Tickets Available for Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet

Annual Event is March 26 at Drury Lane Conference Center

SPRINGFIELD, IL – Tickets are available for the annual Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet, to be held on Saturday, March 26 at the Drury Lane Conference Center in Oakbrook Terrace. The banquet will include induction of four new members of the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame, and recognition of supporters of youth education and outdoor recreation programs supported by the Illinois Conservation Foundation.

Tickets for the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet are $100 each (or $900 for a table of 10). They are
available by contacting the Illinois Conservation Foundation (ICF) at 217/785-2003. Tickets can also be purchased online by going to www.ilcf.org and clicking on the Hall of Fame tab.

The inductees for the Class of 2011 of the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame – announced last December – are Western Illinois University professor emeritus and bald eagle expert Dr. Thomas Dunstan of Macomb, Southern Illinois University professor emeritus and former Illinois Department of Conservation director Dr. David Kenney of O’Fallon, Missouri, Chicago Park District “Fish ‘N Kids” program manager Bob Long, Jr. of Chicago, and outdoor writer and broadcaster Ed Mullady of Kankakee.

In addition to the Hall of Fame induction, the ICF today announced that three special Director’s Awards recognizing the efforts of longtime ICF supporters will be presented:

• Director’s Corporation of the Year – Winchester Ammunition
Founded in 1866, Winchester is one of world’s most widely recognized and respected brand names – and a major sponsor of conservation organizations to encourage the preservation of wildlife habitat. Winchester Ammunition is a longtime supporter of the Illinois Conservation Foundation, providing ammunition for ICF youth hunts. Winchester has also been a major sponsor of the ICF Gary Watson Celebrity Quail and Pheasant Hunt since 1995. The celebrity hunt is held each November at Rend Lake Resort and is one of the ICF’s most popular events. Winchester has supported the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet since its inception in 2002.

• Director’s Organization of the Year – Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation 
The Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation was established in 1962 by the late Max McGraw, sportsman, conservationist, and founder of McGraw-Edison Co., with the purpose of furthering conservation and management of fisheries and wildlife resources. The Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation has been a longtime supporter of the Illinois Conservation Foundation, hosting ICF Board meetings and providing sponsorship support for the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet and Celebrity Quail and Pheasant Hunt. The Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation recently donated to the ICF 750 acres of wildlife habitat in Winnebago County – the location of the new Torstenson Family Youth Conservation Education Center.

• Special Friend of the Foundation – Mike Polhamus
Members of the Polhamus family have been special friends and supporters of the Illinois Conservation Foundation since 2002. Mike Polhamus has provided hundreds of hours of volunteer time – often working seven days a week in recent months – to help the ICF begin operation of the new ICF Torstenson Family Youth Conservation Education Center near Pecatonica. Thanks to Mike Polhamus’s extraordinary efforts, the Torstenson Family center will provide special opportunities for youth to experience the outdoors and learn about the importance of conservation stewardship.

Proceeds from the annual Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet assist in funding the ICF Youth Achievement Scholarship program and other ICF initiatives benefitting outdoor recreation and natural resources protection.

The banquet on March 26 will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Drury Lane Conference Center, 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181. For reservations or more information, contact the Illinois Conservation Foundation, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702-1271, phone 217/785-2003, or check the ICF web site at www.ilcf.org