(Oct. 30, 2020 – DALLAS) — The DSC Peter Hathaway Capstick Hunting Heritage Award Committee has selected Rob Keck as the 2021 award recipient. Keck will be presented with the prestigious award at the DSC Convention and Expo, Reflections, during the Saturday evening banquet on Feb. 13, 2021.The Capstick Award honors the memory of a great man whose love of hunting and respect for wildlife fueled his desire to promote a hunting legacy that ensured the conservation of our wildlife resources. To pay tribute to Peter H. Capstick, award recipients have shown long-term support and commitment to our hunting heritage through various avenues such as education, humanitarian causes, hunting involvement, and giving.
Keck, reflects these values and shines as a steward of our hunting heritage.
“Rob epitomizes what an individual with vision and purposeful work can accomplish for wildlife and our hunting heritage,” DSC Executive director Corey Mason said. “He has guided and educated an untold number of people in his distinguished career. We are very proud to present the Capstick Award to such a deserving person.”
Keck recently retired from the director of conservation position for Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s and is past Chairman of the Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium, twice voted America’s No.1 Aquarium. You can still hear rebroadcasts of Keck when he hosted Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World Radio Show. Keck and his guests covered everything hunting, fishing, conservation, and the great outdoors on Rural Radio, SiriusXM, Channel 147.
Keck has been a driving force in conservation for more than four decades. During that time he built one of the most successful conservation organizations in the nation.
His leadership, for 27 years, as the Chief Executive Officer of the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF), directed and fueled the return of the wild turkey in North America. While at the NWTF, he oversaw the growth of the organization to more than a half million members and developed a network of 2,400 chapters that completed habitat improvement projects on more than four million acres. Keck also spearheaded the creation of the National Turkey Hunter Safety Task Force which impacted the reduction of turkey hunting accidents and incidents from unacceptably high levels to its safest ever. As founder of the Families Afield initiative, he worked with the NWTF, U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and the National Shooting Sports Foundation to break down age-restrictive barriers that prevented kids from getting a hunting license and opened the door for mentored hunting for all ages. This program changed the law in 42 states, providing opportunities to more than 2.5 million new hunters.
Keck has discussed conservation and hunting with four U.S. presidents, the president of Mexico and the premier of Canada. He has hunted with and talked conservation with vice presidents, Cabinet members, senators, congressmen and a member of the Supreme Court, as well as Olympic champions, country music stars, NASCAR legends, and other professional athletes. He has served on numerous boards.
In addition to being a pioneer in outdoor television, producing and hosting award-winning shows, he is a passionate big-game hunter that has hunted from above the Arctic Circle to the South Island of New Zealand. He has been a US Open and World Turkey Calling Champion and was the first hunter to take a wild turkey in every state. In 2009, he is a member of four Halls of Fame, including the “Legends of the Outdoors National Hall of Fame” in Nashville, Tennessee.
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About DSC
A member of IUCN and FACE, DSC is a mission-focused conservation organization, funded by hunters from around the world. With an administrative staff of less than 15 and a volunteer army of 500, DSC hosts the Greatest Hunters Convention on the Planet™ that raises funds for grants in conservation, education and advocacy. In the past three years, more than $5 million has been channeled to qualified projects, organizations and programs in support of that mission. Get involved with DSC at www.biggame.org.
About DSCF
DSC Foundation is a non-profit corporation organized under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. DSC Foundation serves the mission of DSC to conserve wildlife and wilderness lands, to educate youth and the general public and to promote and protect the rights and interests of hunters worldwide. Learn more about DSC Foundation at www.dscf.org.
