Sioux Falls, SD —- The South Dakota Second Century Habitat Fund (SCHF) has partnered with South Dakota Toyota dealers and Alumacraft Boats to raise financial support for habitat conservation efforts in South Dakota. They offered a raffle prize consisting of a Toyota Tundra TRD Pro and an Alumacraft Classic 165 boat, loaded with outdoor gear from Gerber, Scheels, Berkley, WileyX, Ugly Stick, Maven Optics, Seaguar Fishing Line, and Grizzly coolers. , which was promoted through social media ads and email campaigns beginning in October 2022. The campaign was run in partnership with South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks, resulting in an impressive number of hits. over $380,000 raised for habitat conservation.
According to Brian Bashore, SCHF’s executive director, the combination of Toyota Tundra and Alumacraft boats was the most significant prize offered in the raffle’s three years of running. The success of previous giveaways demonstrates the broad support South Dakota receives from people across the country, ensuring preservation of conservation efforts and continued pheasant hunting as a top priority for everyone to enjoy. None of this is possible without the support of our partners, especially Toyota and AlumaCraft. They really made this happen.
The raffle winner was Ross Gaulke of Mitchell, South Dakota. Bashore personally informed Ross of his victory just before the announcement was made to a crowd of more than 500 guests at the Fund’s Inaugural Gala on June 3 in Sioux Falls, SD. Bashore expressed his satisfaction with the selection, stating that Ross is a deserved winner. Ross and his wife recently purchased 60 acres of land and have been actively working to improve wildlife habitat by planting more than 2,000 trees and converting the rest of the land to native grass. Ross was one of 5,500 people who purchased tickets, and was selected as the winner through SD Game, Fish, and Parks’ big game license lottery system.
Funds raised from this raffle will be used to support habitat programs throughout South Dakota, with the goal of fostering high-quality habitats for wildlife to thrive and ensuring the continuation of the state’s renowned pheasant hunting tradition for the future generations.
About Second Century Habitat Fund, South Dakota
The Second Century Habitat Fund is a 501 c3 non-profit corporation that works to educate homeowners about the importance of grasslands in improving pheasant habitat in South Dakota. The Fund is governed by a Board of Directors that represents landowners, business owners, pheasant preserve operators, and community leaders throughout South Dakota.