Officers present: Jim DePetro, Art Grover, Jake Farber
Officers excused: Rex Roberson, Kristin Huston, Doug Dreier 

Members present: Josh Homer, Andy Maupin, Preston Ellis, Mitch Williams, Brad Kavanagh, Bill Nelson, Erik Phillips, Mark Bennett, Jon Ryan, Mikayla Kavanagh, Eric Simpson, Joe Wharry

Visitors present: Ben Hillegas, Mike Hillegas, Jake Hillegas

Meeting Called to Order at: 7:00

Pledge of Allegiance

Minutes of last meeting: Read and approved

Treasurer’s report: $60,685.76 Total cash assets
March Income: $7,083.12, March Expenses: $399.37, March Net Income: $6,683.75 
YTD Income: $16,990.92, YTD Expenses: $6,202.16, YTD Net Income: $10,788.76

Membership report: 169 members
New member applications approved: Sean Weston, Andy Maupin, Jon Ryan, Joe Wharry

Trap report: 

  • Trap 3 needs to be rebuilt asap. Jake will follow up with CPW on when the funds will be released.

  • New clay targets will be here in early May. Erik will need help getting them loaded into the trailers. 

  • Join the 2025 Trap League! - The Trap League kicks off on April 30th and runs for 8 exciting weeks. The cost is $150 per shooter. To sign up, contact Preston Ellis at 719-221-1865.

    • New Format This Year!

      • Sign up as an individual—no need to form a team beforehand!

      • On April 30th, we’ll hold a random drawing to create teams.

      • The league includes 7 weeks of scored shooting, with your top 5 scores counting toward the final tally.

    • Opening Day – April 30th

      • The season starts with a bang! Join us for the team drawing followed by a fun, unscored shoot. Plus, the Chaffee County Young Guns will be firing up the grill—hamburgers, hotdogs, and brats will be available to enjoy while supporting our youth trap team’s fundraiser.

    • Scoring Begins May 7th

      • Official scored shoots start Wednesday, May 7th, and continue every Wednesday afternoon through June 18th. Mark your calendars and get ready for some friendly competition!

  • The topic of using hand throwers on the trap field was discussed. MEMBERS may use hand throwers on the trap field but must do so in a safe manner. If there is a club shoot or event, members using hand throwers may be asked to cease the use of a hand thrower if the member leading the club shoot or event feels there is a safety issue. All range rules still apply. 

Youth trap report: 

  • 4H is being incorporated. We have 40 students between 4H, USA Clay and SCTP

Rifle report: None

Rimfire report: 

  • The last shoot had 7 people in attendance. 2 people shot a perfect score of 50. Next shoot is 3/6/25 @ 8am.

  • New rimfire targets were purchased and are at the range and clubhouse.

Pistol report: None

Old Business:

  • Two shoots lined up for summer by Christian groups. Young Life April 26th and Waterstone Church April 4 – 6 – Waterstone Church has decided not to have an event

  • Jim DePetro – Would like to offer absentee voting option for board member election. We will need to amend the bylaws to allow this to happen. – First vote held at April meeting. Vote count was 5 for / 4 opposed. First vote passed. The second vote will happen at the May meeting. 

  • Jim DePetro – Would like to start sending a monthly newsletter and increase social media presence. This is in the works.

  • Jim DePetro / Eric – Adventure Camp, we have 4 slots reserved. Each slot cost $1300. All four slots have been filled. Giana DePetro, Ephraim Bunch, Evan Homer, Cooper Cox Congratulations to these young shooters. 

  • Jim DePetro – Should the club be advocating to members to join gun advocate groups? It was agreed that we would include information regarding gun law changes in the monthly newsletter and on the website blog. There will also be links to those organizations on the website under the resources tab. 

  • Sin tax on guns, gun parts and ammo that takes effect April 1st, 2025. The club is going to consult with an accountant on how to handle the purchase and sale of ammo and shot. 

  • Signal groups have been created. Instructions available here. https://www.buenavistasportsmansclub.org/signal 

New Business:

  • Donnie Smith, one of our deputies, is putting on a less-than-lethal force class in October. He was wondering if he could use our trap range to demo some less-than-lethal munitions for the class, like flash-bang and practice OC/tear gas grenades. No actual shooting of course. The classroom portion will be at the new Sheriff's facility on Gregg Dr, so our range would be very convenient. It would likely be on a Thursday during the day so it wouldn't interfere, and I would plan to be present as a club representative. This was approved. 

  • The unapproved roads to the north of the trap range are causing safety concerns for the club. People are driving and walking their dogs on the north side of the trap range during shooting events.  

    • Jake has talked to Kevin Burdges about staking out the boundaries.

    • He also talked to Cindy Swisher about talking to the City Council to expand the facilities. The AODD Midway Endowment fund can assist in facilities expansion. 

  • Lead Shot Reclamation Project – Recoil LLC has submitted a proposal to reclaim the lead that has built up in the trap fields. The proposal was discussed at the meeting and approved to move forward. 

  • Jake Farber is putting together a Range Safety Officer Program through the club. If anyone is interested in becoming an NRA RSO reach out to Jake. 

Meeting Adjourned: 8:10pm

Meeting notes taken by Erik Phillips and reported by Rex Roberson - Secretary

BVSC Board Meeting Minutes - April 2nd, 2025