I’m happy to announce our new Huntography Field Editor for Louisiana, Kim Ganey. She’ll be spicing up the outdoors in Northern Louisiana along with Papa Scott from Cajun Seasoning.

Every conversation I ever had with Kim on Twitter has been upbeat, positive and fun. She is the type of hunter who uses social media in the absolute right way – she has a genuine interest in getting to know the person she is talking to. It’s not always easy to hit it off talking with new people on Twitter, but w/ her, it was a breeze.

I remember when she purchased our 1st DVD last year, and then positively tweeted about it. Getting that kind of feedback helped me feel good about the path that I was on with Huntography. Looking forward to seeing Kim share what she’s seeing locally in the great outdoors of Louisiana!

Here’s Kim in her own words:

I was born and raised in Louisiana but have lived in several states. I’ve been married 22 years and have one daughter who’s 21. My real job is a nurse (an LPN), I”m the Community Liaison for a local rural hospital.

I grew up shooting with my dad. He took me hunting with him a few times as a child, but I never saw any animals so I lost interest.

In 2005 I attended a Becoming an Outdoor Woman workshop that the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries put on. I attended an archery class at the workshop and a seed was planted. In the next few years, I ran over a total of 4 deer. Three of them at one time, apparently Honda Accords are good bait. Additonaly on a trip to upstate New York, I was horrified by the amount of deer I saw dead on the side of the road. I had also become concerned about the safety and healthfulness of store bought meat products.I knew that Claire was graduating soon and I’d have an empty nest. I was about to have a ton of free time on my hands. Bow hunting seemed like it might be a way for me to address all of these things…I could provide the most free range, organic meat available, contribute to deer population managment and find a way to keep myself occupied! Win! But I had no clue how to go about it, so I kept it to myself.

In 2009, I overheard a coworker discussing an all women’s archery hunt she was planning to attend. I wore her down and managed to wheedle my way into a spot on the trip. I ordered my bow at a local archery shop, recieved it October 12, 2009. October 31 I was in Alabama in a tree stand for the first time in my life (have I mentioned that I used to have an almost paralyzing fear of heights). The evening of November 1 I killed my first deer. Beginners luck for sure. I’ve been in the woods every season since. The coworker has since become a great friend and mentor.

I’ve been pretty fortunate in that I’ve been blessed with some wonderful mentors/cheerleaders. My husband, my friends-Billie Ann and Joe H., my dad, my father in law and brother in law have all been a huge part of my hunting and my successes. Because of them I am an advocate of mentoring…I would absolutley not be where I am now without them. I’ve also been fortunate to have met some fantastic people along the way- all of them very supportive and more than willing to share their knowledge.

I think that’s one of the reasons I love twitter. I still feel like I’m such a newcomer to hunting that it’s like having a huge group of mentors and cheerleaders right in the stand with me. It’s an invaluable source of information and camaraderie.