NRA Foundation doubles donation to UHV student organization
For the third consecutive year, the University of Houston-Victoria Trap & Skeet Shooting Club has received a donation of practice ammunition from the National Rifle Association Foundation, with this year’s donation doubling the amount from previous years.
The NRA Foundation’s gift of 10,000 shotgun shells is intended to help the student organization in its mission to prepare for collegiate competitions as well as teach firearm safety and promote interest in the sport with students in the region, said Daniel White, a UHV associate professor of biology and faculty advisor for the student organization.
“This award offsets one of the major costs that students experience when participating in this sport: ammunition,” White said. “This donation is a huge benefit to both beginners and more experienced students, and we are grateful for the continuing support from the NRA Foundation.”
One of the main goals of the club is to bring in students who grew up in a more urban environment and likely have never touched a shotgun before, much less fired one, and give them a chance to try sports like trap and skeet, White said. Some of the students enjoyed it so much that they plan to keep learning and possibly make it a lifelong hobby.
That was how Lila Hamilton first joined the club. The Victoria freshman joined the club during the fall semester, and it was her first time holding a gun.
“The first time I hit a target, it made me want to keep going and learn more,” she said. “I like learning and doing things I’ve never done before, and it felt so cool to actually hit a target the first time I went to the range. I really appreciate the donation from the NRA Foundation so we can continue to learn and practice without the major expense of buying our own ammunition.”
For more information about the UHV Trap & Skeet Shooting Club, contact White at 361-570-4190 or whitedw@uhv.edu.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 50 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.