Wichita Clay Dusters Receive Range Development Grant from MidwayUSA Foundation

For the third year in a row, MidwayUSA Foundation has provided cash grants to help ranges across the country improve and allow for more youth shooting sports activities. This year, $900,000 has been awarded to 45 recipients. These grants allow shooting ranges to improve, providing every new generation that utilizes the facility with the best shooting experience possible!

The Wichita Clay Dusters applied for and received an $18,000 grant to help Michael Murphy & Sons build an additional trap/skeet combination field at their range. With only one trap range at Michael Murphy & Sons, there was limited facility to practice for the Wichita Clay Dusters, an SCTP team sponsored by Pass It On - Outdoor Mentors.

“We have as many as 20 young trap shooters on our team practice on any given evening and with only one trap field, we weren’t able to get as much practice time as we would like,” stated Mike Christensen, President of Pass It On - Outdoor Mentors and one of the coaches of the Wichita Clay Dusters shooting team. “We partnered with Marc Murphy and Michael Murphy & Sons to apply for this grant to build an additional trap/skeet field to accommodate our needs,”

Since 2021, MidwayUSA Foundation has awarded 122 grants, totaling $2,150,000, for range improvements. These funds have been dispersed throughout the entire United States. The Northeast region has received $631,681.84 and the Northwest region has received $571,597.61. In the south, ranges in the east region received $540,722.05 and the west region received $405,998.50 in range development funds. To be eligible for a Range Development Grant, the range must have a team practicing at their facility that has a MidwayUSA Endowment fund.

“We are excited to collaborate with Pass It On - Outdoor Mentors on this exciting opportunity from MidwayUSA Foundation. The addition of this trap/skeet field will benefit untold numbers of area youth for years to come,” commented Marc Murphy, owner of Michael Murphy & Sons.

CEO of Pass It On - Outdoor Mentors Brittany French said “one of the biggest barriers to getting involved in shooting sports is access. With great generosity, MidwayUSA Foundation has created a way to remove some of those barriers by awarding ranges like Michael Murphy & Sons grants to expand or improve their access. Because of that generosity, more athletes from the Wichita Clay Dusters and surrounding teams will be able to shoot at MMS this coming season!”

MidwayUSA Foundation’s Regional Program Manager for Kansas, Yim Szeto, spoke about the grant funds. “MidwayUSA Foundation recognizes the fundamental need of a shooting team is a place to shoot. We are excited to assist Wichita Clay Dusters in expanding their range to double the impact for their student shotgun athletes. I know, with the help of the Wichita community, we can continue to financially assist the Clay Dusters and provide continued opportunities for the youth shooting athletes in Wichita.”

The Wichita Clay Dusters is an SCTP shooting sports team open to any Wichita area youth. For more information about the team please visit our website at https://www.outdoormentors.org/wichita-clay-dusters-clay-target-team or our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/689983388823359.

Community members interested in supporting the local shotgun team can make tax-deductible contributions directly to the team through MidwayUSA Foundation’s website. Every dollar donated to the team will be matched by the Foundation and increases the annual cash grant the Wichita Clay Dusters relies on to cover critical expenses. Check out the team page here https://www.midwayusafoundation.org/team-profile/?id=R24446