“Currently, Arizona gets overlooked as a hunting destination but there are so many opportunities to have an incredible experience on our public lands.”

Things like the Land and Water Conservation Fund or, even more directly, the state level Heritage Fund matter on a personal and professional level to Flint. When communities are investing in their trails, infrastructure, and natural public spaces, he has seen how that makes them stronger and more resilient. Those investments are also going directly into small, local businesses like his, which helps keep the funds local.

“If you want someone to care about something, there has to be empathy there. As business owners, we need to share our interests with our communities and show them why our public lands and wildlife, even the snakes that get so much bad PR, are so important to Arizona.”

“It’s a no brainer for us - as our economy recovers from COVID, increasing access to public lands is a huge way to bolster an important sector in the state. That will end up helping a lot of other small businesses, like ours.”

“We have inspiration on tap in our backyard – the Grand Canyon – one of the most beautiful sights in the whole world”

“I’ve never seen so many people out enjoying the outdoors as I have during the COVID epidemic. This gives us an opportunity to not only teach Arizonans the rules and ethics of the outdoors but also that we all have responsibility to advocate for protection of our public lands.”

“We feed birds not because they need us to feed them, but because we want to invite nature into our lives,” Eric added. “People find peace and hope in wildlife and the great outdoors, especially during this time of COVID-19.”

Ash Patel of Southwest Hospitality Management knows that our state’s public lands attract many of the tourists/visitors who stay in one of his several Flagstaff or Sedona Hotels. He is all about providing for a better outdoor recreation experience for these visitors and locals alike.

Dave and Lisa are excited to be new GOAZ members to increase their impact by adding their voices to those of other outdoor businesses to advocate for the industry and the public lands they rely on.