AR-News: (US) National Trappers Assoc alive, but not well

[Bob Chorush]

The National Trappers Association is alive, but not so well, these days.

Funding for their news and discussion list serve was cut last year, but 
Scott Hartman, former president of the NTA and it's current Director of 
National and International Affairs, occasionally posts messages to the 
defunct list. Hartman's postings document this dying pastime,  with 
obituaries making the top news as frequently as any hunting related messages.

This week, The Great Spirit snared Kermit Stearns, a real son-of-a-bitch as 
far as animals were concerned, but a hero among trappers.

Fur bearing animals in Pennsylvania are rejoicing, and relaxing, since 
Stearns stumbled into the eternal trap. Small fur bearing rodents have 
vowed to feast on Stearns in remembrance of his lifetime torment of furbearers.

If you would like to email the National Trappers Association with your 
wishes for their speedy demise, you can contact them at:

ntaheadquarters at nationaltrappers.com

Donations in Kermit's memory can be made to PETA at www.peta.org



*****Kermit's obituary, as it appeared on the defunct NTA list*******

Kermit Lord Stearns

Was outdoorsman; retired from trapping industry
CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS  Kermit Lord Stearns, 92, 24236 Route 408, Cambridge
Springs, died Tuesday, May 11, 2004, at Saint Vincent Health Center.

He was born Feb. 7, 1912, in Cambridge Springs, son of the late Smith David
Stearns and Agnes Beatrice Lord Stearns.

Retiring in 2002 from the trapping industry, he was an outdoorsman and
wrote for two outdoor magazines in the 1930s. Since 1977, he wrote a
question-and-answer column for Trappers magazine.

He operated a black angus cattle farm and taught horseback riding at
Edinboro State College. He also taught fur trapping at Indiana (Pa.) State
College.

He formerly provided pony rides for area fairs and picnics, worked for
Riverside Golf Course in Cambridge Springs and co-owned a Ford garage in
Cambridge Springs.

A 1930 graduate of Cambridge Springs High School, he received his
correspondence degree in agriculture from Pennsylvania State University.

He was a U.S. Navy veteran of World War II, serving as a machinist with the
89th CB Unit, including a stint at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

He served as president of the Cambridge Springs Rod & Gun Club and District
1 of the Pennsylvania Trappers Association. He was a member of the National
Trappers Association and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1978.

He was a life member of the Fur Trappers of America and the Mercer County
Sportsman's Club. He also was a member of the Northwest Division of the
Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs.

In 1994, he was cited by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for his
work as a sportsman.

He enjoyed gardening and hiking.

Survivors include his wife, Juanita E. Right Stearns, whom he married Aug.
7, 1941; four daughters, Constance D. Stearns of Cambridge Springs, Cheryl
D. Izor of Dayton, Ohio, Candace D. Doubet and her husband, Gene, of
Conneautville and Colleen D. Petruso of Conneaut Lake; two sons, Kermit L.
Stearns II and his wife, Carol, of Beavercreek, Ohio, and Carmal D. Stearns
of New Wilmington, Ohio; 17 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.

Friends may call Friday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at the Van Matre Family
Funeral Home, 335 Venango Ave., Cambridge Springs. A service will be held
there Saturday at 11 a.m., officiated by Harold D. Winnale II of Columbiana
(Ohio) Church of the Nazarene.

Burial will be at Millers Station Cemetery.

Memorials may be made to the National Trappers Association, P.O. Box
632018, Nacogdoches, TX 75963-2018; or the Salvation Army, 1087 Park Ave.,
Meadville, PA 16335.
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