Hinkle, Fennell and Young inducted into Arkansas Outdoors Hall of Fame, Hunt receives Legacy Award

LITTLE ROCK  – The Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation today announced the 2018 Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame inductees and recipients of its Legacy Award.

Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame Inductees

Jim Hinkle, Mountain View – A former Arkansas Game and Fish commissioner, Hinkle served 14 years on the board of the National Wild Turkey Federation, ultimately serving as president of the national chapter of the organization. During that time, he worked for the expansion and improvement of habitat throughout the United States, Mexico, and Canada through various NWTF initiatives.

Ellen Moorhead Fennell, Little Rock – In various roles with Audubon Arkansas, including vice president and executive director, Fennell was an outspoken advocate for native bird species, flyways and nesting habitat throughout Arkansas. During her tenure with the organization, she was instrumental in securing funding for several state initiatives including environmental programs in the state’s schools, water quality education, energy policy and habitat restoration.

Randy Young, Dover – Young joined the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission as an entry-level water resource engineer in 1971; just four years later he was deputy director/chief engineer and was appointed executive director in 1985, a post he would hold under five governors over the next 31 years. Among his many accomplishments was working hand-in-hand with conservation groups to fight erosion, floodwater and sediment damage that threatened fragile ecosystems.

Legacy Award:

J.B. and Johnelle Hunt:  Legends of Arkansas’ business and philanthropic communities, J.B. and Johnelle Hunt built J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a five-truck operation into one of the largest transportation companies in the nation. The success of the company is rivaled only by the couple’s generosity, supporting innumerable worthwhile causes throughout Arkansas. Among the most recent examples, a $5 million pledge toward building the forthcoming Northwest Arkansas Nature and Education Center in Springdale, yet another legacy for future generations that bears the Hunt stamp.

“For more than 100 years, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has worked to conserve the state’s wildlife resources, thanks to the selfless contributions of people such as our 2018 slate of inductees and award winners,” said Deke Whitbeck, president of the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation. “We are delighted to be able to celebrate these success stories and the five outstanding Arkansans behind them.”

Honorees will be recognized during the 27th Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet, slated for Friday, August 24, 2018 at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock. Tickets for the event are $125 and tables of ten are available for $1,250 each. The night will include dinner, live and silent auctions, and induction ceremony. Reception and silent auction will begin at 6 p.m. and dinner will begin at 7 p.m.  

Proceeds from the event support the year-around work of the Foundation, which helps introduce hundreds to the joy of the outdoors every year. AGFF’s mission supports Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) initiatives, particularly those aimed at getting young people unplugged and engaged in Arkansas’s outdoors.  

Established in 1982, the Foundation is an independently operated 501c3 non-profit organization that serves as the fundraising adjunct to the AGFC. Its membership includes men and women who are passionate about promoting hunting, fishing and conservation education among the youth of Arkansas.

To purchase tickets to the event or for more information, contact the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation office at 501-223-6468 or email agff@agff.org.