NSSA - National Skeet Shooting Association

The National Skeet Shooting Association is the world's largest organization dedicated to the sport of Skeet Shooting.

WSSA Loses Skeet Ambassador Hal Huskinson

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Hal Huskinson
The post that Hal is standing next to is covered with a few of his skeet shooting participant pins and awards.

On January 24 the NSSA and Washington Skeet Shooting Association (WSSA) lost Hal Huskinson, a great ambassador of our sport.

Hal was a member of the Seattle Skeet and Trap Club for over 50 years. When the club’s lease in Redmond, Washington, expired, Hal was one of the prime movers in the club’s relocation to Ravensdale, a challenging process that took over 10 years to accomplish.

He was one of the best promoters of skeet, responsible for many new shooters in the game. He was a member of the famous Eddie Bauer skeet team, shooting at clubs wherever an Eddie Bauer store was located. Hal was selfless in his support of skeet in Washington State. He shot at about every operating club in Washington.

Hal was a life member of Washington Skeet Shooting Association (WSSA) from its formation in 1967. He was the first WSSA state shoot HOA champion in 1969 and went on to win a total of eight state HOA and gun championships. Hal was on many WSSA first teams and All-Star Teams. In 1981 he was inducted into the WSSA Hall of Fame, and he is also in the Zone 7 Hall of Fame. Hal competed in several NSSA World Championships in Savannah, Rochester, and San Antonio. He participated in many international skeet tournaments. In addition to skeet, Hal enjoyed sporting clays and other shooting sports.

Hal’s history with a rifle began shooting field game with his dad, on into WWII, where he earned two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star.

He leaves behind his wife of 67 years, Dede, as well as his sons Brad (Virginia) and Bruce (Vivian), five grandchildren, nine great grandchildren, and many friends.

 

Contributed by Barbara Clark.

Get NSSA Lifetime Targets Validated

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NSSA’s Lifetime Target pins are very popular, but we’ve learned that some of you are unclear what is included in “lifetime targets,” as well as how to ensure all your targets have been included in your totals and are reported correctly online and in the records annual.

The types of targets to be included in your Lifetime Targets are:

  • NSSA registered targets
  • Event 6 targets (counted toward NSSA lifetime targets but not recorded on the classification card), e.g., Wayne Mayes Championship at the World Shoot.

All targets shot post-2002 are included within and validated by the NSSA shoot database. All targets shot prior to 2003 can be manually validated by NSSA staff through a physical search of our offline records and past NSSA Records Annuals. A $10.00 fee is charged for this service.

If you registered targets prior to 2003 and have not already done so, you can complete the Lifetime Targets Pins form to ensure all your targets have been validated. Our staff will research and validate your targets for inclusion in your Lifetime Targets number.

Click here for the Lifetime Targets Pins Form

 

Prolific Shooter Tom Lause Passes Away

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Tom LauseNSSA regrets to report that John Thomas (Tom) Lause, 74, passed away on November 9, 2016, after a short battle with lung cancer.

Tom started shooting skeet in 1978 and registered over 250,000 targets. He had many skeet victories but was most proud of shooting 100 as a Veteran in the .410 event at the 2015 World Skeet Championships. He earned a place on the NSSA and Florida All-American Teams for many years. He was a highly respected member of the skeet community — both on the field and in his years of service to skeet. He proudly represented Florida as an NSSA Director and the Florida Southern vice president. For many years he helped with the administration of multiple shoots and was an avid supporter of the Florida Youth Camp and new shooters.

Tom was a Navy veteran and worked as a paving contractor.

He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Carolyn, and many friends. Contributions in Tom’s memory can be made to Hope Hospice, 9470 HealthPark Circle, Fort Myers, FL 33908, 239-482-4673.

Long-time Member Howard Confer Passes

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Howard and Letitia ConferNSSA regrets to report the death of Howard Confer, one of the association’s longest-serving active members and the person most responsible for the high-quality targets thrown at the World Skeet Championships. He died peacefully at home on October 23, 2016, at the age of 97.

Howard was an ambassador for the game of skeet in his home state of Michigan and the nation. He was inducted into the NSSA Hall of Fame in 1975 as the Ray Boller Award recipient and as a shooter in 1979. He is also in the Michigan Skeet Hall of Fame. Howard attended the World Skeet Championships 54 times, shooting in 52 consecutive World Shoots and winning a world championship in 1954. He served as NSSA president 1976-1978.

Howard Confer’s estate encourages his friends to donate to NSSA’s general fund,
youth shooting initiatives, or NSSA Museum in his memory.

Click here to donate.

As a long-time member of the Detroit Gun Club, Howard was a member of the famed Michigan Wreckers 5-man team that dominated team events in the 1960s and holds a number of team world records. Until the past few months, he was still active in the game and was still coaching at the Detroit Gun Club, as well as remaining busy designing clay target traps and installing sporting clays courses across the U.S.

Although he served his club and NSSA tirelessly in many ways, his greatest contribution was his quest for perfection in the targets thrown at the World Skeet Championships and other events. Howard wanted every target thrown to be perfect, and it especially mattered to him that the World Shoot throw targets worthy of the status of the event. That meant no broken targets from the machine and every target flying the same. To reduce the number of broken targets, he started by having referees count them, then analyzed the reason for the breakage: was it the manufacturing process, the way they were shipped and handled, the way they were loaded into the machine, a problem with the machine, or something else?

“At first he would ride on the back of the truck, watch us unload the boxes, and make sure we were handling targets correctly,” said Barney Brown, a trap expert at the National Shooting Complex and protégé of Howard’s. “He developed an 18-point checklist for every machine. If there were too many broken targets, his common phrase was ‘pull it,’ meaning we had to pull the machine and determine what the problem was.

“Howard was absolutely committed to ensuring quality in each and every target, in each and every machine and event. He certainly helped me become better at serving the industry. He revolutionized quality control and checks and balances in targets. I’m a better man for even meeting him. At first he was a mentor, making sure I was learning and doing what I should, but he evolved into an honest friend and someone I looked up to,” Brown said.

“Howard was a fixture in NSSA for over 55 years,” said Louise Terry, an NSSA past president who served with Howard in many capacities over decades. “His life was dedicated to our sport and he gave willingly of his time to the association. Howard was the primary person who dedicated years of focus to target quality, especially at the World Shoot. Anyone who has attended the World Shoot can attribute the high-quality targets to his work. Nobody loved skeet more than Howard, and this is a great loss to our association.”

Howard is survived by his wife of 71 years, Letitia; children Daniel (Debbie) and Sheri (Steve) Confer; grandchildren Carrie and Cole (Maria) Confer and Hunter and Sara Dzierbicki; and great grandson, Xavier Confer.

Funeral Service will be at Lynch & Sons Funeral Home in Clawson, Michigan, on Monday, October 31 at 11 a.m. Obituary and condolences are at lynchfuneraldirectors.com. A memorial service will be held at Detroit Gun Club on December 23 at 1 p.m.

Howard Confer’s estate wishes to encourage people to give to the NSSA in memory of Howard. At their request, we have set up a donation form for that purpose. Those who wish to remember Howard and his love of skeet shooting can click here to make a tax deductible donation online.

If you prefer to mail a donation, you may send a check to NSSA with the following on the memo line, or provide a separate letter accompanying the check:

In memory of Howard Confer to support (a) the NSSA Skeet Program, (b) NSSA Youth Skeet Shooting or (c) NSSA HOF/Museum.

For your tax records, the Federal Tax ID number of NSSA is 75-0108632.

Click on any photo to enlarge.

Past President Bill Batty Passes Away

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Bill BattyNSSA staff and members are saddened by the unexpected death of past president William N. “Bill” Batty, Jr. on October 25.

Bill was a long-time member of Minute Man Sportsman’s Club in Massachusetts where he held numerous leadership positions. He was also active in NSSA governance over a 25-year period, culminating in his election as NSSA president in 2008. In 2013, he was inducted into the NSSA Hall of Fame as the Ray Boller Award recipient for service to the association.

He proudly served in the U.S. Marines, was a graduate of the University of Miami and Suffolk Law School, and practiced law for over 35 years in Boston and Billerica. While in law school, his charismatic personality enabled him to be a successful bartender at the Bull and Finch Pub, made famous by the TV show Cheers, and to meet his beloved wife, Jan. In addition to his support of skeet and trap, Bill was an avid participant in cowboy action shooting as a member of Harvard Ghost Riders.

Bill is survived by his wife Janice Batty and brother Boyden Batty. Services were held on Saturday, October 29 at Sweeney’s Funeral Home, followed by a celebration of life at Minute Man Sportsman’s Club.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Durand-Farley Fund, c/o Massachusetts Skeet Shooting Association, 19 Sagamore St., Braintree, MA 02184.

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