HOUSTON CONFERENCE WILL BE A BLAST!

By Suz Trusty

For some—that’s a literal statement. Tak- ing part in the shooting clay tournament certainly qualifies. So does participat- ing in The Lawn Institute Gun Raffle, especially for those lucky ones who will win one of the 10 guns offered.

The Texas team wanted to offer some- thing different—and uniquely Texan—for the Conference attendees, reports Scott Sipes, the representative of field day host All Seasons Grass, Inc., Brookshire, Texas. “The Gun Raffle fit. They hold them all around here—even churches hold them as fundraisers.”

Many of the sod farmers are avid outdoorsmen, like Sipes. So the appeal

of premium, specialty guns is wide-reach- ing. Nancy Aerni, chair of TLI’s Fund- raising Committee reports that, once the concept was put together, the buy-in was even more than they had anticipated. Sipes adds, “Once people started talking about it the word spread fast. People were stopping me, asking how they could get involved. Securing the sponsorships for all ten guns was wrapped up in less than 20 hours!”

Sipes owns several guns, calling it a “decent assortment.” He teamed up with another avid outdoorsman and gun owner, Bubba Simons of Texas Sod Leasing, Bay City, Texas, to make the selections. Sipes says, “Bubba and I went to the gun shop that is my father-in-law’s favorite. The guy has some really interesting guns, beyond the standard stuff that you can find anywhere. Going on that outing to pick out the 10 guns prob- ably qualifies as my best shopping experience ever. I had a blast!”

Consider the Offerings Every one of the guns is something Sipes and Simons would gladly add to their personal collections. “The Henry Octagon Barrel—45 Long Colt Repeat- ing Rifle is an iconic symbol of the old West, a gun that is part of our history,” says Sipes. “That’s the gun you see in all those old John Wayne westerns. We link it to the cowboys, the ‘real men’ of that era.”

And it hasn’t lost its appeal. James Grant, writing for The Truth About Guns.Com on March 18, 2013, stated, “The Henry Octagon Frontier, like a Harley Knuckle- head, isn’t simply a means to an end. It’s an experience in itself …”

Then there’s the Magnum 44 re- volver. It’s the gun favored by the fictional character, Dirty Harry Callahan, played by Clint East- wood in that series of movies. In one scene, Dirty Harry declares the Magnum 44 is “the most power- ful handgun in the world.” That gun is being sponsored by Bucyrus Equipment—obviously selected for

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the connection with the “Magnum” brand, reports Sipes.

Another offering is the Reming- ton 1100 Shotgun. Introduced by Remington in 1964, in both 16 and 20 gauge, it immediately caught on and has remained a front-runner ever since. Sipes says, “Turf Merchants, Inc. has a real passion for that gun and are sponsoring it for the raffle. Another one of the guns is being custom-made specifically for the raffle. Sod Solutions is sponsoring that one.”

The Fundraising TLI Fundraising Committee member Doug Lechlider, of Laytonsville Land- scaping in Laytonsville, MD, joined Aerni in the Gun Raffle fundraising kickoff during the opening reception at the Live Show & Tell in Portland in July. It will wrap up at the TPI Confer- ence in February.

Lechlider says, “Our goal is to sell one thousand tickets. It’s a way to give for those who want to support TLI, but may not be able to attend the Conference this year. And the outreach can extend beyond the typi- cal fundraiser, to their employees, friends and into the community. If you talk to people in-the-know about guns, you’ll see their eyes really light up as they look at the lineup.”

Full details of the raffle are on TLI’s

website. You can purchase raffle tickets in multiple ways, including buying them online through the website. The tickets are $25 each or five for $100. “I think we had a total of 400 tickets either sold, or pledged for purchase by the end of the Live Show & Tell,” Lechlider reports. “On September 30, only 350 tickets were left. They’re on sale up to February 24, 2016—or until they are gone. Fun- draising proceeds support The Lawn Institute scholarships and research grants.”

Suz Trusty is co-editor of Turf News.

TPI TURF NEWS • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015