Lexington County, SC (Paul Kirby) – The Richland Creek Top Guns are actively seeking to spread the word about safe and enjoyable gun sports and how these can have a positive impact on its young members. The Richland Creek Top Guns are part of the 4-H program that is under the purview of the Clemson Extension Service across South Carolina. In other states, the 4-H Clubs are also a youth outreach program that’s an extension of the land grant college system.
4-H was founded and developed in the early 1900s as a way of teaching farmers new, innovative agricultural techniques. The 4-H instructors would teach new farming techniques to the children of farm families in schools in hopes they would share them with their parents or extended family once they were home.
Many 4-H clubs specialize in particular areas of interest. Some of the more popular ones include equestrian and livestock clubs. In other cases, there are clubs that have focused on model airplanes, robotics, and even public speaking. The majority are based on the love of the outdoors or an interest in some type of agriculture.
Richland Creek’s Team Administrator Jill Godbey says that they are always looking for new members to participate in their programs. She explained that The Richland Creek Club, like many other 4-H Clubs, brings together young people with a common interest, that of shooting as a sport. Their focus is on sporting clays, skeet, and trap.
According to Godbey, Richland Creek competes throughout the state in the Scholastic Clay Target Program, SCDNR Shooting Sports Program, and the SC Youth Shooting Foundation. Before ever competing or even entering a range, the team’s members are taught the basics of safe gun handling, safe operations while in the field, and even safe storage and good maintenance practices when a firearm is not in use. The United States has more registered privately owned firearms per capita than any other ciuntry in the world and the fundamentals of proper and safe use is always paramount to private gun ownership.
Richland Creek’s instructors teach from their base in Saluda county; however, their growth has now led them to encompass members who are also from Aiken, Newberry, Edgefield, and Lexington counties. Their primary practice location is in Lexington county. They also practice at several other locations including one that’s in Swansea, SC and another in Edgefield county.These can be called upon depending on the demand and if the need arises.
Godbey also said that the club would struggle to exist without their sponsors whose contributions help defray the cost of expenses throughout the year. They had a strong group of sponsors for 2019-2020 season and look forward to adding to this sponsor list this coming season. They will be hosting a fundraiser shoot in October for those interested in sponsoring their 501c3 non-profit organization.
Richland Creek Shooting Sports is currently looking for individuals interested in learning more about their program. It is open to youths ages 10 thru 18 or in grade levels from the 5thgrade through a student’s 12th grade year. To receive information on how to register your child, become a sponsor, or for more general information, please contact Jill at jbgodbeyrn@yahoo.com. You can also get her by text her at 803-317-1761.
