May 2010 Newsletter

‘Gonna’ Have a Gun Show!!!

MVS will have its first annual gun show  on June 5th and 6th at Raven Hall!

Please come out and support this fundraiser for the club!

MVS thanks Kelly Mears for his leadership in coordinating this endeavor.

Questions about the Gun Show should be directed to Kelly Mears (746-4862)

He is our point of contact for the Gun Show.

RSOs – Your help is needed!!!
On the weekend of the gun show, June 5th and 6th, we will need all the volunteers we can get to man the doors, sell tickets, tie-wrap guns, etc.

There is a sign-up sheet behind the RSO desk at the range.  Your help is greatly needed and will be greatly appreciated.

Board Member News

Our very own Earl Lackey, Vice-President of the Matanuska Valley Sportsmen, is running for the board of MTA (Matanuska Telephone Association). We wish him well in this endeavor.

SUMMER HOURS- May 1st  to Oct. 1st

Mondays & Wednesdays      6-9 PM
Sundays                                   4-9 PM
 (Note: Mondays are for .22s only)

Fee schedule:
Non-Members                        $20
Members                                $10
Youth (under 18)                   $ 5
Punch cards (8 visits)            $68

(Punch Cards reduce the cost to $8.50 per visit)

Note: punch cards are available to members only.

Upcoming Work Parties, Volunteers Needed

It is spring fix up, clean up time of year again.  MVS is in need of Carpenters, Painters, and clean up people to spruce up the building and finish the outdoor ranges.  Our first Work Party day was on Saturday, May 22nd at 9:00 am.  Tools that will be used are basic carpentry tools, paint brushes and rollers, rakes, shovels and weed eaters.  Even if you can only make it for a half day we would greatly appreciate the help.  Call Dick Barlow (745-2784) or Mike Kelly (357-6562) to volunteer for the next work party (TBA).

Upcoming Classes

NRA First Steps Pistol Orientation(s)

Classes for June through August are by arrangement with instructor.  (Class is limited to 4 participants.) Call or e-mail Steve Montgomery at 746-3090 or E- mail:   mvsrange@mtaonline.net
Attn: First Steps

Defensive Handgun Skills Improvement Class on Saturday,

June 19, 2010 at 7:00 AM. Call 746-4862 for details or to sign up. *

Concealed Handgun Permit/Personal Protection Class (1 day) on Saturday August 14, 2010 from 7:00 AM until 7:00 PM at the MVS Range complex.

Defensive Handgun Skills Improvement Class on Saturday,

August 28, 2010 at 7:00 AM. Call 746-4862 for details or to sign up. *

NRA Basic Pistol class on Saturday, September 11, 2010 from 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM. Call 746-4862 for details or to sign up.

NRA First Steps Pistol Orientation Thursday, September 16, 2010 from 

6 PM – 9 PM.  (Class is limited to 4 participants.) Call or e-mail Steve Montgomery at 746-3090 or E- mail:   mvsrange@mtaonline.net

Attn: First Steps

Concealed Handgun Permit/Personal Protection Class (3 day) on Thursday Sept. 23, Friday, Sept. 24, and Saturday, Sept. 25, 2010.  Classes on Thurs. & Fri. are from 6:30 – 9:30 PM at the Palmer Fire Training Center located at 645 E. Cope Industrial Way in Palmer.  On Saturday, class is at 9 AM at the MVS range complex.

Defensive Handgun Skills Improvement Class on Saturday,

October 9, 2010 at 7:00 AM. Call 746-4862 for details or to sign up.

NRA Basic Pistol class on Saturday, October 16, 2010 from 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM. Call 746-4862 for details or to sign up.

An NRA Refuse To Be A Victim® Seminar will be held on Saturday, October 23, 2010 - 9:00 AM till 2:00 PM.

Concealed Handgun Permit/Personal Protection Class (1 day) on Saturday November 20, 2010 from 7:00 AM until 7:00 PM at the MVS Range complex.

Note: on all classes only those students who pay in advance are guaranteed admittance.  You may sign up without paying, but you will be on stand-by status and can attend only if room is left over after pre-paid class members are admitted. *Defensive Skills Class is pre-pay only.

If you have questions about classes taught at MVS; or would like a course description, please contact Steve Montgomery, President, at either

746-3090 or by e-mail at:

 mvsrange@mtaonline.net

Ladies Night Schedule

Ladies Only Nights will resume next fall.  Call Brenda Montgomery 746-3090 for more details.

Scheduling Meeting

Events for the coming year were scheduled on March 22, 2010.

Events must be scheduled through Allen Chapman 357-2840 or by e-mail at

AKShootist@gci.net

It is important for anyone wishing to schedule range time to attend these meetings. The next Scheduling Meeting is set for September 13, 2010 @ 7 PM.

Upcoming Projects

The #1 priority, this year, is to repair/maintain/repaint the exterior of the range building.

 The Board of Directors has begun setting aside money each month so that funds will be in place, when the weather permits work to begin on the building’s exterior.  The good news is that this project will not require a closure of the range.

Outdoor Range Committee Members:

Dick Barlow  745-2784
Mike Kelly 357-6562
Jim Kaufman 746-5629
Earl Lackey 376-1003

The outdoor range remains unavailable for general use until we announce it as open to the public.  Please call a member of the Outdoor Range Committee to donate much needed time and/or money.  All donations are tax-deductible.

User Group News

IDPA

Matches are held the first Saturday and third Sunday of each month. Contact Allen Chapman for details/schedule. 357-2840 or by e-mail at

AKShootist@gci.net

COWBOY ACTION SHOOTS

Contact Brenda Montgomery (Outpost Rider) at 746-3090 for details/schedule.

BULLS EYE PISTOL
For more information contact: Andrea Tesch 333-0265.

New Bullseye Match scheduled. 

On Friday May 21st at 6:30pm MVS will be ran a .22 indoor bullseye match.  The match consisted of 2 matches:  Gallery Course (National Match) of 30 rounds, 10 slow fire, 10 timed fire and 10 rapid fire. The other match is a 60 round match with 20 rounds fired at each slow fire, timed fire and rapid fire.  This is a low cost match with the entry fee of only $5.50 plus range fee.  The purpose of the match is to introduce shooters to competition in a low cost and fun format.  It is also a great way for experienced shooters to get more match time in.  We will keep separate scores for Iron Sights and Optics to keep things even.  Equipment needed is simply a .22 Pistol or Revolver, Eye and Ear protection and ammunition.  MVS does have one .22 pistol available for a loaner.  The match should last about 2 hours, Hope to see you there! Call Mike Kelly 357-6562 for details.

Current Membership

MVS has 1474 members as of 2/1/2010.

Words of Wisdom

"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves."  William Pitt in the House of Commons November 18, 1783

"When the resolution of enslaving America was formed in Great Britain, the British Parliament was advised by an artful man, who was governor of Pennsylvania, to disarm the people; that it was the best and most effectual way to enslave them; but that they should not do it openly, but weaken them, and let them sink gradually…”
   George Mason, Virginia Constitution Convention

"Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." 
    --Thomas Jefferson