IMPERIAL POLK GUN CLUB INC.

[email protected] or  contact Bob Hill and he will do a write up for you.

If you would like to let folks know about yourself or have a member you would like to feature, please send us a photo and a few words.  Members of the Month do not need to be on the Board.  We are interested in learning about all our members....

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  Friday, 17 August 2012

 

 

 

JIM EHLE

 

Congatulations! Congratulations! Congratulations!

 

Local Boy Makes Good!!

 

We just received news that Jim recently, while up in Indiana at the Indiana Gun Club in

Fishers, Indiana (just north-east of Indianapolis) participated in the Indiana State Trap

Shoot and won the Senior Veteran’s concurrent event.

He also reports that he really enjoyed himself at the event as he was able to spend

some quality time with several of his old ‘shooting buddies’ sharing remembrances and

reliving ‘the good old days’!

 

IPGCWebmaster Note: Thank you Jim for sharing with us and this type of sharing is what I would encourage other club members to also do. This sharing of experiences by, with, and, about members is what brings this site to LIFE!

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JIM GRAHAM - NEWEST MEMBER OF

THE MONTH

Jim was born in South Pittsburg,Tennessee and served 4 years in the US Air Force.

  He was and still is a professional guitarist who has performed or recorded with the original "Drifters," "Steve Alaimo (TV Show)," "The Johnny Carson Show," "Lonnie Mack," "Eric Burden and War," and too many artists to name here.  Presently he is performing with several local groups.

Jim retired from Tandy Corporation in 2003 after 23 years of managing 6 Radio Shack Stores and now lives in Winter Haven with his lovely wife Sharon.

Besides Trapshooting, he has several other hobbies which include Pistol Shooting, Reloading, Cycling, Pocket Knives, Guitar and Pipe Collections. He studies American History and researches the Internet where he has organized his Family Ancestors into an extensive Family Tree.

Jim has always been interested in shooting, reloading and hunting.  A few years back he got the "Trapshooting Bug and just after a few months was scoring those illusive 100's in competition, bringing new members into the Club and helping them to shoot.  In 2009 he was the our Club's Trapshooting Champ!

Mr. Graham serves on the Board of Directors as Trap Chairman and recently spearheaded our Lead Mining Contract which has given us a "New Look," cleaned up the environment and brought significant funds into the Club.

Many thanks to Jim who has temporarily stopped shooting the ATA Registered Shoots so he could run them in the absence of the late Toni Eli.

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ART SCHECK MEMBER OF THE

MONTH 

Skeet is not a hobby for Art...."It is his life!" He started shooting Skeet in 1969 and shot as much as possible during his working years, always looking forward to a Skeet-shooting retirement at our Club.

In recent years, Art's game has reached a high level and he was chosen by the National Skeet Shooting Association All American selection on the Senior's team in 2004 and was also on the 2006 Vetereran's All American first team.

In 2003, he also won Senior Doubles World Championships in San Antonio with a perfect score of 100 and the Florida State 20 gauge and 410 bore open championships in 2005.

Mr. Scheck and his wife Donna travel with their motor home to many Skeet shooting events around the country and Art continues to win championships because of his dedication to the game.

Art has been Club Treasurer in the past and now serves on the Board of Directors where he has been instrumental in setting up special "Fun Shoots" and a "Club Shooting League." that everyone has enjoyed and appreciated!

Art says, "Our Club has become the premier Skeet facility in Central Florida and I am proud of that!"  "Skeet has been more than just a marvelous game for me...it has been both physical and emotional therapy." "I hope I can continue to shoot and help the Club in any way I can."

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ELI JOINER MEMBER OF THE MONTH

Eli was born in Winter Haven and is a life time resident of Winter Haven.  His academic career is also centered in Polk County culminating with his graduation from Florida Southern College in 1988.

  He has always been an avid outdoorsman and loves to hunt and fish.  in order to practice for hunting seasons, he began shooting skeet and trap in 1991 and has never stopped shooting either one.

  By 1993, he had joined both the ATA and NSSA and began shooting registered targets. Eli still hunts, but he finds "trap and skeet to have no seasonable limits so it is a year round sport!"

Mr. Joiner joined our Club in 1991 and by the late 1990's was asked to join the Board of Directors and has since served on the board almost every year as Secretary, Treasurer or a Director...Currently he is serving his second term as President.

He asked been asked by several people "how much does it pay?"  When he says "it doesn't pay anything"  the next question invariably is  "why do you do it?"  His reply is usually something along the line of  "when you really enjoy doing something, you are willing to do whatever is necessary to ensure that you have the facilities and the means to keep doing it"

Eli works hard for the Club and can be seen most days or nights at our facility between his full time employment schedule.  He also cooks for most of the shoots and his hamburgers and other delights are "world renown!"

Next time you see him, shake his hand....he does a great service for our organization!

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LUM THORNHILL... MEMBER OF THE

MONTH 

Lum is Vice President of our Club and is always behind the scenes working the grounds and getting things done including many great donations of equipment and labor. He is a guy who doesn't waste any time getting things done!

One day, I happened to meet someone at the Club at 7:00 AM and there was Lum & Bill DuCharme spraying for ants and hornets.

Being a new member,  I haven' had much of a chance to sit and talk to Lum, only see and hear the results of his continuing efforts for our organization. 

I asked him to send along a few words about himself.

 I started shooting in 2003 when I retired from the Florida National Guard after 35 years.  I needed something to do on the weekends that I could control for a change.

 Little did I know how encompassing this sport would be and that it would control me! 

The skeet fields call to me all the time,  when I’m at work and at home.   I have a few targets in my office just to remind me of why I work.

I enjoy the people that I meet at all the club.  I have yet to find a person that is not friendly and willing to talk skeet.  A friend off mine Bill DuCharme had been a member of the Winter Haven club back in the 90’s and he also was looking to get back into shooting so we started shooting and rarely miss a Thursday night shooting and if our wives aren’t looking... a Sunday afternoon.  

My wife is a lot smarter than I thought.  I told her my scores would go up if I had a Kolar.  She said my scores would go up if I paid closer attention and shot better!   I just don’t understand women... 

Bill and I do a little volunteer work at the club that I hope will make someone’s visit to our club better each time they come.

 I’m very proud to have the club there and wish everyone could come and shoot here to see the great fields and the Mattarelli machines are working well.

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FRANK & STELLA EHNLE MEMBERS OF THE MONTH!

( article by Pat Traylor) (photos Jim Graham)

When you mention Polk County Skeet Club, it immediately brings to mind the team of Frank and Stella Ehnle.  Frank has the Skeet Chairman for many years and Stella has run the shoots by handling the registration and especially keeping us all fed.  She runs the kitchen with her helpers and everyone looks forward to lunch and dinners at every shoot.

They work together as a team together with their son, Mark, and there are never any glitches when they are in charge.  Together they put on one of the largest shoots in Florida, "The Dixie." which is held every February. They have had several hundred shooters to register and feed at "Dixie's in the past...and now are also preparing for the Florida State Championships which will be held at our club in April 2009.

Stella has also taken it upon herself to redecorate the clubhouse.  She had a vision of how she wanted it to be and with the help of some of our club members she got it done!  We all thank her for the comfortable feeling emanating from the newly decorated clubhouse.

Stella and Frank are truly icons in the skeet community...you don't even have to say their last name...everyone knows who they are and the good work that they donate to our sport.

Because they are a team and they each give freely of their time for the good of our Club, they truly deserve this "Member of the Month" award! 

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MEET TONI EHLE.... "MEMBER OF THE MONTH"

 Toni runs all of our ATA Trapshoots and is a great help in supporting our club in many ways, but some of you probably do not know much if anything about her background except perhaps she is married to Jim Ehle....(20 years so far)!

Besides having 2 children and 3 grandchildren, she earned an accounting degree at Ball State University in Muncie Indiana along with a Nursing Degree from Jones Medical College in Winter Park, Florida.

She worked as an inventory control manager for 14 years and went into Administrative Nursing and eventually retired in 1994.

Toni has lots of experience shooting long range targets with a rifle, hunting dove and snow geese, still board shotgun shooting, skeet shooting as well as Trap Shooting (23 yd Trap Shooter).

She has been a Trap Manager since 1990 working three shooting clubs in Indiana and Florida so she "knows her business" and has recently learned our new computerized ATA Shoot software amazingly fast!

In her spare time Toni enjoys travels to South America,Europe, and of course Hawaii...Switzerland is her favorite place so far.

Next time we have a registered ATA Shoot come say hello to Toni..she has worked hard for the club and certainly deserves "Member of the Month" recognition!

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Meet Earl Peckham "Member of the Month"

Earl is a 72 year old shooter born in Lockport, New York. He has been shooting Trap for 10 years and Skeet for 3 years and is a man of many other hobbies including Sport Parachuting, Pistol Shooting and White Water Rafting just to name a few.

He is one of the hardest working and decicated members of the club and can be seen mowing the grounds, fixing up fences, working the Shell House and shoots.

Earl also spends hundreds of "unpaid" hours keeping up our facility and doing things for the Club and its members.

In addition to club activities, he plays "Santa Claus" every year for underprivledged kids and children in hospitals.

Lots of members are "Snowbirds" but Earl could be called a "Summerbird" since he goes to New York 3 months out of the year in  the Fall to hunt, fish and ride his 4-wheeler around the northern woods.

Earl says he has had "the most fun in life" when he worked for the Alaskan Fish and Game and the US Forrest Service there.

We are happy and privledged to have him as a member...and by the way, he is known to have "strong opinions" so if you do not want to have your feathers ruffled, don't ask! (You may hear um anyway)!

                              Earl the Parachuting Santa

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