No mission for NASSA is more important than developing initiatives to entice more juniors to participate and excel in our Rifle Silhouette disciplines. In the upcoming months, the NASSA Implementation Team and our newly appointed NASSA Regional Directors will be putting more focus on the conceptualization, development and launch of specific NASSA Youth Programs.
For the record, we cannot think of a more worthwhile and rewarding experience than working alongside our Junior Rifle Silhouette Shooters. Through our combined efforts, these junior shooters can learn responsible firearms safety and important life skills such as goal setting, building a strong self-worth and leadership.
The NASSA Implementation Team is under no illusion as to the time and hard work it will take to attract and retain more junior shooters. We are simply not going to accept any pessimism in achieving our stated objectives. This will also require we recruit more adult volunteers to assist our NASSA Regional Directors in their respective regions.
We will periodically update our NASSA Members regarding NASAA Youth Program initiatives being piloted within select NASSA Regions. The NASSA Implementation Team will also benchmark gun clubs in Canada, Mexico and the USA that have some level of success in their junior programs. When more NASSA Regional Directors are in place, we will then be better positioned to synergistically leverage our pilot youth programs throughout North America.
If you wish to discuss NASSA Youth Programs in more detail and/or wish to volunteer, click on the CONTACT US link below:
NASSA Youth Advisory Committee
Within our NASSA Governance structure, the NASSA Implementation Team is piloting a NASSA Youth Advisory Committee to work alongside us and the NASSA Regional Directors. The NASSA Youth Advisory Committee will be made up of selected juniors and parents throughout our NASSA Regions to help define/develop initiatives within our NASSA Youth Programs.
We will periodically communicate progress for these initiatives through various NASSA Press Releases and this NASSA Youth Programs webpage.
NASSA Instagram
NASSA’s first NASSA Youth Programs initiative was the launch of NASSA Instagram in November of 2022. This multimedia platform, popular among our youth, now allows Junior Rifle Silhouette Shooters to network with each other throughout our NASSA Regions in Canada, Mexico and the USA. Now juniors can connect and stay in touch with friends they meet at championship matches such as the 2022 NRA Silhouette Nationals in Ridgway, PA.
Louisiana and South Texas are two states with significant Junior Rifle Silhouette participation. Juniors from both Louisiana and Texas travel back and forth to compete against each other all during their Silhouette match season. The NASSA Implementation Team met with many of these same juniors (and parents) at the Texas State SB Silhouette Championships in November 2022 to discuss the launch of the new NASSA Instagram platform.
As a result of this meeting, the NASSA Implementation Team is now working with these same juniors (and parents) to define their role in the administration of NASSA Instagram. Once this role and process is further defined, we will grow and share the administration of NASSA Instagram with select juniors across all NASSA Regions.
To connect with NASSA Instagram, click on the link below:
Outreach to Kindred Youth Shooting Programs
Throughout North America, there are excellent junior shooting programs we can potentially collaborate with to develop our own NASSA Youth Programs. Examples of these kindred organizations within the USA are USA Shooting, 4-H Shooting Sports, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), High School Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) Shooting Programs, State Rifle Association Junior Programs and Friends of the NRA. Your NASSA Implementation Team will also be reaching out to our Mexican and Canadian NASSA Membership to learn about their various junior shooting programs as well.
One such collaborative example is the Louisiana Rifle Silhouette Team working in conjunction with 4-H Shooting Sports in South Louisiana. Louisiana 4-H juniors have recently won the 4-H National Championships numerous times as Rifle Silhouette is a major part of the aggregate for this championship match. These Louisiana 4-H juniors tune themselves up all year at matches sponsored by the Louisiana Rifle Silhouette Team and under the match direction of Dustin Flint. They are also now synergistically involved in our NASSA Instagram initiative as a direct result of this 4-H Shooting Sports outreach effort.
Based on benchmarking this success with 4-H in Louisiana, a preliminary initiative was established for the USA South Central Region as follows:
- Increase the level of participation of our Junior Rifle Silhouette Shooters throughout the USA South Central Region. This shall be achieved through development and piloting of training/outreach programs for existing 4H Clubs in identified areas of greatest potential.
As a result of establishing this initiative above, the USA South Central Regional Director will be reaching out to the Senior Administration of 4-H Shooting Sports in Texas to see if we can replicate the successful results in Louisiana. Two area of opportunity are:
- Youth Silhouette Match Introduction – For any youth group, such as a 4-H Shooting Program, an introduction program to participate in a local NASSA Club Silhouette Match.
- Youth Silhouette Club Organiztion – For Gun Clubs and 4-H Shooting Programs wanting to organize a Youth Silhouette Program, assistance from NASSA in setting the program up.
The NASSA Implementation Team also discussed potential NASSA Youth Programs with key Mexican Silhouette shooters at the 2022 Lapua Monarch Cup in Saltillo. There is a common sense of urgency within Mexico and the USA on the importance of growing junior participation in Rifle Silhouette. We will build on this common issue in the months ahead.
We would love to hear about your own successful collaboration with kindred junior shooting organizations. Click on the CONTACT US LINK below:
NASSA Junior Silhouette Seminars/Coaching
The NASSA Implementation Team believes a key success component of our NASSA Youth Programs is the ability to conduct seminars and provide coaching for juniors such as:
- Youth Training Seminars/Schools – Seminars/schools conducted by some of NASSA’s best Rifle Silhouette shooters to introduce and get juniors started in our sport.
- Youth Individualized Coaching – For those serious about Rifle Silhouette, a more structured individualized coaching/mentoring training program to compete on a state/regional/national level.
The ability to offer seminars/coaching brings something of value to the table for juniors, the parents of juniors as well as the kindred youth shooting organizations we wish to collaborate with.
Once again, the NASSA Implementation Team cites the Louisiana Rifle Silhouette Team in their efforts to conduct Rifle Silhouette seminars with the 4-H Shooting Sports Organizations in South Louisiana. The Louisiana 4-H juniors are determined to keep their 4-H National Championships streak going, so one particular 4-H Club in Shreveport, Louisiana is now requesting Dustin Flint and Jerry Tureau conduct a similar seminar.
To expand on the coaching initiatives for 4-H juniors in Louisiana, the USA South Central Regional Director will also be conducting a mental training workshop with some of the more experienced juniors from both Texas and Louisiana. All these juniors were given the book “With Winning in Mind” by Lanny Bassham to develop their own personal “Direct Affirmation” statements” to formulate winning attitudes. The results of their journey will be posted in The Mental Game blog category within the NASSA Lones W. Wigger Technical Library.
The point of citing these examples is that NASSA must develop the seminar and training material that greatly increases our ability to attract the juniors and the parents. If we can get the parents interested in shooting as well, it’s a win/win situation!
To achieve this, NASSA will develop a NASSA Silhouette Training Program that meets the needs of our junior shooters as well as the Rifle Silhouette shooting community. We will benchmark what has already been created through our Kindred Organizations such as USA Shooting, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), the NRA, International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) and other organizations.
Please use the link below to to learn more about the NASSA Silhouette Training Program