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James Coody, Board Secretary/Treasurer, (Con't)
treasurer "at" texashawking.org
I volunteered to help Pierre in his rehab and education programs with his On The Wing Again group. I learned a lot about the different birds of prey in our area.
In 2002, my daughter talked me into attending a THA picnic where I met many notable falconers in our group; many of them are currently the directors and other officers of THA. They impressed me with their dedication to falconry. I immediately became an associate member and two years later became a regular member with my first bird on the fist, a female Redtail named Mickie. Mickie and I had many an adventure and quite a few misadventures until Pierre finally cut the sponsorship strings and let me advance to General Class. I am currently flying a twice-intermewed tiercel redtail named Merit.
I grew up in Vicksburg, Mississippi with two authoritative but just parents, two brothers and two sisters. All of us grew up hunting and fishing and learned hunting ethics from my dad. I was lucky that my sponsor had the same ethical approach to hunting and the sponsor/apprentice relationship blended in trust and friendship.
I am a graduate of Texas A&M in Commerce with degrees in Math and Computer Science. Professionally, I am a System Engineer for a Department of Defense Contractor with 30 years at the same company. Personally, I am a Christian Sportsman. I tease Marie, my wife of 34 years, about hunting and fishing being my first loves on this earth. She knows that she is and always will be the first to the last. God, country, family, and friends, are my priorities and I have never had to choose between them. I consider loyalty to be one of my better attributes, complimented and supported by ethics. I have never claimed to be infallible but resent criticism from those that don’t participate.
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