« Past HUSC presidents: What are they doing now? | Main | No fear for these “angels” treading with ecofeminist Ray »
March 15, 2005
Gun safety the focus of new org
“We were all just sitting around, shooting the breeze one day,” said org member Bryan Brocksome. “We are all just interested in it, I guess.”
That is a common beginning for student organizations here at Hamline. A group of people are interested in the same pastime, so they form an organization where they can share their interests with others and educate the Hamline community.
What wasn’t as common was the idea for this organization, known as HUGS, which stands for Hamline University Gun Society
“There have got to be others like us,” said president Colin Schulte. “Why not all go out [to a shooting range] together?”
HUGS offers the opportunity for Hamline students to learn about the proper use and safety rules
concerning firearms. All members currently have their safety certifications and have experience both with hunting and on a shooting range.
They plan to bring speakers onto campus to talk about gun use, legislation, and safety issues. HUGS also plans to offer safety certification classes to those who are interested. Such certifications require 12 hours of class time and a final test that does include firing a gun. However, the final test will be conducted off-campus, since Hamline officially bans guns on the premises.
HUGS wants to make sure that students who are interested in using firearms know the rules and laws before hunting season. The organization is very focused on gun safety. They also want to reeducate people.
“We want to remove the negative stigma that guns have. It’s like any other sport,” Brocksome said.
The executive board does recognize the liability issues. President Schulte is meeting with Associate Dean of Students Alan Sickbert and Kelly Krebs, director of student activities, in the near future to discuss these concerns. Also, they will not be storing guns on Hamline’s campus.
The org has gotten both positive and negative attention. They already have nearly 40 students interested in participating. Negative feelings about the org were displayed at the March 8 HUSC meeting, however, which was the scene of debate about the HUGS charter.
HUGS hopes to reach out to the community.
“It’s a group of people who are kind of alienated on this campus,” Schulte said. “[HUGS is] giving them a venue to enjoy a hobby of theirs.”
If you would like more information on HUGS, please contact president Colin Schulte at cschulte01@hamline.edu.
Posted by msveum at March 15, 2005 01:38 PM
Comments
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)