Keeping Lee's Legacy with his family

MLBob Furia

MLBob Furia

Well-known member
Hearing the news about Duane Ganser's passing made me think of the role he played in keeping the waterfowling traditions that were so much a part of Lee Harker's life, alive and well for Lee's grandson, Blake Hickman. Many of us were involved in efforts to pass that legacy on to Blake, and no one more so than Duane, who even arranged for Blake and his Dad to get out on hunts at Winous Point.

Many of us have kept in contact with Blake over the years, and watched as he grew into a fine young man who Lee would be very proud of ( I imagine Lee is always watching over Blake, and surely is proud ). One can imagine the two of them still spending many enjoyable times both afield and in the marsh if Lee were still alive.

For many years i have owned & hunted over a decoy carved by Lee, and just a few weeks back, finally got around to shipping it off to Blake who just turned 20. I think it arrived on his birthday. Even though it meant something to me, I figured that it would mean a whole lot more to him as the years passed.

Hopefully, Blake will continue to pursue the passion for the outdoors that his Grandpa wanted to instill in him, and I hope he'll make it down here to my corner of the Tri-State to share a blind someday.

Goldeneye Drake carved by Lee in 2001:


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Lee at the last MLB Fall hunt, AuTrain Lake - 2008:
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Lee and Blake, when Lee was just getting him started:
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Blake with a decoy DHBP gave him. Pat Gregory and Duane Ong carved the bird, and then sent it to me to paint:
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Thanks for the memories Bob. I have a rig mate to that decoy. I may have been with him when he carved them. Spent a night or two in his shop carving and raiding his beer frig. Miss that guy.
 
[laugh]
Pete McMiller said:
Thanks for the memories Bob. Miss that guy.
Click to expand...

[size 4]Pete,
After searching all the picture files on my computer, I finally realized that this picture of the two of you was probably in an album of actual film photos taken before everything went digital. Finally found it in an album marked 2000-2001 Season. So I did a scan of it for you. Your boat or Lee's??
We all had gathered up at Mark's, and were layout hunting on the Lake somewhere off the Hobart / Gary area. The Logansport Boys, Greybeard, and all the usual suspects showed up.

Ya know, we probably ought to do another MLB fall hunt while we still can.




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Wow, that's cool Bob, thanks. That was Lee's BB2 and probably the first year he hunted it. I remember the first time I met him was in the spring of '99 and that boat was still in the construction phase. Those Cans in the rig are mine - black cork with Toledo heads. Fun times, and yes, we should do another fall hunt sometime. Lot's of great memories.
 
When this community came together for Lee's Legacy Fund to benefit Blake we showed what we were about. To this day that is one of the things this site did that I'm most proud of. I hope Blake is doing well. Would love to get a report on him.

Eric
 
Lee was a neat person. I wish that I had gotten to meet him. I received a package one day for my birthday and in it was a little blue-eyed teal that he carved and sent to me. I was stunned. He was perhaps as stunned when a great uncle of mine, who lived in the same town as Lee, showed up at his shop to say "Thank you"

This teal has gone on every hunt I could take her on and she is my "problem child." I have lost her and found her close to half a dozen times. She would free herself on bike rides and we'd get lucky and find her on the bike ride back from hunting. Her strap would come off and she'd float off. We had to screw and glue with 5200 a plastic strap to the bottom to tie the line to and she had to ride with a far more responsible decoy when she got slipped into the decoy bags. She truly does keep me on my toes and I think that is all Lee's doing. But she is one of my very favorite decoys

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I hope that Blake treasures the decoy you sent him Bob, as much as I treasure the decoy that Lee sent to me.

Dani
 
That is so cool Bob! Well done.

I had the pleasure of taking Blake on a hunt here in the wild marshes of NJ. I guess he was 14 or 15.

It was a cold day with lots of buffers and teal around. As a drake Buffy flew into the decoys ( unseen by Blake). I exclaimed , " there's one! shoot it!". Not visually picking it up he asked "where?"

I replied " right there, a foot off the Wooder". In my unbeknownst down jersey accent. He immediately turned and started looking into the Forrest that was behind us as the Buffy flew away.

I still laugh at his next line " Boy do you have a WIERD accent" lol
 
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