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Courtesy photo Members of the Mexia Ducks Unlimited Club pose at a recent meeting. The group was recently honored as the No. 1 fund-raising chapter in Texas.

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March 11, 2010

Mexia Ducks Unlimited club No. 1 chapter in Texas

By Janet Jacobs Corsicana Daily Sun The Corsicana Daily Sun Thu Mar 11, 2010, 09:29 PM CST

Corsicana —

The Mexia chapter of Ducks Unlimited has taken the title of top fundraiser in the state of Texas, surpassing Houston, which was the lead group in 2008. The Mexia Chapter raised in excess of $115,000 in 2009, according to J.E. “Yazoo” Thomas the East Texas Regional Director for Ducks Unlimited.

“It was a tough economy, but they worked hard,” Thomas said. “A lot of it’s good management. You lead by example. (Mexia DU President) Ivan (Jackson) is a tremendous person and a great leader.”

“We’re number one in the state, that’s pretty awesome,” Ivan Jackson said. “We’re very proud of it.”

In order to raise that much money, the group conducted three fundraisers last year — a massive dinner with hundreds of guests and valuable prizes; a gun raffle; and a shoot. Last year, the group’s annual dinner attracted 650 people.

The February 2010 banquet raised even more money and attracted 750 people, Jackson said.

“They come from all over, they come from everywhere,” Jackson said. “When you give 82 or 83 guns away, that brings people in.”

The Mexia group has 50 people on the executive committee, all of whom are hard workers and dedicated to the cause of preserving wildlife habitat, he said.

“Lots of work went into it from all my guys and gals, from all of them,” he said.

Having a nationally successful group also helps attract more support, Jackson pointed out.

“Which is good. Everything blossoms, and it’s fun,” he said. “They all have fun.”

It’s taken years of hard work to get to number one, but the Mexia chapter finally did it, said David Schuessler, director of fundraising and volunteer recruitment in Texas for Ducks Unlimited.

“This is a huge accomplishment for the Mexia Chapter and the men and women who work hard to make their chapter one of the top conservation fundraising groups in the whole country,” Schuessler said.

In addition to being named first in Texas, Mexia remains in the President’s Top 100, which is an elite group of DU clubs recognized by the national office.

Every year, the list is reserved for the 100 chapters who raise the most grassroots dollars for DU's habitat conservation work. Ducks Unlimited has 3,500 chapters in the United States, so breaking into that top 100 isn’t an easy shot.

“These fundraising events are the backbone of how DU conserves habitat and the volunteers who make up these chapters are the on-the-ground conservationists making a difference for North American waterfowl populations,” said John Pope, president of DU. “It takes a lot of effort to crack the Top 100 and these chapters deserve to be congratulated from every person who enjoys the outdoors.”

For Mexia to raise more than Houston, a much larger DU group, is a triumph, but it’s not about the competition, it’s about the birds, Thomas said.

“If all the big towns were performing at a certain level, then it would raise money for the ducks,” he said. “In reality, Ivan would tell you that we wish everybody were performing as well. It would be better for the ducks.”

Ducks Unlimited is the world's largest non-profit organization dedicated to conserving North America's continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 13 million acres.

“The Mexia Chapter is focused on raising serious money for waterfowl habitat conservation and their competitive nature has moved them into the number one spot in Texas,” Schuessler said. “The Mexia Chapter is competing with much larger metropolitan areas and they are getting the job done. This shows their dedication to conservation and ensuring the future of our waterfowl hunting heritage.”

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Janet Jacobs may be reached via e-mail at jacobs@corsicanadailysun.com. Want to “Soundoff” on this story? E-mail: soundoff@corsicanadailysun.com

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