Backcountry Veterans is a non-profit that uses the power of the outdoors to heal veterans and build camaraderie by taking vets out hunting, fishing and camping.
There were a lot of changes in the past year, but that mission remains the same as Backcountry Vets has grown tremendously this past year.
"Last year was insane, we took out 458 veterans and I spent over 120 days in the field with vets and their families," said Kevin McFarland of Backcountry Veterans. "What a year, it was it was amazing."
This non-profit used to be called Idaho Backcountry Veterans, but they have taken out vets from all over the country and even started a new chapter in central Oregon. They changed the name because they didn't want to exclude vets from coast to coast.
"We got a lot of feedback and a lot of folks felt like Idaho Backcountry Veterans was just narrowing it down to Idaho veterans," said McFarland. "We don’t want to do that, we want vets from all over the U.S. to participate in our events."
Backcountry Veterans will continue to have many of their events here in Idaho with three chapters spread across the state and a fourth planned for eastern Idaho. This group of vets that takes out other vets outdoors and they have come along way since 2017. We did our first story on them in October of 2018.
"You guys are the driving force behind that and this banquet is the driving force behind that," said McFarland. "We also couldn't have done it without the volunteers and sponsors, it is a blessing for sure."
This Saturday Backcountry Veterans will host the annual Sportsman's Banquet at Wahooz Family Fun Zone. The event runs from 5:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. McFarland told us tickets and sponsorships are still available and you don't need to be a veteran to attend.
This event that features dinner, an auction and a raffle marks the largest fundraiser of the year and it allows Backcountry Veterans to help vets build bonds with each other and the outdoors.
"I don’t know how to put it into words," said McFarland. "It’s so humbling and it is great to be able to give this to our veterans and their families."
For more information on Backcountry Veterans click here and for more information on the banquet click here.
