Submitted Photo Bonnie Jensen is pictured with her opening weekend winnings. This is a special story with fawns, grouse, squirrels, and special moments.
A few months ago, another veteran and I had the honor of sharing some fishing time as guests of Captain Dan Bogner and First Mate Bonnie Jensen during the WNY Heroes Fishing Event held at the Port of Dunkirk. I thought.
We caught a lot of fish, laughed, and shared old stories from when fishing was modernized in the 1980s. We talked about lures old and new, firearms, hunting, and the friendships that can only be made in the outdoors. It was an unforgettable day. Isn’t that something special for outdoor enthusiasts?
It was another unforgettable weekend for Bonnie Jensen, telling the story of a father’s love for his daughter and the lasting emotional impact of an unbreakable bond over their passion for the sport they both cherished: hunting. I am.
During the first weekend of this year’s New York annual big game hunting season, Bonnie shared some love while working through her grief.
“If my father hadn’t called me yesterday and told me to shoot straight baby girls, I wouldn’t have felt like going hunting.” she said. “I received those calls every day we opened…until that day.”
Bonnie casually said that the call had subtly encouraged her throughout her hunting career and that the call had encouraged her. That morning, her friend Dan called her on her behalf and urged her to come outside. Looking back, her words to Dan were: “Thank you for making me!”
Bonnie shamelessly admits that she couldn’t sleep the night before her first day, not because of the excitement of hunting, but because she knew she wouldn’t get a call from her father.
She woke up to get some coffee and said she felt her father’s presence. “I was scolded because I wasn’t in the stands before sunset.”
But to be honored and to thank Dan for the call, Bonnie dressed, grabbed her gun, and walked to the stand. She loaded several bullets into the gun (Ruger M77, 30-06) and kissed the bullets as they entered the chamber. Bonnie was almost at the stand when she realized she didn’t have her backpack or radio. She shrugged and decided she didn’t need them that day. She just needed to be there.
Bonnie settled into the house and began to doze off, listening to the birds and squirrels. Then, shaking, shaking, shaking, her tree stand moved.
Bonnie shares some of the moments that followed in her own words. “I freeze. When I look with my eyes instead of my head, I see a foster fawn who lost his mother. He’s scratching his shoulder on my ladder. It’s unreal. He doesn’t have a care in the world. No. I was so happy to see little Harvey. He’s grown up with some little button spikes on his head.”
Bonnie not only sees the fawn, but also hears the drumbeat. So she says: “I just listen and keep hearing the drumming and cooing sounds. My dad’s favorite bird was the ruffed grouse, and there are no grouse where I hunt. All of a sudden. , a grouse appeared. Unreal. The sound “cooing” is the most beautiful. I had never heard it in person until that moment. Suddenly a grouse flew by, came up behind me and started to brace himself. Then I saw a white flash and saw four or five more grouse swoop down. My heart and soul were happy. I talked to my father mentally. ”
As it turned out, Bonnie didn’t need a walkie-talkie.
Bonnie soon realized that her hunting situation was not ideal as a right-handed shooter. She had to slowly turn her head to see the nice buck that had woken her from her sleep earlier. Unfortunately, given her position, she never got the slightest chance. As any good hunter would do, she expertly analyzed her options and confirmed that there was indeed a six-foot window to shoot at if he continued walking in that direction. She observed him through a telescope (yes, she forgot the Beano too). She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again. To her surprise, the deer was within her line of sight.
Bonnie held her breath as she recounted the next few moments. “I pulled the trigger and knew I had a good shot. I fired another shot and he was gone. I wait and mind my own business and get off the stand.”
To my heart’s content, the grouse family is still waiting there. She walked to where she thought she had failed, but saw nothing. She felt defeated and went to where she noticed a scratch on the ground. She fell to her knees and cried. This past week and this morning has been a whirlwind of emotions. Even through the tears, she sees the evidence of a good shot. All she had to do now, rejuvenated, was find him. With her .40 strapped to her hip, she began a short journey until she spotted red-painted ground and trees 20 yards from the point of impact. And she looked at him. She walked cautiously closer. bonnie “I gave him water and thanked him. I’ve never been so emotional for a moment in my life!”
4 days ago Bonnie posted: “I am saddened to announce that my father, Robert Jensen, has passed away peacefully. He had a great battle with cancer, but he passed away. I know he does not want to be remembered for his cancer. , you want them to remember their love for the outdoors and their family.”
Bonnie thanked everyone for their thoughts and prayers for her and her family.
Bonnie said last weekend, opening weekend. “For some reason my dad was with me and it was beautiful. I wouldn’t change it for the world. Thank you, dad, Robert Jensen.”
Bonnie Jensen’s father’s love for the outdoors and her is a legacy that will live on forever in Bonnie’s heart. She and many others will remember special moments that will remain forever in the whispers of the wild and the silence of the forest.
Last weekend we marked our fourth consecutive supermoon. The forest seemed very quiet, but it was alive with an extraordinary stillness. The sacred sanctuary of the forest is an eternal connection for many. me too. I am grateful that so many of us can say the same thing as my father. Thank you, Lord.
Bonnie Jensen, thank you for sharing your story. God bless you.
calendar
November 16th to December 8th: NYS Southern Zone Regular (Firearms) Big Game Season
November 21: Southtowns Walleye Association Monthly Meeting, 7 p.m., 5895 Southwestern Blvd., Hamburg, Contact: 716-208-4023
November 23 to January 19: Southern Area — Canada Goose Late Season, see syllabus.
Nov. 30: Last day of inland musky season (Great Lakes musky season ends Dec. 15).
November 30th to December 14th: Pennsylvania’s regular (firearms) deer season. See https://www.pgc.pa.gov.
December 9-17 and December 26-January 1: Late Bowhunting Season in NYS Southern Zone
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