additional meat to charity.
Parks & Recreation and TWA funding will cover all program costs, including lunch, firearms and ammunition, at no cost to participants.
Cautionary signs will be placed around the perimeter of Riverside Park during the youth hunting program.
On Monday, Nov. 21, Riverside Park will close at 3 p.m. and reopen on Wednesday, Nov. 23. Parks & Recreation will barricade roads and walkways leading into the park. The organization will also use red caution tape to block surrounding areas and place signs in the area to alert residents of the closure.
The following locations will remain open for regular business hours during this time:
To participate in Tuesday’s hunt, students must show safety knowledge and firearm proficiency during Monday’s firearm lesson. A guardian will supervise each participant. If the guardian is not an experienced hunter, then a TWA hunting guide will supervise the student. The adults will make sure each participant has a safe, legal and ethical shot. They will also ensure the participant’s shot does not pose danger to the area outside the park.
According to the City of Victoria, participants will shoot from blinds in Riverside Golf Course using 20-gauge shotguns and buckshot. Guardians will carry ammunition and provide only one bullet at a time to participants.
A doe roams Riverside Park. The deer population in Riverside Park has steadily increased for years, which puts the deer at high risk for diseases, decreases the amount of food available for wildlife and poses an increased traffic hazard.
The City and the TWA chose Riverside Park for this event to make it available to those who do not have access to deer leases or similar hunting opportunities. The location also helps to address deer and hog overpopulation in the park. You can read more about the deer population in Riverside Park here.
For more information about the hunt or other City Parks & Recreation programs, contact the organization at 361-485-3200 or [email protected]
The City of Victoria provided the above information and photos. 
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