SCI Bids Farewell to Country Music Legend and Hunting Supporter Charlie Daniels
Safari Club International (SCI) mourns the passing of country music icon and hunting supporter Charlie Daniels. Perhaps best known for his song “The Devil went Down to Georgia”, Daniels was an American patriot who enjoyed hunting, fishing, sport shooting and other outdoor activities. He demonstrated his support of SCI and sustainable use conservation this past February when he agreed to perform at the SCI Annual Convention with little notice, replacing another band that had buckled under public pressure from animal-rightists and anti-hunting groups seeking to disrupt SCI fundraising events for wildlife conservation.
“Charlie Daniels embodied many of the values we stand for at SCI as the leader in defending the freedom to hunt and in promoting wildlife conservation,” says W. Laird Hamberlin, Chief Executive Officer of SCI and Safari Club International Foundation (SCIF). “He loved the outdoor way of life and understood how hunting contributes to wildlife conservation. That belief shone brightest when he refused to be bullied by the ignorant and misinformed groups targeting our convention. We will miss him and his enthusiastic support.”
Daniels was a staunch advocate of American bedrock values, including the right to keep and bear arms and to hunt for sport and food. He produced public service announcements for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency’s Hunters for the Hungry program, encouraging Tennessee deer hunters to donate game meat for the hungry. An all-round humanitarian, he also gave his time and assistance to organizations for teen suicide prevention, a home for abused and neglected children, a school for the handicapped, cancer research and American veterans.
An inductee to the Grand Ole Opry and the Musicians Hall of Fame, and a recipient of the Academy of Country Music’s Pioneer Award, Charlie Daniels was 83 when he died of a hemorrhagic stroke on July 6, 2020 at the Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee.
Images from The Charlie Daniels Band’s performance at the 2020 SCI Convention. Photo credit: Rusted Rooster.
Source: Safari Club International (SCI)
