Preserving the hunt: Dells man instructs more than 100 HuntSAFE classes

Latest graduates mark 50 years of teaching hunter safety for Pat Weinacht

More than a thousand sportsmen across the nation who came up through South Dakota owe a bit of their passion to a Dell Rapids man who's spent decades teaching the dos and don'ts of hunter safety and ethical sportsmanship.

Longtime HuntSAFE instructor Pat Weinacht was 21 when he first began teaching the youth of his community the proper methods for handling firearms, when to shoot and when not to, and why the sport of hunting commands respect for both game and fellow hunters alike. And this week marked his 50th year as a HuntSAFE instructor in South Dakota.

"I do it for the kids — they need to learn the right way to handle them. No accidents and knowing the right way to get things done," Weinacht told The Dakota Scout Sunday following the completion of his 100th HuntSAFE class at the Dell Rapids Sportsmen's Club. "The grandparents that I taught are bringing their kids and grandkids in now."

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