'We just want to put a smile on their faces:' Local group plans outings for military vets

The guys running Combat Warrior Outdoors describes their group as a "for veterans — by veterans non-profit organization that provides outdoor adventures for disabled veterans."

It's not just a slogan.

The group, made up of president Jason Thornton, vice president Tyler McKenzie and team member Travis Stocker, does indeed work to come up with special activities for veterans.

They've put together deep sea fishing trips, boar and ram hunts, golf outings and, Saturday, an outing at Bullseye Pheasant and Duck Hunting in Uhrichsville.

"We started this process back in the fall of 2019," said Thornton, a 20-year Marine. "We finally got all our paperwork completed in April 2020, but then COVID hit."

How many events have the Combat Warrior Outdoors group held?

Saturday's outing was the fifth for Combat Warrior Outdoors when it took eight veterans (a group of 10 was originally on the schedule) out for a morning of pheasant and chukkar hunting.

"It's just good to get together with other verterans ... guys from different time frames and different years," said Jeremy Crites, from Woodhaven, Michigan, a Marine veteran who now works in a Ford plant. "This will be my first time bird hunting. I looks like fun."

The 401(c)3 group is funded through donations and gifts.

"There have been a lot of different businesses and organizations," Stocker said, noting the VFW, American Legion and various business owners.

"We've been really blessed to get to take these guys out. We just want to put a smile on their faces."

"We solicit the VFWs, Amvets and Legions once a year, but we've been fortunate to have a couple businesses step up," Thornton said. "We had to idea to do this but didn't really know where to go with it. I talked to Tyler and he had plenty of ideas of places to go and things to do."

Combat Warrior Outdoors group went to North Carolina last year

The local group sponsored an outing to North Carolina last year, where deep-sea fishing was followed by a golf outing and a fish banquet that included shark.

So how do you prepare shark?

"I just fried it," Stocker laughed. "Everything tastes good fried."

Saturday morning's group at Bullseye spent the night in a cabin at the facility and woke to sub-zero temperatures.They gathered at the lodge for breakfast before taking to the fields.

"It's been a fun experience for us veterans," said Marine veteran Nick Leonhard, who relocated to New Philadelphia from upstate New York. "It definitely helps when you can get away from the stresses of life. You get to spend a night with other guys and talk about the good times and the bad times.

"This trip is definitely about having a good time."

Bullseye Pheasant and Duck is a 181-acre operation outside of Uhrichsville that can accommodate five groups at a time.

Owner Matt Peters said the operation went through 800 pheasants during its first year and now they do that much in a week.

Peters said they hatched 14,000 pheasants this year, along with 1,800 mallards, but still have to purchase birds for the various hunts.

Find out more

Anyone interested in talking with the Combat Warrior Outdoors group can contact them through their Facebook page or by email at: combatwarrioroutdoors@yahoo.com.

The mailing address is:

Combat Warrior Outdoors

PO Box 299

Tuscarawas, OH 44682

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Find out about Bullseye Pheasant and Duck Hunting on its Facebook page or website: 

http://www.bullseyepheasant.net/

or call 740 922-5633