With shotguns cocked and ammo loaded, about 36 participants shot clay disks and raised money for veterans in North Texas at the nonprofit Cowtown Warriors’ clay shooting tournament Sept. 8.

The second annual clay shooting fundraiser at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road, consisted of eight teams of four. Each person shot 100 disks and tallied how many hits and misses they got on a score page.

The top three most accurate shooters received prizes ranging from a “Best Shooter” belt to fishing poles to custom knives.

The nonprofit, which started as a happy hour group in 2013, has raised more than $2 million since it was founded. The nonprofit receives about 20 applications for assistance per month, said Adam “AK” Rodriguez, the executive director of Cowtown Warriors. 

Rodriguez raised funds to help wounded and disabled veterans with life after service.

“We got mothers with PTSD and postpartum PTSD. That’s two different types of PTSD, and they’re at wit’s end because they need to get their kids fed and they need to get rent paid,” he said.

Cowtown Warriors helps veterans with anything from paying their home utilities and mortgages to purchasing prosthetic limbs, Rodriguez said.

“It’s a whole broad spectrum, and it really just comes down to taking a veteran and making their life suck a little less – whatever that may look like,” Bezan Morris, the treasurer for Cowtown Warriors, said.

Notably, in 2019, the nonprofit gifted a wheelchair accessible van to the last surviving Tuskegee Airman in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, Sgt. Homer Hogues.

“I like to say there’s a gap between the veterans who finally reached their limit and the people who are living a good life,” said James Pederson, the president of Cowtown Warriors. “There’s that empty space that not a lot of nonprofits serve, and that’s where we fit the bill.”

Cristian ArguetaSoto is the community engagement journalist at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him by email or via Twitter. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

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Photo gallery: Clay shoot helps North Texas veterans

by Cristian ArguetaSoto, Fort Worth Report
September 8, 2022

<h1>Photo gallery: Clay shoot helps North Texas veterans</h1> <p class="byline">by Cristian ArguetaSoto, Fort Worth Report <br />September 8, 2022</p> <p>With shotguns cocked and ammo loaded, about 36 participants shot clay disks and raised money for veterans in North Texas at the nonprofit <a href="https://cowtownwarriors.com/">Cowtown Warriors</a>’ clay shooting tournament Sept. 8.</p> <p>The second annual clay shooting fundraiser at <a href="https://defenderoutdoors.com/">Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch</a>, 8270 Aledo Road, consisted of eight teams of four. Each person shot 100 disks and tallied how many hits and misses they got on a score page.</p> <p>The top three most accurate shooters received prizes ranging from a “Best Shooter” belt to fishing poles to custom knives.</p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter" data-effect="slide"> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container"> <ul class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper"> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52736" data-id="52736" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-1-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Adam "AK" Rodriguez, the executive director of Cowtown Warriors, helps a clay shooting fundraiser participant with a gun on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52737" data-id="52737" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-2-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Fishing poles sit on a table as prizes for the most scoring participants on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52739" data-id="52739" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-4-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">A "Best Shooter" belt sits on a table as a prize for the most scoring participant on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52740" data-id="52740" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-5-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Adam "AK" Rodriguez, the executive director of Cowtown Warriors, left, and James Pederson, the president of Cowtown Warriors, on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52741" data-id="52741" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-6-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Ammo is loaded onto a cart on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52742" data-id="52742" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-7-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Participants mingle before clay shooting begins on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52743" data-id="52743" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-8-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Clay shooting fundraiser participants make their way to their carts on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52744" data-id="52744" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-9-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Clay shooting fundraiser participants make their way to their shooting stations on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52745" data-id="52745" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-10-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">A clay shooting fundraiser participant presses a control that shoots disks on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52746" data-id="52746" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-11-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Dylan Demain, a participant at the clay shooting fundraiser, prepares to shoot on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52748" data-id="52748" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-13-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Dylan Demain, a participant at the clay shooting fundraiser, shoots clay disks on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure><img alt="" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-52750" data-id="52750" src="https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/CAS_CLAYSHOOTING-15-1024x683.jpg" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">Dylan Demain, a participant at the clay shooting fundraiser, helps another participant with her gun on Sept. 8 at Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch, 8270 Aledo Road. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)</figcaption></figure> </li> </ul> <p><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><a aria-label="Pause Slideshow" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause" role="button"></a></p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white"></div> </div> </div> <p>The nonprofit, which started as a happy hour group in 2013, has raised more than $2 million since it was founded. The nonprofit receives about 20 applications for assistance per month, said Adam “AK” Rodriguez, the executive director of Cowtown Warriors.&nbsp;</p> <p>Rodriguez raised funds to help wounded and disabled veterans with life after service.</p> <p>“We got mothers with PTSD and postpartum PTSD. That's two different types of PTSD, and they’re at wit's end because they need to get their kids fed and they need to get rent paid,” he said.</p> <p>Cowtown Warriors helps veterans with anything from paying their home utilities and mortgages to purchasing prosthetic limbs, Rodriguez said.</p> <p>“It's a whole broad spectrum, and it really just comes down to taking a veteran and making their life suck a little less – whatever that may look like,” Bezan Morris, the treasurer for Cowtown Warriors, said.</p> <p>Notably, in 2019, the <a href="https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/tuskegee-airmans-last-wish-comes-true-with-help-from-community/287-2fb8cda8-c4a4-434a-b8b8-78becf1af949">nonprofit gifted</a> a wheelchair accessible van to the last surviving Tuskegee Airman in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, Sgt. Homer Hogues.</p> <p>“I like to say there's a gap between the veterans who finally reached their limit and the people who are living a good life,” said James Pederson, the president of Cowtown Warriors. “There's that empty space that not a lot of nonprofits serve, and that's where we fit the bill.”</p> <p><em>Cristian ArguetaSoto is the community engagement journalist at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him by </em><a href="http://cristian.arguetasoto@fortworthreport.org/"><em>email</em></a><em> or via </em><a href="https://twitter.com/CrisArguetaSoto"><em>Twitter</em></a><em>. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy </em><a href="https://fortworthreport.org/about/fort-worth-report-editorial-independence-policy/"><em>here</em></a>.</p> <p>This <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org/2022/09/08/photo-gallery-clay-shoot-helps-north-texas-veterans/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org">Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?fit=150%2C150&amp;quality=80&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=52751" style="width:1px;height:1px;"></p> Copy to Clipboard

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