Suffolk County Legislator Ginny Fields Addresses The Hunting Issue & Fights To Save Long Island Range

The “Bambi” Mentality

By Suffolk Legislator Ginny Fields

My husband and I built our house nestled in between 127 acres of wetlands near Oakdale. Through the years, I observed men in camouflage with guns who parked at the end of my street. They would walk into the woods on early mornings and I would awaken to loud gunshots. I was of the “Bambi” mentality and could only picture cute little animals being blasted away by these “nasty” men. I would tell my two young boys that they were “cruel” men and they were harming all of the animals in the woods.

During one Christmas season, I told my sons that I was going to stop the “vicious” hunting and I was going to purchase a sign that read, “Posted” or “No Hunting”. That day, we went on a shopping spree to purchase presents for all of our loved ones. In our travels, I found the signs that I thought would change the lives of the animals in the woods that I was fixed on protecting. However, we arrived home after dark and it was too late to hang the signs on any trees.

Early the next morning I attempted to retrieve the Sunday newspaper but my door hit something. When I looked down, I saw a huge basket filled with all kinds of goodies. I picked up the basket and found cookies, candies, crackers, cheeses, and all kinds of treats. On the card was a message: “To the Fields Family—Thank you for allowing us to park on your street” The signatures on the card were from the men who wore camouflage and carried the big guns….THE HUNTERS!!!

Certainly, this gift created a problem. How nice that these men had taken the time to purchase such a pleasant gift and were thinking of my family. However, now I had to go out there and confront these “toothless, ignorant, animal killers” from the “Deliverance” movie and thank them!!! This gift definitely produced a very difficult situation that I now had to deal with and needless to say, I was even a little concerned with my safety since I actually feared these men.

So, my sons and I awaited their appearance from the woods. Finally, they came. They opened their trunks and started to take off some of their gear and my sons and I exited the house to approach them. (I told my husband to watch us from the window). The hunters smiled when they saw us. I observed that they had all their teeth! I stuttered “Thank you for the basket…you really shouldn’t have done that.” Then they spoke…First they introduced themselves and said, Mrs. Fields, we appreciate the fact that you have allowed us to park out here for years. We don’t always have the same response when we park near other wetlands”. I then observed that they had manners and were able to speak intelligently!!! They certainly were taking me off guard! As they continued, they informed me that they didn’t shoot before “first light”, they only shot the “allowable species”, took their “limit”, and only hunted during hunting season, along with many other facts that I never knew existed. I silently marveled that I never even realized there was a season! My thoughts had been that a group of dangerous men bought guns and just shot at anything that moved in our woods. These men were NOTHING like my interpretation of what hunters were like. The men also told me that in other areas, people threw bricks through their windshields and pierced their tires with ice picks when they were in the woods hunting.

My sons were immediately captivated by these men and started asking one question after another about this lifestyle they had observed. Every one of their questions was answered with an extremely long and knowledgeable answer and with my much patience. The boys were excited about actually seeing a real gun and talking about the camouflage and decoys. After some time, we went back into the house and informed my husband that we had just met some really nice men!

The next morning, there were all kinds of magazines left “For Tim and Bill”, my two sons. From that point, every time the hunters appeared, my two sons scurried out to greet them and became friends with two in particular, Matt and Phil. When the boys were older, Phil came to the door one morning and invited us into the woods to show the boys (and us) what they were doing when they hunted. My husband accompanied them and they came back quite enthusiastic about what they were going to do when they were old enough. Phil informed them that they were never to shoot a gun or go hunting without a “Hunters Safety Course” and good skills to identify the ducks they were going to hunt for. He also told them that they had to be old enough to even take the course. When they came of age, they took the course and were finally able to officially become duck hunters.

Through the years, Phil and Matt became friends of our family. Several decades ago I started a family tradition of making a huge Christmas breakfast after the gifts were opened. Every Christmas morning I make pancakes, French toast, eggs, bacon, sausages, coffee, juice, marmalade, and all kinds of breakfast fixings. And every Christmas morning after coming out of the woods, at least one of the hunters joins us for a nice warm family breakfast.

Suffolk Trap and Skeet Shooting Range

By Suffolk Legislator Ginny Fields

Since learning that most people had the wrong impression of hunters I have become an advocate. During the years that I worked as an Administrator in the health care field, I also volunteered and became President of: my local Civic Association, the Great South Bay Audubon Society, Friends of Connetquot River State Park Preserve, a member of Ducks Unlimited (I even won a shotgun at one of the dinners), a member of the Chamber of Commerce, a Cub Scout leader, and a member of many environmental groups. I take advantage of every opportunity to educate people about hunters being our first conservationists and try to change the misinformed about what is an acceptable recreational activity.

Three years ago, I became a Suffolk County Legislator. During my second campaign, I was invited to Peconic River Sportsman's Club to participate in an afternoon of trap and skeet shooting and enjoyed it immensely. Three days later, the county closed Suffolk Trap and Skeet. They stated that the facility was shut down because the vendor hadn't complied with his contract. However, a new vendor should have been found and the facility should have been reopened. After investigating the facts, I fought to reopen it. The Legislator from the district stated that his constituents had complaints about noise and compliance with an acoustics law, and concerns about possible lead contamination.

I sought to find expert consultants who had experience with Trap and Skeet facilities, who could conduct acoustics and environmental studies. After putting a bill in the Legislature to hire consultants to give us the information, I sought assistance from the sportsmen community. As Chairperson of the Parks Committee, my bill was going to go before the committee and I wanted input from men and women who felt the same way I did. I called various organizations, (SAFE, SASI, NRA, DU, Peconic River Sportsman's Club, and others) and over two hundred sports enthusiasts turned out for the meeting to support the reopening of the facility. The bill passed and the consultants were found. Their reports revealed that the facility could be reopened with a few changes (mainly regarding sound mitigation). We are now in the process of sending out a Request For Proposal (RFP) so that a vendor can be found to reopen Suffolk Trap and Skeet. I have been told that the RFP should be ready to be mailed out on September 10th or 11th. It is my hope that this process moves rapidly so that men, women, and children can once again utilize this facility.

Editor’s Note: We are proud to have endorsed Ginny Fields in her 2001 run for the Suffolk County Legislature. In our opinion her hard work and dedication to concerns of the sporting community will be the reason the range will be reopened for all to enjoy. Legislator Ginny Fields is a concerned fighter for all her constitutes and a person who stands up for what she believes in. We salute and thank her for all she is doing for the Long Island Sporting Community.

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