Pennsylvania Game News - October 2023 - 24

but often hushed crowds.
Saturday's drawing, for example,
was held at 3 p.m. in KECA's outdoor
classroom. It was already full 90 minutes
beforehand, though.
Other people - braving rain that
lasted nearly until the drawing started
- stood or sat in chairs of their own all
around the building.
It was a rapt audience. The Expo was
never quieter than when Banfield started
announcing names.
There were a few moments of laughter,
though. Banfield warned ahead of
time they were likely coming.
" I will do the very best I can with
names, " he said. " But I'm going to
screw them up. It even happens with
towns. The elk range is north of Interstate
80. I don't go below Interstate 80.
So if there's a town down there, I'm
probably going to butcher that name,
too.
" But I'm going to do the best I can. "
Sure enough, his reading of the very
first name brought laughter.
" I swear, that's what it says, " Banfield
said, chuckling himself.
The Expo continued for several
hours after Saturday's drawing, and
many of the same people who hung
around then returned Sunday for more
fun and the KECA drawing.
That's how things were always
meant to be. Now, it's how things are.
And, if all goes according to plan, it's
how things will always be, at a minimum.
Cogan
said that if anything, there's
room to add a few vendors and grow the
Expo still more.
" I think it will continue to evolve, "
Cogan said. " It will continue to get
better. "
24
KECA'S FUTURE
The Keystone Elk Country Alliance is
changing inside and out.
Rawley Cogan, KECA's President and
CEO since its founding, is retiring in July
2024. He's already relinquished the title
of president. Jon D. " JD " Walker, a former
Game Warden, assumed that role in July
and will manage KECA's day-to-day operations
while Cogan serves as an adviser over
the next year.
During his tenure, Cogan experienced a
revolution in how people perceive elk.
Today, tourism officials estimate that elk
viewing, wildlife watching and outdoor recreation
generate about $250 million annually
in the five-county region that is the elk range.
Looking ahead, KECA hopes that interest
will help further the group's conservation
mission. With development of the Elk Country
Visitor Center site about done, Cogan
said KECA is looking to tackle more habitat
projects, using in-house staff and equipment,
as well as contractors. That work won't necessarily
occur close to the visitor center and
the Winslow Hill area of Elk County, though.
" It's already the best elk habitat in the
whole state, " Cogan said. " It doesn't make
sense to continue to dump money on top
of the best. We want to go east and south,
where the elk herd's expanding, and try and
enhance the public land base there. "
KECA may even venture into the permanent
land protection arena, Cogan said.
Another goal is to market elk country to what
might be considered nontypical visitors.
During Covid, 520,000 people - " some that
would normally not come here " - visited the
elk center, Cogan said.
" And once they got here, many said, this
is cool. I like this, " he added.
KECA wants to keep those new fans and
reach more like them by " cross marketing "
itself. It may, for example, use its new event
center to host concerts paired with wine
tastings, old car and craft shows, barbecue
cookoffs and the like. All are potential ways
to meet people where they are and then
teach them about conservation, wildlife and
hunting, Cogan said.
" Once they're here, maybe some of this
other stuff will rub off on them, " he said.
Pennsylvania Game News - October 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pennsylvania Game News - October 2023
