WAUPUN — Local veteran’s outreach program Heroes’ Hunt for Veterans received a donation of $18,600 from Tigers Bar and Grill, located between Ripon and Rosendale.
Heroes’ Hunt for Veterans is a nonprofit organization located just north of Waupun on County M at Camp Nickolas—named after Nickolas Mueller who was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2009.
Every year HHV hosts several veterans a week during hunting season to teach outdoor skills, and give them a genuine hunting trip experience. They cover all costs for veterans who participate in the program, save for travel if they’re coming from outside of the region.
They’ve worked with a total of 368 veterans over the last ten years, relying entirely on donations.
Earlier this year Tigers Bar and Grill, which is located on Hwy 26 outside of Ripon, held a “Hike for Heroes” fundraiser dedicated to veterans awareness. Tigers Bar and Grill is owned and operated by Randy and Shelly Oswald, who are passionate about veterans issues as Randy is a veteran himself.
Tigers Bar and Grill regularly does fundraisers for veteran-related causes, but Hike for Heroes was their biggest one yet.
Held on April 6, the hike was a total of 7 miles long, following the entire length of Rose-Eld Road from Rosendale to Tigers Bar and Grill. The hike had over 150 hikers, raising money through donations from local businesses and residents, along with raffles throughout the day.
“We just want to thank Heroes’ Hunt for Veterans for the work they do,” the Oswalds said. “We all have veterans in our family and we appreciate the work they do, and thank our community for the support that they showed not to us, but for the cause.”
The event was run entirely by volunteers, with all profits going to Heroes’ Hunt for Veterans, totaling $18,600.
“We’re really grateful for the volunteers and the owners of Tigers Bar and Grill in Ripon for the amazing donation and the work they put into doing this benefit for us,” said David Vogel, one of the organizers of the Heroes’ Hunt program. “It’ll go a long ways to put smiles on veterans’ faces, which we try to do every year and we can’t thank them enough.”
Heroes’ Hunt for Veterans will be hosting a 10th anniversary open house event at Camp Nickolas on May 18, 10AM to 5PM.
