In June of 1967 a young man by the name of Paul Clarkson graduated from the University of Georgia at Athens and started his new job with Gainesville Park and Recreation Department.  Paul was charged with expanding the programs offered by Park and Rec., and with the help of newspaper writers like Neal Hunt and Bimbo Brewer, suggestions for additional services that could be provided by Park and Rec were requested.  One of the more popular requests was for a shooting club, and one of the early promoters of a shooting club was a Georgia State trooper, Roy Bennett.  The early gatherings were held in a  meeting room at the Gainesville Civic Center and Jon Cronic remembers Roy coming to his house to tell him about the meeting and they rode together to that meeting.  Roy later went on to become the first President of Cherokee Gun Club.

Jon Cronic stands at the table in the meeting room where Cherokee Gun Club was originally formed.

Well, I got a little behind in my work due to some health issues and wasn’t able to get my article in for the last 2 newsletters.  We are back up to speed and, hopefully, won’t have any further issues.