Olympic Skeet Shooter Headlines Opening Night of Energy Invitational Spring Turkey Hunt

LOCK HAVEN – Muncy Valley native Morgan Craft, the 2015 World Champion skeet shooter who will represent the United States in Women’s Skeet Shooting in the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was the keynote speaker Thursday night at the Energy Invitational Spring Turkey Hunt. Hosted by the National Wild Turkey Federation and McElhattan-based electrical solutions company Tri-M, the third annual Invitational is being held through Saturday at the Castanea Fire Company Picnic Grounds and is open to the public.

Thursday night’s opening dinner drew a crowd of more than 200. The 23-year-old Craft told the group that she began shooting at about age 7 and, along with her family, has been involved with the NWTF for many years.

“The first animal I ever harvested was a longbeard turkey,” said Craft. “My family has always been interested in the outdoors.”

She added that the road to a world championship was a long and often rocky one.

“In my first competition, I came in dead last,” she said. “But, by losing, I learned what it took to win. It was a lot of hard work, a lot of sacrifice along the way, time and money – raising funds to travel from competition to competition. I learned that expecting perfection is not realistic. Instead, you should strive for excellence. The sky is the limit if you are willing to commit. And I’ve also learned that you can’t do this alone. Without my support system of family and friends, I wouldn’t have reached my goal.”

Weigh-ins for participants in the Turkey Hunt will take place Friday and Saturday at the Picnic Grounds just outside of Lock Haven from 11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m., with final weigh-in Saturday at 3:30 p.m., followed by an awards ceremony.