WGH More Than Doubles Attendance at Ladies Mix & Mingle Event During SCI Convention

The second annual Women Go Hunting Mix & Mingle attracted 500 women to celebrate their roles and accomplishments in the hunting lifestyle at the 2024 SCI 52^nd Annual Hunting Convention. Held the last day of the convention on Feb. 3, attendance at this year’s Mix & Mingle grew by more than 200% over the inaugural event held at the 2023 SCI Convention. Several hundred women also came to the Women Go Hunting (WGH) booth to participate in a women’s only sweepstakes and take photos at the WGH step and repeat, demonstrating the growing interest and participation of women in hunting.

The Mix & Mingle is a ladies-only event hosted by SCI’s Women Go Hunting (WGH) initiative and is designed to give women with all levels of hunting experience an opportunity to network with other women hunters. Chaired by Denise Welker, winner of the SCI World Hunting Award Ring and Diana Award, SCI’s Women Go Hunting program brings together women who enjoy the hunting lifestyle and encourages them to participate in SCI’s initiatives in advocacy, education and conservation.

“When women understand the role of hunting in conservation, when they support the hunting lifestyle and participate in hunting, the whole family hunts,” says Welker. “That makes women a key part of the future of hunting.”

This year, former director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and current Secretary of the Louisiana Department Environmental Quality Aurelia Skipwith Giacometto addressed the group at the Mix & Mingle, urging them to advocate for the hunting lifestyle at every level of government. Participants of the WGH 100 Woman Challenge also gathered at the event for a group photo along with SCI Ambassadors Melissa Bachman, Kristy Titus and Anna van Nostrand. Also there, SCI Diana Award winners, SCI Foundation Sables and a variety of hunting professionals, including female professional hunters and outfitters, mingled with lady hunters and the hunting version of “soccer moms,” to recognize the important role that women exercise in maintaining the hunting lifestyle today.