| ~
Farewell to Jesse Stovall
On December 19, 2004 at the age of 94, Jesse Stovall
passed away. A heartfelt sorrow goes out to Joanne,
Ann, and the rest of the Stovall family. I have had
the honor of knowing this great man for the last ten
years. When the Buffalo Field Campaign came to town
in 1997, the Stovall family took us in. Joanne and Jesse
have been our surrogate Grandparents ever since.
Never worrying about what anyone thought, Jesse was
always there for us with advise and wisdom. He was strong,
bull-headed, and stuck to his opinions, unless Joanne
had to set him straight. His love for the wild and beauty
of Montana was steadfast, and was the backbone of all
his decisions. This love made him angry at the treatment
of his friends, the buffalo. Even with his history as
a Montana rancher he never bought the Montana Department
of Livestock's (DOL) lies and created Buffalo safe zones
of his and surrounding properties. The DOL, not wanting
to cross Jesse's path or earn his wrath, never did cross
these boundaries.
"The Buffalo are the fastest moving, slow animal
I've ever seen," said Jesse, and they are the only
animal that will face into a storm and feed in it, and
they've got the clothes to do it." Jesse made his
mark on the world and will never be forgotten. His life
was an inspiration to all who had the honor of meeting
him and his advise guides me on a daily basis. His family
is my family.
I look forward to joining you, my friend, in the happy
hunting grounds above.
With the Buffalo,
Michael S. Mease
-----------------------------------
* Update from the Field
As the Winter Solstice came and went, so did a few agents
from the Department of Livestock. We were ready for
full-fledged hazing or capture operations as two out-of-town
agents, along with the local DOL, arrived at Koelzer's
on Tuesday to rev up their snowmobiles, zip noisily
around our national forest land, and waste a lot of
our money; all in a sorry attempt to justify their budget,
existence, and self-importance. The agents went on a
few motorized joy rides to look for "wandering"
buffalo, found none, had a few hot meals on "US,"
then, after a few days of cowboy camaraderie, finally
left the area.
Peace on Earth has been the buffalo's enjoyment this
week. Bright blessings and many thanks to Scott for
leading us in beautiful ceremony, and to Marcia, George,
JoAnne, Ann, Karrie and Barb for being with us. To Jesse
who couldn't be with us in person, but donated the tobacco
that carried our prayers, and who the very next day
left this realm for the next - it is hard to say thank
you and good-bye, and you will forever be with us. And
though we know hard times will come, we continue our
strong prayers for the buffalo and their right to living
in peace on their ancestral lands. May our prayers manifest
in our actions, and our hopes and visions become the
reality.
Winter Greetings and Happy Holidays to everyone from
the Buffalo Field Campaign.
----------------------------------
* Action Alerts: Buffalo
Hunt & DOL Vaccination Program
Buffalo Hunt: Thanks to all who have put their name
in the drawing for a buffalo "hunt" permit,
all with the intention of not using it to kill a buffalo.
We greatly appreciate the support from buffalo advocates
everywhere who are contacting friends and relatives
and others to help the buffalo in this particular situation.
SPECIAL NOTE:
You do need to have a Montana conservation (hunting)
license to apply for a buffalo hunt permit, and these
- as well as buffalo permit applications - can be obtained
at https://app.discoveringmontana.com/elicensesales/.
We also have some great news: Patagonia has agreed to
pay the $75 fee for every buffalo kill permit secured
by a BFC supporter that isn't used. THANK YOU PATAGONIA
for always coming through for the buffalo! Applications
must be turned in to Fish, Widllife and Parks no later
than 5:00 pm MST on January 3, 2005. The drawing takes
place on January 7, 2005, and if your name is drawn,
you will receive a phone call from FWP. Stay in touch
with us! For FWP's information on the canned hunt visit
http://fwp.state.mt.us/news/article_3245.aspx.
To
learn more about why a buffalo hunt at this time is
a very bad idea, visit http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/legislative/bisonhuntingbill.html
DOL Vaccination Program: January 5,
2005 is the deadline for comments on the Department
of Livestock's malicious plan to vaccinate wild buffalo
with a livestock vaccine for brucellosis. Please take
the time during the holidays to write your own comments,
urging the DOL to choose the "no action" alternative.
Background info, talking points, and contact information
to help build your comments can all be found on our
web site at http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/science/vacdolcomments.html.
For more information contact Josh at bfc-advocate@wildrockies.org.
----------------------------------
* Last Words
"They're the only wild animal that's not afraid
of you. They're not afraid of anything and they've got
no reason to be. They're big enough to take care of
themselves and they do."
--Jesse Stovall
Top
of Page
|
