The crack of shotguns firing in sequence echoed through the Redwood area Saturday as shooters lined up to try their luck at hitting a target on a board 80 feet away and winning a $10 prize.
Redwood Elementary School’s 40th annual turkey shoot sponsored by the school’s parent teacher organization drew shooters young and old to the school’s playground area to lock, load and fire in an attempt to put the most shot pellets in a small circle or get a pellet closest to the intersection of an “X.” The event was accompanied by the school’s fall festival, which offered some less noisy activities for youngsters.

“This is the school’s biggest fundraiser,” said turkey shoot organizer Quinn McClurg. “We average about $15,000 to $19,000 a year. Last year, we raised $15,000. This takes the place of selling cookie dough, fudge, and wrapping paper. The money is used to help the teachers buy supplies.”
A preliminary tally indicated this year’s turkey shoot raised about $15,000 with at least 100 shooters participating. Some taking multiple tries.
“That’s not bad for a day of fun,” McClurg said.
“I can’t say enough about our PTO,” Redwood principal LeAndrew Drake said. “The turkey shoot and the fall festival provide us enough money to get supplies and things we need. Anything the teachers need, the PTO works to get it for them.”
Entry fee for the turkey shoot was $2 per shot, which also entered the shooter in a drawing that allowed someone to win up to $500. Shotguns only were allowed for the shoot, and shells were available in .410, 12-, 16- and 20-guage.  Fifteen shooters at a time took their places along the firing line to shoot at a corresponding target 80 feet in front of them.
An orange mesh fence keeps spectators behind the shooters, and range safety was observed. Although each shooter fired their shot at their own speed, no one went down range to collect their target until the range marshal gave the OK.
“Our goal is to have a safe shoot,” McClurg said. “We have sheriff’s deputies here, the (Northeast Volunteer) fire department and first responders here. After the shooters have fired at their targets, they change their own targets.
“We use two targets — one with a circle and one with a ‘X,’ and we alternate them,” he said. “With the circle target, the one that has the most pellets in the center of the circle wins. With the X target, the pellet closest to the center of the X wins.
The collected targets were taken to a nearby tent, where they were inspected to determine the winner, who received $10 instead of a turkey.
“When this first started, they gave away frozen turkeys, but in the past few years, that hasn’t been practical,” McClurg said.
The shooters participating in the first round endured a combination of temperatures in the low 40s and 15 mph winds that made for a 35-degree wind chill as they sighted their targets.
One of those early shooters was 8-year-old Redwood student Dalton Roy, who was alternating shots with his grandfather, Dwayne Roy, as his father Josh looked on.
“I’ve been shooting (at the turkey shoot) for two years,” said Dalton, who added he enjoys deer hunting.
“I got my first deer this year (at the close of the season in January),” he said. “It was an 8-point, and I’m 8 years old.”
Another youngster was Alana Hearn, 11, a sixth-grader at Redwood, the daughter of Scott and Melissa Hearn. This was also her second time at the turkey shoot, although she said she’s been hunting for five years.
“It’s fun,” she said, adding she’s shot 10 deer since she’s been hunting, although she has yet to bag one this season. “I’ve been shooting squirrels,” she said.
While the shooters were trying to hit the targets, others were at the school’s courtyard trying their skills at ring toss, the fish pond, football throw or trying to win a cake at the cake walk.
At least two candidates visited the activities with Circuit Clerk Greg Peltz visiting people at the fair, and Circuit Judge Jim Chaney standing in line with a double-barrel shotgun waiting to try his luck at the turkey shoot.
“I wanted to come to this just to see some people I haven’t seen in a good while,” Peltz said. “I wanted to visit with them and hope they will consider me.”
“I’m campaigning and shooting and seeing some good folks,” Chaney said, “this (the turkey shoot) is just good clean fun and the money goes to a good cause.”
Neither Chaney nor Peltz carried the customary “push cards” that usually accompany candidates when they visit events.
“I’m hopeful most of these folks know me,” Chaney said.