By Jeff Whitten,

Special to the Herald

 

SPRINGFIELD -- Saturday’s turkey shoot at American Legion Post 209 was the first in a long time, post members say.

It won’t be the last, according to Vice Commander Steve Quinones.

Two more turkey shoots are planned for April 26 and May 17, and a Post yard sale is set for April 19, he said, noting the reasons for the public outreach go hand-in-hand.  

“The main reason we’re doing this is we need to raise money for the maintenance and repair costs of our building,” Quinones said. “It’s aging and in need of some repairs. We had a new roof put on last year, so we are making strides, but we need to continue to build up our funds.”

There’s yet another reason the post, which members say works well with Rincon VFW Post 12149, wants to get its name back out there. Call it a public service announcement for the county’s veterans, of which there were 5,929 in 2023, according to the most recent numbers available from the U.S. Census Bureau.

“There are a lot of veterans in the community, and we want them to know the American Legion in Effingham County is not just a building next to Gnann’s that they drive by in Springfield,” Quinones said. “We want them to know we’re open and we’re here for them, and for the community."

The decision to hold the turkey shoots was a result of Post 209 members brainstorming ways to both raise funds and awareness.

“There hadn’t been one since the 1980s or 1990s, from what I’ve been told,” Quinones said. “It seemed a good time to do this.”

That squares with Justin Seckinger’s memory. Seckinger, who with his wife Teil won three of the four competitions at Saturday’s shoot, recalled participating in turkey shoots at Post 209 when he was a child.

“I would like to do more of these, but they don’t have them as often as they did when I was a kid,” he said. “Dad used to take me to them here, and I want to raise up my son the same way. This is good clean fun and it’s for a good cause.”

While Justin won one competition outright and apparently pocketed the prize money, judges declared Teil the winner in two others by the slimmest of margins.

“That was fun,” she said. “We probably should’ve done a shoot-off, but since I’m getting the money either way, it worked.”

For those unaware of rural tradition, a turkey shoot is a target-shooting competition – no turkeys involved these days -- with prizes for the winners. Saturday’s shooters paid $5 a shot to fire 12-gauge shotguns at paper targets posted roughly 25 yards away.

Now, Post 209 members hope more people get the message and come out for the April 26 or May 17 turkey shoots, both of which begin at noon at the Post, 941 S. Laurel St. in Springfield. They’re also invited to the Post’s yard sale on April 19. It runs from 8 a.m. until noon at the Post.

Veterans are also invited out to the monthly meetings on the second Thursday of each month at the Post. The evening opens at 5:30 p.m. with a potluck supper following at 6:30 p.m., and the meeting follows afterward. The next meeting is April 10.

“We have good dinners,” Quinones said. “Veterans can’t go wrong by stopping by. We hope they come out and have a meal with us and see what we’re all about.”