This piece is written by Wyoming Wildlife Federation Civic Engagement Fellow Colton Schick.
The first time I testified on policy was in 2023. I was sixteen years old, lobbying on the Kelly Parcel. Being the youngest person in the room by decades, while also knowing that 90% of my friends utilize public lands for various reasons, was intimidating. I decided then that I needed to begin normalizing young faces speaking on policy, but at the time I wasn’t even sure what policy really was or how the process operated.
Luckily, I stumbled across an ad for Camo at the Capitol hosted by the Wyoming Wildlife Federation. My parents allowed me to skip class and spend the day learning about relevant policy at the Capitol and how to lobby on it. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked on policy and conservation work.
Theodore Roosevelt once said: “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
My time in the Wyoming State Capitol this past February was not spent alone. I had support, guidance, and direction from my mentor, WWF Government Affairs Director Jess Johnson.
I look back to one of the first times I testified in front of the legislature. I was sitting in the Capitol listening to lobbyists buzzing through the hallway like bees when suddenly Jess asked if I wanted to provide public comment in a meeting we would attend the next day. My initial response was a simple, “Sure, I would love to,” but behind that response was the fear of failure.
“What if I let everyone down and say something unprofessional?”
“What if I get scared and back out?”
Although my mind was filled with those thoughts, I couldn’t ignore my excitement about getting to speak to some of the most influential people in the state of Wyoming. I eventually calmed down and realized this was an opportunity. The choice was mine. Would I dare take the chance of letting all those thoughts in my mind come true, or would I step out of the grasp of comfort and fear to be heard?
Thinking through all of this while sitting in the middle of exactly what scared me led me to realize that Jess asking me if I wanted to speak meant someone wanted to hear what I had to say because they believed my words had value. That feeling is something I strive to share with everyone I meet.
This year I had the opportunity to involve eight of my peers in the Wyoming State Legislature. Two of them wrote letters to their representatives about bills that would impact them. Three others sat down with Representative Taft Love and discussed who he was, what he did, and his thoughts on the transferable landowner tag bill.
Looking back at that moment, I am encouraged to see three young sportsmen sitting in the Historic Supreme Courtroom with their representative, having a valuable conversation where disagreement did not lead to disrespect. The values honored in that room — integrity, honesty, and curiosity — are values this country was founded upon.
When I look back at that moment, I see a generation that has the opportunity to keep the sportsman’s way of life honest and alive.
As I walked out of the Capitol after a long and encouraging budget session, where we talked about the future of our state while learning from examples of the past, I realized how fortunate I have been to involve my friends in such a unique side of the sporting community. We have had discussions about policy, challenged each other’s thoughts, and encouraged one another to step up and speak out for what we believe in.
Jess has pushed me out of my comfort zone, taught me a whole new way to think, and expanded my passion. I was not alone at the Capitol this year. I was surrounded by the legacy of legends.
A legacy full of passion left by leaders like Roosevelt, Lewis and Clark, and Rachel Carson was shared with someone else, who eventually passed it on again and again until it reached the people around me who then passed it on to me. Passion does not die if it is shared, and because of this, I owe it to my generation to do the same.
Although I am young, my voice is heard clearly — not just by those in the arena, but by those outside it as well. I strive to forever be the boy in the arena, dragging others in with me to defend the values of a sporting lifestyle.
The 2026 Wyoming State Legislative Budget Session certainly was an arena.
Passionately,
Colton Schick
