The One Shot

Our over-arching mission at The Wildlife Foundation of Virginia is to connect youth to the outdoors. Inspiring a love and respect for wildlife and land, we believe, is the most effective way to ensure the future of land conservation in Virginia. Our annual Old Dominion One Shot Turkey Hunt provides an opportunity for younger generations to encounter an outdoor experience like none other!

For the past four years, the Wildlife Foundation of Virginia has hosted it's annual Old Dominion One Shot Turkey Hunt, which provides an opportunity for younger generations to encounter an outdoor experience and mentorships. Each year, the One Shot pairs up to 50 hunters on private properties throughout the state. Experienced guides accompany hunters, many of them youth or Wounded Warriors, through all of the adventures a turkey hunt promises. 

With hunting license sales declining on average 3% per year, there has been a noticeable change in culture toward outdoor recreation. The advancement in technology has encouraged a trend toward more sedentary activity, and after school sports like baseball and football, admittedly, do have more popular appeal! While both of these options hold enough value in and of themselves, nothing compares to the thrill of the hunt. There is a sense of abandonment that comes with exploring unchartered territory. The great outdoors have an uncanny ability to take even the most rambunctious child and calm them with awe. Even to the most seasoned hunter, there is always something to learn when confronted with undomesticated wildlife!

To have a child ask, “What are all of those trees called?” when pointing to a forest, or to see a veteran’s face filled with the pride of his hunt, is to encounter a joy and peace only hunting can offer. 

The Wildlife Foundation of Virginia is proud to partner with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries in providing an opportunity for children to do something they don’t get to do often enough, use their outdoor voices!