When I read the article about Safari Club International Lowcountry chapter wheelchair hunt, I was skeptical, so I called Mark Peterson for more details.

I am glad I took the two vacation days in October to participate. You could feel and see the appreciation of the young men who participated. Everything went like clockwork.

I assisted Joe Hamilton, and one of the locations prepared by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources personnel looked as if it came out of a movie, with large 100-year-old oak trees all around the hunting blind. We assisted two hunters into the blinds and wished them luck and gave them a little confidence that we would stay close for assistance. We heard no gun shots or calls for help on the two-way radios. When the time came to pick the hunters up, Julian was excited about the nine-point, the eight-point, the spike and the six-point buck that he had seen no more than 20 yards from the blind. He reminded me of a little kid at Christmas.

At 6:10 a.m. the next day the two hunters returned for more excitement, wearing smiles broad enough for 10 men. Again, no shots were fired, but Wen greeted us with a smile and talk of the big buck he had seen.

Tom, another wheelchair-bound hunter, bagged two trophy eight-point bucks that were mounted courtesy of Safari Club and Tony Martin, a plantation manager who surprised the hunter by paying for the second mounting. Glory, you could see the tears, smiles and the happiness come into this man's crippled body, and I thought for a second he was going to get out of that wheelchair and hug Martin.

Peterson, Hamilton and Martin are a true testimony to great sportsmen, who unselfishly put their words into actions by demonstrating love for their fellow man and love for the outdoors. Other people deserve credit, but time didn't permit the opportunity to meet them. I had the best two-day vacation a person could want by reading The Beaufort Gazette. Thank you for publishing Peterson's article.

Thanks to all the guys who donated drinks, food and time to make this event a success. It really touched this old cowboy's heart.

Jolie "Cowboy" Collins

Grays