A word from the National President Bob Green

In this May edition of Australian Shooter, you will find The Junior Shooter, a special 20-page insert for our junior sporting shooters and hunters. It’s a beginner’s guide of sorts for our junior members.
We know that shooting is one of the safest sports in the world and of course we want to educate and pass on these safety requirements to the next generation. But sports shooting also provides young people with a range of life skills essential to their personal development and journey into adulthood.
Sports shooting tests your physical and mental skills. It can be an individual sport or a challenge within a group atmosphere. Either way, with practice, concentration and dedication, you begin to strive to do better and each time you do meet that higher level of accuracy or shoot a new record, you feel a healthy sense of pride and achievement.
Hunting too helps many young people get outdoors, get active and get back into the bush - something that unfortunately goes by the wayside in this age of the internet and computer games.
When hunting for the table or to rid a property of a pesky feral animal (under the supervision of a licensed adult shooter of course), the junior feels a sense of responsibility, and they should, for they are taking an active role in caring for and preserving the future of Australia’s wildlife.
The shooting sports are also a good way for you to bond and share something unique with your children or the young people in your life. It is something that they can later pass on to their children and so the cycle continues.
It is essential to the survival of the shooting sports in Australia that young people get involved, so make sure you give your copy of The Junior Shooter to your children or a young person you know, even if they’re not yet a member. The publication is something for them to own and read through at their own pace, for their own interest, so do you part and make sure they don’t miss out.
If you haven’t received The Junior Shooter special insert, contact the SSAA Publications office on 08 8272 7100 or download it from the Publications website at www.australianshooter.com.au

SSAA National launches
McGrath Foundation fundraiser

SSAA National has donated $10,000 to the McGrath Foundation to kick start its campaign to raise funds for the breast cancer nursing charity. The cheque was warmly received by cricketing legend Glenn McGrath from SSAA National President Bob Green in mid August.

While $10,000 is a lot of money, it costs $100,000 to fund just one breast care nurse and SSAA National will be seeking members’ support and generosity to raise more dollars for this worthy cause.

“The SSAA, as we all know, is a male-dominated sporting and hunting association and as men, we know how valued and cherished the women in our lives are, be it our mothers, wives, daughters, grand-daughters or friends,” Mr Green said. “This is our opportunity to give back and hopefully make a difference to the lives of breast cancer sufferers and survivors.”

Talks between the McGrath Foundation and SSAA were held when Glenn McGrath brought the role of the charity to the attention of the Association soon after his front cover feature story in the Australian Shooter magazine last year. Glenn’s wife Jane McGrath co-founded the McGrath Foundation after her initial recovery from breast cancer. Jane experienced first hand the shortage of breast care nurses in Australia during her treatment and became determined to help others in her situation.

Today, the McGrath Foundation aims to raise funds to place more breast care nurses throughout the country while generating support and raising awareness of the cause. So far, the Foundation has directly funded six breast care nurses, mainly in rural areas without current access to them.

SSAA Members will soon be receiving donation forms for the Association’s fundraiser. Click here to download donation form.

Read Glenn McGrath the hunter article

Read more about the McGrath Foundation

SSAA National would like to thank Hermes Precisa Pty Ltd (HPA) mailing and printing house for its kind generousity of SSAA’s fundraising campaign for the McGrath Foundation. HPA has agreed to insert the fundraising flyers into the Australian Shooter magazine at no cost and has subsidised the flyer printing. For more information about HPA, go to www.hpa.com.au