MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is rolling out a new program this fall to show appreciation for hunters across the state.
The DNR’s “Hunter Appreciation: Deer Drop-In Mondays” will take place on four Mondays during the season, offering hunters a chance to stop in, meet with staff, and pick up free items like patches, stickers, hand warmers and field-dressing gloves.
“It’s just an opportunity for folks to come in if they have some deer age jaws they would like us to look at to guarantee that there would be a wildlife staff here to greet them,” said Brian Roel, a wildlife biologist with the Michigan DNR. “We also have a little bit of some gutting gloves and some hot hands and some patches and stickers and that kind of stuff if anybody was coming in.”
Roel said staff can also help hunters who want to have their deer tested for chronic wasting disease, including showing them how to remove lymph nodes or pulling the samples for them. Testing is available statewide, though certain counties remain priority areas.
The initiative is part of the DNR’s effort to recognize hunters as a key part of Michigan’s outdoor community. “They’re really designed to say thank you to the hunters, because really that’s our constituent group,” Roel said. “Most of our money comes back through license sales, and then there are federal funds, the Pittman Robertson dollars, and those are based on the number of licenses sold by the state. So it really funds our wildlife department and it’s our way of just giving everybody a little bit of a thank you.”
While this is the first year the DNR has scheduled specific drop-in days, Roel said they hope to continue if hunters respond well. The events run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at locations across Michigan, including the DNR customer service center in Marquette.
Upcoming dates are Nov. 3, Nov. 17 and Dec. 1. Hunters are welcome to bring harvested deer or jaws for aging, but Roel emphasized it isn’t required to participate.
