L HOOK STIL ED O UR RS FIRST 50 YEA Joe G. Dillard Amanda Rosenberger Emily Tracy-Smith L HOOK STIL ED O UR RS FIRST 50 YEA Joe G. Dillard Amanda Rosenberger Emily Tracy-Smith Copyright © 2018 by Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society ISBN 978-1-61600-518-4 Design by Cassidy Shearrer Printed in the United States of America A NOTE FROM JOE You may wonder what ever possessed me to undertake compiling this history of the Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries So- ciety (MOAFS). A few reasons that come to mind include: having really good records to work with, a sense of duty, attending all of the meetings except two, lack of good judgment, and too much time on my hands. Did I mention having a mini-stroke?! Be that as it may be, I am glad that I undertook the challenge. But, as usually happens in my major undertakings, I somehow get other folks involved. Some say that I dump on them; nay, I say that I share growth opportunities with them. You stick your nose under the tent and you are in! MOAFS and this project were truly blessed when Amanda Rosenberger and Emily Tracy-Smith offered to help. You will have to ask them the reasons that they did, other than out of pity for me, wanting to see a finished project, and bribes of chocolate. You should know that you would not be reading this had it not been for the other two authors. They bailed me out on this project when it was totally stalled. For that I am forever grateful. And, you should be, too. Along the way, Gary Novinger and Lee C. Redmond made many helpful suggestions. Since I had the records and Amanda and Emily didn’t, guess who is to blame for errors. The good news is that eventually all of the MOAFS records will be archived at the Center for Missouri Studies in Columbia, Missouri which houses the records of the State of Missouri Historical Society. You or anyone else can dig through them and set the record straight. Thank you in advance. Now, for the future. I am hoping that you will seriously con- sider volunteering for the History Committee, encourage saving MOAFS records and either in 2039 or 2064 compiling the 75th and/or 100th version of this tome. May we not become un-hooked! History happens and must be reported. Joe G. Dillard MOAFS Historian Emeritus April 2018 5 John L. Funk’s letter to each of the 53 AFS members living in Missouri in 1964 informing them of the intent to form a Missouri Chapter. 6 CONTENTS A Note from Joe 5 Preface 9 Our Beginnings 13 Our Officers 14 Our Subunits 16 Our Milestones and Significant Accomplishments 17 Our Awards Given 40 Our Awards Received 50 Our Annual Meetings 54 Our Future 264 Appendices 268 1. Celebrating A Golden Anniversary: Still Hooked After 50 Years 268 2. A Tribute to John L. Funk, Founder 270 3. List of Attendees at the Organizational Meeting 271 4. List of Attendees at the 50th Meeting of MOAFS 272 5. Golden AFS Members 274 6. Past Presidents of AFS and NCD/AFS who were members of MOAFS 275 7. List of MOAFS Life Members and AFS Life Members from Missouri 275 8. Resolutions 276 9. Guiding Documents 285 10. History of the History Committee 288 Endnotes 289 7 John L. Funk’s handwritten notes about forming an AFS chapter in Missouri. 8 PREFACE We believe that history is important. Or, as E. Sydney Stephens, one of the founding fathers of the Missouri Department of Con- servation, said, “No organization, whether governmental or pub- lic-private, is worth a damn unless it develops a history, a philos- ophy, and guiding ethics.” We believe that the Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society, hereafter, MOAFS, is rich in all three. Our chapter is particularly blessed with a good collection of re- cords. We owe this in large part to former Chapter President Gary D. Novinger for establishing the position of Chapter Historian, whom he appointed to collect, compile, and maintain our histor- ical documents. Because of his foresight, we possess resources to draw from as many past officers and committee chairs saved their records and passed them on. Committee members have been few but busy, including Joe G. Dillard and Lisa (Dillard) Miles, Mark Zurbrick, Vince Travnichek, Craig Paukert and, more recently, Amanda Rosen- berger and Emily Tracy-Smith. This history of MOAFS is a straightforward account of the im- portant events marking its first 50 years. Those unfamiliar with MOAFS may find it a useful introduction to the organization, while long-term members may view it as a trip down memory lane. Written history is limited by the records available and what the compilers chose to include. We have made every effort to include the truly important events and omit the more mundane. Nevertheless, some readers may feel that some have been left out. For these and any other shortcomings of this history, we offer our apologies. Why is history important? Larry Nielsen, former President of the American Fisheries Society (AFS) in an essay published in Fisheries, listed four practical uses of history: it helps avoid the repetition of bad decisions and gives us a more accurate perspec- tive, supports strategic planning and allows for experimentation with the past. He ended his piece with a plea for all of us to record 9 our history so future generations can benefit in the ways listed above. This is what your History Committee is all about. Larry ended his essay with these observations from the Penguin Dictionary of Modern Humorous Quotations. “History, N. an account, mostly false, of events mostly unim- portant, which are brought about by rulers, mostly knaves, and soldiers, mostly fools.” —Ambrose Bierce (1911) “History is too serious to be left up to historians.” —Iian Macleod (1961) —Joe G. Dillard, Amanda Rosenberger and Emily Tracy-Smith 10 1963 John L. Funk’s letter of invitation to attend the first Missouri Fishery Conference that later became the Missouri Chapter of the American fisheries Society. 11 John L. Funk 12 OUR BEGINNINGS The first meeting of the soon-to-be Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society was held on February 23, 1963 when American Fisheries Society (AFS) member, and former President of the North Central Division of the American Fisheries Soci- ety (NCD/AFS), John L. Funk organized a Missouri Fisheries Conference. Funk, then in charge of Fisheries Research for the Missouri Department of Conservation, said, “It was time to get the aquatic workers of Missouri organized to: promote commu- nication, increase professionalism, share our fisheries information with others, and to better serve local AFS members.” Funk served as General Chairman of that first conference. The Missouri Chap- ter had not yet been officially formed, and there were only 37 AFS members in the state. MOAFS was officially chartered March 10, 1964, a scant few days after a unanimous vote on the proposal to form a Missouri Chapter of AFS at the second Missouri Fishery Conference held on February 29, 1964. Funk was elected to the office of President and served in that capacity through 1965. By 1964, Missouri had 53 AFS members. The Chapter has a long history of involvement in AFS affairs. Four AFS presidents came up through the ranks of our Chapter, as well as eleven presidents of the NCD/AFS. The Chapter has had a lot of experience in meeting manage- ment. We host the Missouri Natural Resources Conference (A combined meeting of the Missouri Chapters of the American Fisheries Society, The Wildlife Society, The Missouri Show-Me Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society and the Missouri Chapter of the Society of American Forest which of- ten is attended by 700-800 participants) every four years, the Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference (every 10 years), and the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (every 10 years). In addition, we hosted the AFS meeting in 2000. Much of the support work for these conferences come from AFS Chapter members. 13 MOAFS is now a highly organized NGO with several active committees, several Executive Committee meetings per year, an an- nual work plan, and a host of activities to advance the science and professional aspects of the aquatic resources in the state of Missouri. OUR OFFICERS (1963-2014) Year President1 President-Elect3 Secretary2 Treasurer2 1963 John L. Funk3 Initial Meeting 1963-64 John L. Funk3 Organizational Meeting 1964-65 John L. Funk James W. Kahrs Willis D. Hanson 1965-66 James W. Kahrs Richard O. Anderson Willis D. Hanson 1966-67 Richard O. Anderson Charles A. Purkett, Jr. Willis D. Hanson 1967-68 Charles A. Purkett, Jr. Robert S. Campbell Willis D. Hanson 1968-69 Robert S. Campbell George G. Fleener Joe G. Dillard 1969-70 George G. Fleener Paul E. Osborn Joe G. Dillard 1970-71 Paul E. Osborn Arthur Witt, Jr. Arvil D. Ming 1971-72 Arthur Witt, Jr. Willis D. Hanson Arvil D. Ming 1972-73 Willis D. Hanson Richard A. Schoettger Blake F. Grant 1973-74 Richard A. Schoettger Dean A. Rosebery Blake F. Grant 1974-75 Dean A. Rosebery Joe G. Dillard Lee C. Redmond 1975-76 Joe G. Dillard Foster L. Mayer4 Lee C. Redmond 1976-77 Foster L. Mayer Donald A. Kangas Stanley M. Michaelson 1977-78 Donald A. Kangas James B. Reynolds Stanley M. Michaelson 1978-79 James B. Reynolds5 Stanley M. Michaelson Gary D. Novinger 1979-80 Stanley M. Michaelson John R.