Rocky Wainright Waterfowl Officer of the Year

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Wildlife Resources Division (WRD) recently honored Corporal Craig Fulghum with the Rocky Wainwright Waterfowl Officer of the Year Award for his outstanding efforts regarding waterfowl conservation over the past year. Cpl. Fulghum is assigned to Lake Hartwell/Hart County in Northeast Georgia.

In the past four years, Cpl. Fulghum has cultivated relationships with several landowners in Hart County. One of these relationships is with Bob Cathey. Mr. Cathey is the owner of Skeeter Branch Duck Hunting Preserve in Hartwell. Cpl. Fulghum approached Mr. Cathey four years ago with the intent to seek assistance with a disabled youth hunt. This was the beginning of a great relationship that benefits all parties.

This year, Cpl. Fulghum coordinated a duck hunt with four children with life threatening illnesses. Two of the four children had brain cancer and were undergoing treatment prior to the hunt. Each child killed four ducks. Afterwards, they were served supper. Hopefully, this will continue to be an annual event that will improve each year.

Cpl. Fulghum continues to have a successful relationship with Hart County Probate Judge, Bob Smith. The fines for waterfowl violations in Hart County are among the highest in North Georgia and Cpl. Fulghum has had a 100% conviction rate on all cases made this year.

One incident occurred where Cpl. Fulghum met with the judge concerning a roost shoot case he had made. The judge agreed to restitution for the seven wood ducks that were killed illegally. The money would be used to build wood duck boxes in the area. Judge Smith thought that this was a great idea and intends to implement this plan on all flagrant waterfowl violations in Hart County.

During this past year, Cpl. Fulghum used the $800 restitution from the Hart County Probate Judge to start a wood duck box project with the high school FFA. The students built 18 wood duck boxes and were able to take a field trip with Cpl. Fulghum and place the boxes. The field trip included meeting landowners and learning about wood duck habitat. It was a success and now other landowners are requesting duck boxes from the FFA.

During this hunting season, Cpl. Fulghum did an outstanding job apprehending waterfowl violators in his area. Cpl. Fulghum had 36 violator contacts in an area that does not usually see a lot of waterfowl. He accomplished this by working peak hunting hours and having extensive knowledge of the swamps in the Lake Hartwell area. To increase that knowledge, Cpl. Fulghum scheduled a helicopter flight in Hart County to become better acquainted with the wetlands in his area. As a result, Cpl. Fulghum made five hunting waterfowl after hours cases and four hunting with lead shot.

Cpl. Fulghum also has a close working relationship with his work section. He is always willing to assist any ranger. This year, Cpl. Fulghum participated in four duck roost details throughout the work section. He is always a team player and does what he can to help. After recognized that the work section had only one bait drag, he decided to build four more for the entire work section.

Cpl. Fulghum displays all the characteristics that the Rocky Wainwright Award entails. He excels in waterfowl enforcement year after year in the region. He promotes waterfowl hunting in his area through youth hunts and community wood duck box projects. He educates the public and future Conservation Rangers. He continues to be a team player in his work section with his positive attitude and hard work ethic. These are just a few of the reasons that Cpl. Craig Fulghum was awarded the Rocky Wainwright Waterfowl Officer of the Year.

For more information on this or other awards contact the WRD Law Enforcement Headquarters at 770-918-6408.