Josh's Hope Foundation - Stories of Hope

Brandon's Big Fish Adventure

Dear Josh's Hope Board,

Well, our adventure has come and gone, and it was an incredible, lifetime memory of an adventure. Thank you so much for making Brandon's wish for a fishing charter boat trip on Lake Michigan become a reality. Thunderstorms were predicted by the weatherman for that day, but the Lord gave us a beautiful sunshiny day with a nice breeze blowing on the lake. The fishing was exciting and Brandon (and the rest of our family) will never forget the experience of pulling in some nice sized salmon, AND . . . the biggest brown trout of the year (according to the boat's captain) . . . a 32", 20 pound monster that took all three of our boys 10 or 15 minutes to reel in. Awesome!

It was great to spend the day with you and get to know each other a little better. Thanks for being the videographer for the day. And give our thanks to Terri for the great lunch she packed for us. It was delicious . . loved the croissant sandwiches! Everything about the day was just about perfect!

We pray God's abundant blessings on Josh's Hope Foundation and your family. You guys are awesome. We love you all.

Bob, Lori, Brandon, Shawn and Joshua Weible

Loves Park, Illinois

Handicap children enjoy local handicap deer hunt

Heath and April Williams are the parents of five year old Heather Williams, who has cerebal palsy and immobile. They know from experience how limited accessibility is for handicap people. So they decided last year to host an annual handicap hunt.

Heath and April went to Buckmasters’ website and found Josh’s Hope Foundation. This foundation takes applications from handicap children who would like to go hunting, but really don’t have anywhere accessible for them. Then each year, Josh’s Hope Foundation selects two handicap children from anywhere in the U.S. to come hunt for the weekend.

Our two handicap hunters this year were Hunter Edmonds of Nixon, MO, and Brandon Albright of Tuscoloosa, AL.

Hunter is eight years old and has cerebral palsy. He attended the hunts with his father, Larry Hunter fired numerous shots and had a great time, but unfortunately did not kill a deer.

Brandon is seventeern years old and was in a car accident 10 years ago which left him severly handicapped. Brandon attended the hunt with his stepfather, Dewayne. Brandon had a great time and took home a big nine point buck.

The hunters arrived Thursday night, November 27, and lodged at David Davis’ cabin.

Each morning Davis cooked breakfast before their morning hunt began.

Friday’s lunch was provided by Cowboy Jim’s. After the evening hunt, hamburgers & hot dogs donated by Emmitt Smith’s Market were prepared.

Saturday morning after breakfast the hunters were off to another hunt. Lunch was served at the cabin. Saturday night Harold Stringer brought his cooker, and a nice meal was prepared.

Brandon and his stepfather left after the cookout, but Hunter and his father stayed.

Sunday morning Davis cooked breakfast for the last time.

After the morning hunt, Hunter and his father left for home.

We would like to take this opportunity to let everyone involved know how much we appreciate their help. This hunt would not have been possible without the help of our family, friends, and sponsors.

We would like to thank the following sponsors: Cowboy Jim’s, Decorative Flooring of Byrum, Emmitt Smith’s Market, Garraway’s, Hub City Farm Supply of Hattiesburg, K H & C Sandblasting, Quality Welding of Columbia, SCCI, Southern Pine Elec. Co., and Waldo’s of Columbia.

Larry Edmonds and son, Hunter from nixar, MO, and Dewayne Albright and stepson, Brandon from Tuscaloosa, AL, were chosen by Buckmaster’s/Josh’s Hope Foundation to participate in an annual handicap deer hunt in the Prentiss area, spearheaded by April & Heath Williams.

We would also like to thank the following friends & families for their help: A.W. Brinson, David & Linda Davis, David Davis Jr., Timmy McPhail & family, Marcus Mixon, Howard Parish & family, Jimmy Polk, Harold Stringer, G.W. & Gloria Tisdale.

Anyone interested in next year’s hunt, contact Heath Williams or David Davis at 792-9304 for more information.

Tim's Bull Elk Hunt

Tim has hunted with his dad before but never taken a big game animal. His dream was to hunt something big. Josh's Hope Foundation set up a hunt through Deer Tracks Ranch in Fife Lake Michigan. Tim's hunt would be for a 5x5 Elk.

For 2 1/2 days, Tim, his dad, Guide Charlie and Josh's Hope Founder Jeff Olson hunted hard, trying to catch up to this very elusive Elk. When the hunt appeared to be ending without a shot at the 5x5, Charlie suggested trying something different in a new location. Several Elk were spotted but getting close for a shot in the thick vegetation was difficult. So the wait was on. The crew set up along the edge of a field to see if the Elk would come to them.

After a wait that seemed like an eternity, three Bull Elk step into the field. Tim's shot was true and he dropped an impressive 5x6 Bull Elk.

Jeff Olson said of Tim, " He is a very well mannered young man with a great sense of humor. He wasn't going to give up until he had his chance. The guides called him "one shot Tim".

Kayla's Trophy Indiana Hunt

Kayla is an 11 year-old young lady from Illinois. She has suffered for many years from Juvenile Dermatomyosis. Chemotherapy was used in an attempt to arrest the disease. According to Kayla’s Mother the Chemo and other drugs caused Kayla to suffer from Arthritis and Osteoporosis. The biggest concern with the hunt was the possibility the gun recoil could break her brittle bones. A special shoulder pad was provided to try and avoid this from happening.

On the first day of the hunt a 9-point buck walked into the area. Kayla’s guide asked if she wanted that one. It didn’t take long for Kayla to respond, “yes”. After the shot the search did not go far and Kayla had her deer. One of Kayla’s goals was to take a deer bigger than her father has taken. We think she accomplished that goal with a buck scoring 127 points.

Nick & Jason's Mississippi Deer Hunt

Dear Jeff,

I want to thank you and all involved with Josh’s Hope Foundation. It is truly a blessing that there are such caring people in this world that give of them in order that someone in need can be happy.

I want to start by telling you about the boys. Jason is my nephew and Nick is his friend. In 1992 Jason lived with his mother, stepfather and sister in Brandon, MS. At this time he was 10 years old and his life was about to change. In November of that year a tornado hit his home and destroyed everything. His mother (my Sister) died and Jason lost his right arm along with severe head trauma that lead to partial blindness in his right eye. Jason was adopted by his maternal grandparents and grew to be a fine teenager.

Four years ago Jason told me, “Uncle Billy, I want to go hunting with you”. I had no idea started but several good people showed me the way. We started with a compound bow, that’s right, a compound bow. With a little work and muscle conditioning Jason is able to draw a 60 lb. Bow with a mouth tab and he is pretty good archer. Next we moved to a rifle and he has accomplished that as well. Over the years Jason has taken nine deer, two rams and three pheasants. He has learned that he can do anything he puts his mind to.

Nick and Jason met in school while attending classes for special needs kids. Nick has been very sick growing up through childhood. Nick had a hard time comprehending how to shoot a bow and rifle. With a lot of dedication on Nicks part and his father it all came together. Nick has never taken an animal and was dreaming of his first trophy.

Heath Williams and Howard Parish, two very caring people, hosted the hunt that you arranged in Prentiss, MS. They donated their time and land for this hunt. David Davis Sr. donated the use of his cabin and prepared all of the meals. The cooking and accommodations were excellent.

I hunted with Jason and Nick hunted with his father. The two groups were about 300 yards apart in the woods. It wasn’t long before we heard Nick’s rifle sound off, several minutes later we heard him shoot again. Back at the camp we heard the rest of the story.

As Nick and his father waited a huge eight point buck walked into sight at 40

yards. To say the least Nick was excited and managed to get off a shot. The problem was that he couldn’t tell us were he was aiming. It brought back memories of when I was that age and took my first shot. The 8 point ran off and Nick was explaining to his Dad what he had done wrong when a 6 point buck walked in out at the same spot. Nick fired again but again things went wrong. All of the hunters present told Nick that with time a patience he would get his first deer.

Jason on the other hand hunted the whole weekend and never got a shot off. He has hunted with me several times and knows that sometimes it happens that way.

We left that weekend without a deer but gained new friends, which is the best part of the hunt. Taking a deer is just a bonus to a good hunt. Since this hunt Nick has scored his first deer, a 100 lb. Doe. Jason has taken two deer.

With our warmest wishes we thank you and all of the people that take part in Josh’s Hope Foundation.

Your Friend,

Uncle Billy Baldree

Josh's Hope Foundation is a not for profit 501 (c) 3 organization and does not discriminate against any type of disability, race, gender or religion.