Ron Schaal named Ducks Unlimited Canada’s Saskatchewan Volunteer of the Year

 Ron Schaal, Ducks Unlimited Canada’s Saskatchewan Volunteer of the Year. © DUC

By Keagan Perrette

Ducks Unlimited Canada

Ron Schaal has been a pillar of the Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) community in southwestern Saskatchewan since he helped found the Maple Creek committee in 1983. Four decades later, Schaal is still organizing the committee’s annual fundraising banquets and sits on DUC’s Saskatchewan Provincial Council.

Schaal decided to start volunteering with DUC after a friend who was involved with the organization asked if he’d be interested in starting up a committee.

“I was always interested in Ducks Unlimited because I’ve hunted all my life. I had also been a member of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation since 1973,” he says.

“The main thing that pushed me to get involved with Ducks was the Crane Lake project they had worked on. When I went out to take a look at it, I thought that the work they had done to support the duck and goose population there was phenomenal,” said Schaal.

A lifelong connection to the land

Growing up on a farm and ranch in Eastend, Sask., Schaal and his family have always lived close to the land. Given his personal connection to farming, Schaal has been pleased to see how DUC’s close relationship with the agricultural sector in the province has benefited both farmers and wildlife.

“There are a lot of farms and ranches out here. I was really interested in the programs they offered for farmers because they are so helpful,” he said. One of Schaal’s favourite examples is the Forage program, which helps ranchers increase quality feed on their properties by providing financial support for seeding land to feed or pasture.

Forty years of fun and fundraising

Over the last 43 years, Schaal and the Maple Creek committee have hosted 40 sold-out annual banquets. They’ve only cancelled their event twice: once during a destructive flood in 2010 and a second time during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Along with Schaal and his wife, Lavada Arnold (who’s been volunteering with DUC for 30 years), there are several other couples who have been involved for decades — and even if they’re no longer active volunteers, they never miss a dinner.

Schaal attributes this long-term commitment to the fact that being involved with DUC is flat-out fun.

“I’ve never found putting the banquet together to be hard work,” he says. “We’ve always had a good committee with a good bunch of gentlemen and their wives. We’ve had no problem getting committee members and it’s so much fun to work with everyone. The dinner is just a big, fun party night every year.”

Memories that matter most

Some of Schaal’s fondest memories — and proudest moments — during his time with DUC include participating in annual provincial workshops and watching kids explore local wetlands through the former Green Wing program.

“We used to have two provincial workshops at Cypress Hills that I was involved with,” he remembers. “Those were a lot of fun because committees from all over the province came. We would have guest speakers, a banquet and an auction. Not only did we learn a lot about wetland conservation, but all the committees would put their heads together to come up with new ideas for events and improve what they were already doing.”

Passing the torch

Schaal is excited to see young people carrying on the DUC legacy he and his fellow committee members have established.

“One of my best friends who was on the committee with me for over 20 years passed away a few years ago. Now, his son — who we’ve watched grow up since he was a little boy — is chairman of the committee,” he said.

“Our 22-year-old grandson came to the banquet last year and brought four of his friends. One of them ended up joining the Provincial Council. He goes to college in Lethbridge, Alta. and helps out with their dinner. He’s working on getting one going where his family is here in Saskatchewan.”

The future looks bright for the Maple Creek committee and Schaal is shifting his focus onto revitalizing other committees in his area that have disbanded.

“We’re still getting new people involved and new people are coming out to the banquets. It’s alive and well here, but I want to get a few of these other committees that fell by the wayside during COVID running again,” he said. “My main goal is just to keep DUC going for the younger generation.”

There are approximately 531 Ducks Unlimited Canada volunteers in Saskatchewan and 2,810 across Canada. Ducks Unlimited Canada is proud to recognize each of them — including outstanding leaders like Ron Schaal — as volunteer champions and conservationists who help ignite volunteerism and serve with generosity, passion and dedication.