Mary Goddard of Seven 2Bar Adventures has donated and hosted a spring turkey hunt every year since our Inaugural event in 2011.  The hunt will be auctioned off this year at the community event in Goodland on Friday evening.  The hunt offers the winner and guest the opportunity to hunt at the Goddard Ranch with four sponsored Freedom Hunters.  

Below is the letter Mary received from one of the Freedom Hunters at this year’s spring hunt. The Ringneck Classic supports our troops and is proud to be partners with Mary, the Freedom Hunters and Conestoga Energy Partners who sponsor four hunters from Fort Riley at The Classic each year.

“Mary – Sorry for this being a few days late!  But I wanted to thank you so very much for the experience of the hunt!!  You are an exceptional hostess and your ranch and cabins are absolutely beautiful!!  Below is a little something I wrote about the hunt.  If you ever visit the Black Hills please let me know!  Thank you again! 

How do I put this turkey hunt into words? It ended up being, for me, about way more than a hunt!! From the moment I arrived I was greeted with a hug and a thank you!! The hospitality and accommodations given to all us veterans by Mary Goddard and Seven 2 Bar Ranch were beyond anything ever expected!!! Then the little town of Hill City, KS (yes Hill City) threw a community BBQ for all the vets!! The little town, even though we tried to slink away, treated us vets all like stars! With great food, handshakes, thank yous and pictures! Then to our guides that each of us vets was given!! My guide, a 17 year old young man, was such a blessing to me…especially in this day and age!! He had such a love for his country, town and hunting!! It was a pleasure to hunt with him and he lead me to a nice tom bird!! Then to my meeting with the founder of Patriots of Praise (someone was praying for this meeting to happen…mom? smile emoticon What a wonderful heartfelt, meaningful conversation I was able to have with him!!! This hunt was a great time for me!! Showed me people care, a lot of people care, about the well-being of veterans! What a great opportunity to have been selected to go on this trip and this experience is something that will stay with me for a long time to come!!”

Hope  Arnold