1. Why is it important to have your daughter in this activity?
One benefit is to increase her self-confidence. It's shown her that there are other avenues and other things to do other than sitting with your phone all the time. She was hesitant about guns at first. I took her out with some friends, and we showed her how to shoot a .22. About five shots into it she started smiling because she hit the tin can. From that point on she was hooked. Then we wanted to teach her to shoot safely and properly, and not to be afraid of the rifle but to respect it.
2. What has daughter's experience been with Project Appleseed?
The first year we came here, since it is a different shooting style than the homeschool shooting club, she was frustrated at first. She had some trouble with her scope and didn't do very well here. But then she got first place in the middle school shooting team!
What was really nice about it was that everyone here was so encouraging to her, allowing her to use different rifles because hers just wasn't shooting right. And I think that's what she took away from it. Even though she was frustrated about her rifle not shooting well, she had the camaraderie and the people coming around her to support her.
3. What did your daughter think about the history component of Project Appleseed?
She loved the history. She was just blown away. She likes history, but when they started talking about the bare bones of what actually happened instead of the watered-down version that you would normally get through school books she was hungry to come back for more.
4. Do you see anything related to history or shooting for your daughter in her future?
She's fifteen, so the world's wide open right now. She definitely has a love for the shooting sports. Not just with a .22, but shooting archery and shotgun. She's been learning about animals and their environment, so she's talking about getting into forestry. As far as Appleseed, she hasn't talked yet about wanting to become an instructor, but I have a feeling...
5. You were a shooter on the line last year. What was your personal experience?
It can help change the way that you think. I thought I was a really good shot last year. Coming in I had a really nice tight group and I was hitting the target every time. The problem was, I figured out a way that worked for me, but I couldn't repeat it. I was pretty good for about three or four targets, and after that I started getting sloppy.
Man, I got frustrated that year, but in a good way! But I grew, and I learned from it. It really taught me to pay attention to what I'm doing. And it helped me to be a better shooting coach as well.
BONUS: Is there anything to share with the NC Appleseed community?
It is a lot of fun watching the kids grow and learn, and seeing the smiles on their faces when they get it. Working through the frustration, and sometimes boredom. Because sometimes you have to sit there and wait. But there's always that reward at the end. In our culture today there's instant gratification all the time. But this here, it takes a while.
