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DNR hosts adaptable hunting trip for people with difficulties walking

Posted at 10:34 PM, Nov 17, 2019
and last updated 2019-11-17 22:35:20-05

SHIAWASSEE COUNTY, Mich. — There's only one hunt hosted by the Department of Natural Resources in the state that allows for hunters who are non-ambulatory. It's in Shiawassee County, about an hour and a half away from Grand Rapids.

All hunters on the trip this weekend are unable to walk on their own, with varying levels of abilities. People come from all over the state to attend and hunt. The DNR sets up blinds, provides tracking services, as well as a hunting guide for the experience.

“Whether it be an accident, an injury, or an illness, it just gives everybody the opportunity to get out there like everyone else,” hunt administrator Vicki Kennedy said.

Brent Christensen fell out of his tree stand more than two decades ago. He's been using a wheelchair ever since. If you thought that'd keep him from hunting again, you thought wrong.

“I’m constantly recruiting new hunters. One of my friends finally came over this year,” Christensen said.

This hunt is something he looks forward to every year. Not only for the possibility of taking a deer, but for the friendships he has found here.

“Over the course of time, we’ve developed some close friendships. It’s a great way for people in chairs to get outdoors, and experience and meet some other people that are battling the same things you are,” Christensen said.