Rogers, Arkansas February 11, 2012 – William O. Hamill of Searcy has been elected Arkansas State Chairman of Ducks Unlimited, the world’s largest wetlands and waterfowl conservation organization.
Hamill will guide the statewide efforts of over 19,000 members & volunteers in Arkansas raising funds for Ducks Unlimited’s wetlands and waterfowl conservation efforts in Arkansas and across North America.
A Ducks Unlimited volunteer for over 26 years, Hamill is a native of Bradford and has served in several volunteer positions over the years leading up to his two year term as state chairman. Hamill and wife Cyanne have one daughter, Courtney. In addition to serving as the top volunteer for Ducks Unlimited in Arkansas, he enjoys hunting, fishing, golf, and camping.
The majority of Ducks Unlimited's funds come from membership dinners and events. Arkansas Ducks Unlimited raised more than $1,100,000 last year for wetlands and waterfowl conservation. In return, DU and its partners have spent over $46 million to date in the state and conserved over 349,000 acres. Arkansas DU engineers and biologists have also provided technical assistance to Arkansas landowners, impacting over 1.2 million acres of habitat.
With more than a million supporters, Ducks Unlimited is the world’s largest, most effective wetland and waterfowl conservation organization and has conserved more than 12 million acres. The United States alone has lost more than half of its original wetlands - nature’s most productive ecosystem - and continues to lose more than 80,000 wetland acres important to waterfowl each year.
For more information about Ducks Unlimited in Arkansas, visit Ducks Unlimited on the Web at ar.ducks.org.