Skaife Receives National Award for R3 Efforts
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Wisconsin’s Coleen Skaife received the National Wild Turkey Federation’s Annie Oakley Award, the highest honor given to a Women in the Outdoors volunteer, during the NWTF’s 50th annual Convention and Sport Show, sponsored by Mossy Oak. Annie Oakley, known for her shooting skills, also influenced generations of women to try something new.
“I am thrilled to be receiving this award,” said Skaife. “I never thought about the things that I did for the NWTF. It was something that I enjoyed doing along with my husband Mike. This recognition reflects the dedication and passion of the entire team around me, as well as the mentors who have guided and supported me along the way.”
Skaife, NWTF Wisconsin State WITO co-founder and treasurer, NWTF Wisconsin State Board member, and local chapter member of the Bluff Country Long Spurs chapter is always working to get more women involved with the NWTF’s mission. She has been involved with the NWTF since 1986 when she and her late husband Mike helped start their local chapter in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin WITO event has won numerous NWTF national and state awards and has been inducted into the NWTF Outreach Hall of Fame. The event has introduced thousands of women to the outdoors, and Skaife played a major role.
She has been instrumental in spearheading and implementing learning topics, event agendas, convention booths and brochure development. She also volunteers as an instructor at state chapter events. Her efforts, passion and enthusiasm for getting new hunters into the field are the reasons Wisconsin has such a successful WITO program.
Skaife is a Heritage Life Sponsor and remains involved in other NWTF events, like her local chapter’s JAKES Day and Landowner Appreciation Day.
“We are proud to honor Coleen with the prestigious Annie Oakley Award,” NWTF co-CEO Kurt Dyroff said. “Just as Annie Oakley did, Coleen works to enrich the lives of many women, and she loves doing it. Her many decades of dedicated service to the NWTF’s mission speak volumes. Congrats Coleen!”
About the National Wild Turkey Federation
Since 1973, the National Wild Turkey Federation has invested over half a billion dollars into wildlife conservation and has positively impacted over 25 million acres of critical wildlife habitat. Since 2022, the NWTF has also invested over $2.3 million in critical wild turkey research that, when leveraged with partner contributions, has resulted in more than $22 million to guide the management of the wild turkey and to ensure sustainable populations. The organization continues to deliver its mission by working across boundaries on a landscape scale to deliver healthy forests and wildlife habitats, clean and abundant water, resilient communities and robust recreational opportunities. With the help of its dedicated members, partners and staff, the NWTF is committed to creating a nation united by the life-changing power of the outdoors.