First quarter grant applications were presented and voted on at the February 25, 2025 AZSFWC Board meeting. Funding for the grants is available through sales of our special Conserving Wildlife license plate. More information about the license plate and how you can obtain one can be found HERE.
Five grants were approved and included the following:
$12,000 was awarded to Arizona Outdoor Adventures for their 2025 youth camps. These camps introduce youth to and fosters a lifelong connection with nature, exposing them to the peace and quiet of the outdoors. Campers experience tent camps and participate in a variety of outdoor activities. Campfire talks and “teachable moments” while hiking and fishing provide opportunities for the youth to connect with knowledgeable and caring adults who model stewardship and impart information about the natural environment. The campers learn respect for themselves, others and the environment; how to make constructive life choices; and responsibility and cooperation with their families and authority figures. Additional funding is provided by numerous foundations, grants, wildlife organizations, businesses and individuals.
$10,000 was awarded to Arizona Elk Society for their 2025 Wapiti Weekend Event. This event is an immersive outdoor skills camp that introduces 100 children and their families to the joys of nature and outdoor recreation. By exposing children and families to a wide array of outdoor activities in a supportive and educational setting, Wapiti Weekend inspires confidence, curiosity, and a deeper connection to nature. It introduces new audiences to outdoor recreation in away that is both accessible and impactful, planting the seeds for lifelong engagement with the natural world. Children engage in a range of hands-on activities that cultivate a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors, including fishing, archery, pellet gun, .22 rifle, gold panning, metal detecting, nature walks, wildlife ID & calling, owl pellet dissection, fire starting, survival bracelets, arts and crafts. Additional partners include AZ Game & Fish Department, Arizona State Parks, US Forest Service, Corner Archery, Fly Fishers Arizona, Phoenix Varmint Callers, AZ Raptor Center, Road Runners Prospecting Club, Empower Ranch.
$1,050 was awarded to the AZ Council of Trout Unlimited for their 2025 Annual Native & Wild Trout Conference. The Conference was founded in 2010 with the goal to provide a free educational conference for those interested to meet, network, and develop future plans to promote restoration and management of watersheds and native fish species in Arizona. Additional partners include AZ Game & Fish Department, Fly Fishers International, and AZ Council Trout Unlimited.
$4,000 was awarded to the AZ Chapter of the Wild Turkey Federation for their annual Marvin Robbins 2025 Youth Turkey Camps. These family oriented camps introduce youth turkey hunters and their families to spring turkey hunting. Camps include meals, instruction in safe firearms handling, patterning shotguns, ethics, species biology, turkey behavior and hunting techniques, the role of conservation organizations in funding wildlife and habitat conservation, and the North American Model of Conservation. Additional partners include Youth Outdoors Unlimited, AZ Elk Society, Phoenix Varmint Callers, OE4A, US Forest Service and the AZ Game & Fish Department. Additional funding and in-kind donations provided AZ State Chapter NWTF and W Bar S Enterprises.
$6,500 was awarded to Wildlife Water Works for the purchase of a 1,000 gallon water trailer used to haul water to remote locations in Region 2. With extended draught conditions, the need for water is great. Wildlife Water Works will provide additional funding.