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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives wish to congratulate the National Wild Turkey | ||||||
| 4 | Federation, Inc. on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of | ||||||
| 5 | its founding; and | ||||||
| 6 | WHEREAS, The National Wild Turkey Federation was | ||||||
| 7 | incorporated on March 28, 1973 in
Fredericksburg, Virginia and | ||||||
| 8 | moved its headquarters to Edgefield, South Carolina that
same | ||||||
| 9 | year; and
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| 10 | WHEREAS, Over the course of 50 years, the National Wild | ||||||
| 11 | Turkey Federation and millions of
its members and chapters | ||||||
| 12 | across the nation have worked with state, federal, and
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| 13 | non-governmental partners to promote the conservation of the | ||||||
| 14 | wild turkey and the
preservation of our hunting heritage, | ||||||
| 15 | participating in one of the greatest conservation
success | ||||||
| 16 | stories in American history, which is the return of the wild | ||||||
| 17 | turkey from the brink of
extinction; and
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| 18 | WHEREAS, The National Wild Turkey Federation, its members, | ||||||
| 19 | and its chapters have been at the
vanguard of reversing | ||||||
| 20 | declining hunting participation through nationwide investment | ||||||
| 21 | in
hunter recruitment, retention and reactivation efforts, and | ||||||
| 22 | partnering with states to develop
opportunities to engage | ||||||
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| 1 | people from all walks of life in the outdoors tradition; since
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| 2 | 2012, it has recruited and reactivated more than 1.5 million | ||||||
| 3 | hunters; and
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| 4 | WHEREAS, The National Wild Turkey Federation, its members, | ||||||
| 5 | and its chapters have invested more
than half a billion | ||||||
| 6 | dollars to conserve or enhance more than 22 million acres of | ||||||
| 7 | critical
wildlife habitat, forests, and grasslands across | ||||||
| 8 | public and private lands since 1985; and
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| 9 | WHEREAS, The National Wild Turkey Federation, its members, | ||||||
| 10 | and its chapters have invested more
than $8.5 million in | ||||||
| 11 | research throughout North America to ensure healthy wild | ||||||
| 12 | turkey
populations into the future; and
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| 13 | WHEREAS, The National Wild Turkey Federation is the | ||||||
| 14 | largest and longest-serving
non-governmental stewardship | ||||||
| 15 | partner of the USDA Forest Service, conserving habitat on
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| 16 | National Forest System Lands for more than 40 years, and is | ||||||
| 17 | heavily engaged in the
development and implementation of the | ||||||
| 18 | USDA's Wildfire Crisis Strategy; therefore, be it
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| 19 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 20 | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 21 | we congratulate the National Wild Turkey Federation, Inc. on | ||||||
| 22 | the 50th anniversary of its founding and salute the | ||||||
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| 1 | organization, its chapters, and its members
from across the | ||||||
| 2 | United States for their tremendous efforts to further | ||||||
| 3 | scientific, state-led wildlife
management and the conservation | ||||||
| 4 | of America's wild turkey and its habitat; and be it further
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| 5 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 6 | presented to the National Wild Turkey Federation as a symbol | ||||||
| 7 | of our respect and esteem.
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