WA was just recovering from a heavy snowfall, with many places still showing the remnants of snow piles yet to fully melt. Despite the forecast of constant rain, snow still on the ground, and low 40s, we were joined by a group of folks who came out to add some marksmanship tools to their toolbox.
What a diverse group of folks who came out, people from different genders, ethnicities, and backgrounds joined 6 volunteers the entire weekend. Saturday was arguably the coldest day of the weekend with the constant drizzle, which meant the conditions merited a Winterseed event. At the end of Saturday, we were able to add a Winterseed rifleman to the roster with Ben earning the rarely distributed Winterseed patch! Congratulations Ben!
Not to be deterred, almost everyone came back Sunday and the weather was much more cooperative, folks put what they've learned into practice and by Sunday afternoon many were knocking on the door of Rifleman. Several were able to turn out qualifying scores by the end of Sunday, congratulations to Fan and Michael for earning their first Rifleman patch. Ian also got down on the line and put down a solid score qualifying him for the Distinguished patch, congratulations Ian! To everyone who came close, you should all be very proud of how much improvement each of you made throughout the weekend as your "hits count" targets have demonstrated. Keep practicing the skills you've been given, you can do that in the comfort of your residence without any live ammunition, practice the sling setup, practice NPOA shifts, transitions, checking NPOA, and cadence. I hope to see you all again at a future event, be our 7th step and bring someone along with you!
To everyone who came out both as attendees and volunteers, I know the weather was challenging and I thank each of you for your dedication and commitment to your fellow Americans. It is a joy to see so many folks coming out to volunteer despite the weather challenges. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to you all! See you in 2023!
It wouldn't be a Washington Appleseed without some liquid sunshine. I am always impressed by the number of attendees that tough it out through the whole rainy weekend. Great shooting by some tough patriots!