Hank Forester Joins QDMA as Youth Education and Outreach Program Manager
OutdoorHub 02.11.13
The Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) is pleased to announce that Hank Forester has joined the organization as the Youth Education and Outreach Manager. Forester comes to QDMA from the Boy Scouts of America, where he was an executive in the National Capitol Area of Washington, D.C.
“I am very excited and honored to be joining the QDMA team,” said Forester. “Not only do we need to preserve habitat and healthy species, we need to work to recruit, educate and continue the sporting heritage with the next generation. I look forward to helping QDMA in this vital mission.”
At QDMA, Forester will lead the organization’s youth program, the Rack Pack. Launched in August of 2012, the Rack Pack is a multi-media program intended to create and enrich future hunters and leaders in conservation. The Rack Pack strives to provide learning opportunities, interaction and engagement for youth 17 and under that will help them become better hunters and stewards of the land through website content at www.rackpack.qdma.com. On the local level, fun and exciting field days and events designed for youth participants can be held by QDMA Branches to provide hands-on instruction and activities.
Over the last four years, Forester has managed the business aspects of the Boy Scouts of America within Northern Virginia. In that time, he has recruited, trained and managed over 1,200 volunteers while also organizing fundraising campaigns that averaged a 23-percent annual growth. Forester also helped forge partnerships between the Boy Scouts and the National Rifle Association (NRA), the United States National Park Service and the United States Forest Service.
Prior to working for the Boy Scouts, Forester was a Development Associate for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP), where he created and maintained TRCP social networking pages, served as editor of monthly TRCP newsletters and attended Senate hearings and press conferences.
Additionally, Forester has worked as a hunting guide in sub-Saharan Africa and a fly fishing guide on the Kenai River in Alaska. He has also volunteered time with Ducks Unlimited and Habitat for Humanity and is a Rotary International member. Forester grew up hunting in Natchez, Mississippi, where his family practices Quality Deer Management principles. In 2008, he earned his Bachelor’s degree in History from the College of Charleston.
“Hank’s work experience with the Boy Scouts and Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership combined with his outdoor background make him an excellent fit to lead our Youth Education and Outreach Program,” said Bob Mazgaj, QDMA Chief Operating Officer. “We are confident that Hank is going to make the Rack Pack one of the best programs in the country for recruiting, educating and engaging the next generation of hunters.”
