Aug. 16, 2023
Randy Zellers Assistant Chief of Communications
LITTLE ROCK – The Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation will induct six new members to the Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame including the recipients of its Legacy Award and the Steve Smith Spirit of Giving Award at the Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet Aug. 26, at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock.
Jim Ronquest, Tom Foti, Bob Barringer, Ronnie Ritter, Dale Morrell, and Brenda and Larry Potterfield will join the ranks of the Hall of Fame this year.
Tickets to this year’s banquet which is sponsored by Sissy’s Log Cabin, are still available for $150 per person. The night will include dinner, raffles, a silent auction and the induction ceremony. Doors open at 6 p.m. for reception and silent auction; dinner will begin at 7 p.m.
Participants also can bid and win silent auction items even if they cannot make it to the event. Text “FISH” to 243-725 to join the auction, which has already begun taking bids.
Proceeds from the event support the year-round work of the Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit organization that serves as the fundraising adjunct to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. Visit www.agff.org or text “FISH” to 243–725 to purchase tickets.
“For more than 100 years, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has worked to conserve the state’s wildlife resources, thanks to the selfless contributions of people such as our 2023 slate of inductees and award winners,” said Deke Whitbeck, president of the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation. “We are delighted to be able to celebrate these success stories and the outstanding individuals behind them.”
Jim Ronquest of Stuttgart, is a lifelong outdoorsman who helped develop two of the Mid-South’s most iconic outdoor brands. A world champion duck caller, Ronquest forged a long and distinguished career with Rich-N-Tone duck calls of Stuttgart. He’s now vice president of development with Mississippi-based Drake Waterfowl hunting and fishing apparel.
Tom Foti of Little Rock is considered one of Arkansas’s foremost ecologists. His career with the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission resulted in the creation of several important natural areas in the state, particularly in the West Gulf Coastal Plain of southwestern Arkansas and served as a model for similar efforts nationwide.
Bob Barringer of Little Rock and Ronnie Ritter of Hot Springs have been instrumental in not only fueling the tradition of hunters sharing their harvest but also feeding thousands of Arkansans in need. Barringer founded Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry in 2000 to help connect a portion of harvested deer with those in need. Shortly thereafter, Ritter signed on to lead the mission-driven organization. Today, Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry has processed and distributed tens of thousands of pounds of meat to needy families.
The AGFF’s Legacy Award will be given to Larry and Brenda Potterfield of Columbia, Missouri. Their company, MidwayUSA, and its charitable foundation, the MidwayUSA Foundation, have provided millions of dollars in sustainable funding to youth shooting sports teams across the nation.
The Morrell Family of Alma will receive the Steve Smith Spirit of Giving Award for their continued support to the shooting sports as well, this time in the sport of archery. The family behind the highly successful Morrell archery target brand is relentlessly focused on investing in future generations of archers through the National Archery in the Schools Program and Archers USA’s Varsity Archery.
For more information, contact the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation office at (501) 223-6468 or email agff@agff.org.
CUTLINES:
BANNER
The Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation’s Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet will be held from 6-9 p.m. August 26 at the Statehouse Convention Center in Downtown Little Rock.
MAN WITH TURKEY FAN
Jim Ronquest has contributed thousands of hours teaching youth how to hunt and call waterfowl.
MAN IN FRONT OF TREE
Tom Foti is considered one of Arkansas’s foremost ecologists and has been influential in the preservation and conservation of many unique habitats in The Natural State.
TWO MEN
Together, Bob Barringer (left) and Ronnie Ritter (right) have seen the idea of Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry grow into a statewide program providing thousands of hunter-harvested meals to needy Arkansans each year.