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From the September 2007 issue
Environmental Conservation Officers Receive Awards
ECO Kevin Mazur (right) with Shikar Safari's Bob Stackler
ECO Kevin Mazur
ECO Kevin Mazur was named Wildlife Conservation Officer of the Year by the Shikar-Safari Club International, acknowledging his important role in local, national and international wildlife conservation. Shikar-Safari Club International was founded in 1952 by an international group of hunters interested in exchanging ideas about the sport.
Officer Mazur began his career with the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Division of Law Enforcement in 1984. Currently, he is assigned to the Marine and Off Road Enforcement (MORE) Team, which is charged with recreational vehicle and boating enforcement in central New York.
In 1999, ECO Mazur received the National Wild Turkey Federation, New York State Chapter, Conservation Officer of the Year award. In 2000, he was awarded the Director's Commendation for his tireless efforts on behalf of DEC's goal of eliminating illegal snagging of salmon and promoting ethical sport-fishing techniques.
After joining the MORE team in 1999, Mazur soon became recognized as an expert in this area of enforcement and was chosen by DEC to become an instructor in navigation law, snowmobile law and ATV enforcement. In 2001, ECO Mazur attended the Federal Law Enforcement Training Academy Law Enforcement Boat Operators School in Glynco, Georgia and is now a division instructor for operators of large boats.
ECO Michael C. Terrell
ECOs Mike Terrell (left) and Mike Arp with an illegally taken bear
ECO Michael C. Terrell was named the 2006 New York Officer of the Year by the Northeast Conservation Law Enforcement Chiefs Association (NECLECA), whose membership encompasses 13 states.
ECO Terrell first worked for DEC as a seasonal fisheries technician, after which he was hired as a corrections officer by the Department of Correctional Services. In 1996, Officer Terrell fulfilled his goal of returning to DEC as an environmental conservation officer.
In 2000, Officer Terrell received the prestigious Drew Award recognizing excellence in law enforcement. He had participated in "Operation Boomerang," a federal and state investigation which documented more than 100,000 pounds of illegally taken striped bass from the Hudson River. The case resulted in multiple felony arrests, prison sentences and fines, and several of the companies involved were driven from the Fulton Fish Market.
In 2004, ECO Terrell was recognized by the National Wild Turkey Federation as "Wildlife Enforcement Officer of The Year," testifying to his commitment to both wildlife law enforcement, as well as his outstanding efforts in support of sportsman education and youth outreach. The following year, he received a Captains Commendation for the arrest of a subject who illegally shot a 570-pound black bear over bait and out of season.
ECO Thomas F. Flaitz
ECO Thomas F. Flaitz was named the 2006 Conservation Officer of the Year by the New York Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation. The National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) is a half-million-member grassroots, non-profit organization with members in all 50 states, Canada and 11 foreign countries. It supports scientific wildlife management on public, private and corporate lands and wild turkey hunting as a traditional North American sport.
Beginning in the 1990s, Officer Flaitz has been active in sportsman education and the promotion of youth hunting opportunities since he became an environmental conservation officer. Initially he worked with the Orleans and Genesee County Federation of Sportsmen, local sportsmen's clubs and individual hunters to introduce the JAKES (Juniors Acquiring Knowledge, Ethics and Sportsmanship) Program. This program provides hands-on training, field exercises and mentor hunters to young individuals with an interest in turkey hunting. Even after reassignment to Steuben County where he still participates in JAKES activities, ECO Flaitz has remained active in Orleans and Genesee counties.
In 1994, Officer Flaitz helped organize a three-day resident youth camp for bow hunters aged 12-17. Students received a traditional bow hunter education course in addition to classes in outdoor skills, conservation and natural resource topics and hands-on field exercises. Since the camp's inception, more than 200 young hunters with an interest in archery and bow hunting have attended the program. Using it as a template, other DEC regions now offer a similar experience.
ECO Flaitz also organized a youth turkey hunt at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge in 2001. Now, on the first weekend of each spring turkey season, the refuge is open to young hunters who are accompanied by mentor hunters. In addition, Officer Flaitz worked with the Orleans County Federation of Sportsmen and the Genesee Chapter of the NWTF to buy and donate calls and turkey-hunting equipment for kids. He also helped draft and edit regulations for a two-day youth turkey hunt that became a reality in 2004. It is now held each year prior to the opening of the regular turkey season.
