DNR honors Ovid's Larry Martin as Hunter Education Instructor of the Year

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Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 18, 2013

Contact: Dean Molnar, 517-373-1230 or Ed Golder, 517-284-6241


DNR honors Ovid's Larry Martin as Hunter Education Instructor of the Year

At last week's regular monthly meeting of the Natural Resources Commission in Lansing, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) honored Larry Martin, of Ovid, Mich., as Hunter Education Instructor of the Year.

Ovid resident Larry Martin, second from left, was honored as this year's Hunter Education Instructor of the Year.Martin, 78, has been teaching hunter education since he graduated from Michigan State University in 1963.

“I’m truly honored,” said Martin, a retired meat cutter. “I’ve gotten phone calls form a lot of people who I haven’t (heard from) in a long time.”

Martin's younger brother, who had assisted him in running hunter safety education classes for years, nominated him for the award. Martin has helped to train several generations of hunters on safety-minded practices, having ushered thousands of new hunters through hunter education over the decades.

“This past September we had 56 in our class and that’s the smallest class we’ve ever had,” Martin said.

Dean Molnar, assistant chief of the DNR Law Enforcement Division - and a friend of Martin's for many years - presented the award.

“Guys like Larry are the backbone of our program,” Molnar said. “His dedication and the numbers of new hunters he has touched in a positive way are just incredible.”

Molnar stressed that safe hunting begins with hunter education, which has had a dramatic impact on reducing hunting-related incidents statewide. Thanks to instructors like Martin, Molnar said that hunting in Michigan is getting safer every year.

To learn more about hunter safety education options in a traditional classroom setting or online experience, or to see which classes are offered in different parts of the state, visit the DNR website at www.michigan.gov/huntereducation. 
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. For more information, go to www.michigan.gov/dnr.

/Note to editors: An accompanying photo is available for download below.

Suggested caption: The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) honored Ovid resident Larry Martin as the 2013 Hunter Education Instructor of the Year. Martin has taught hunter safety for 50 years, reaching thousands of new hunters. Pictured here (L to R) are: DNR Director Keith Creagh; Martin; NRC Chair J.R. Richardson; Martin's wife, Margo; and Dean Molnar, assistant chief of the DNR Law Enforcement Division./