Hunting has always been a family affair for the Lewises, but the youngest person in the deer stand had to wait until this year to harvest his first deer. Then the 6-year-old made a grand entrance into the big-game-hunting community with a Triple Trophy Award from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission just a few months after he could legally hunt bigger game species like white-tailed deer and turkey.
When Blake and Amanda Lewis go hunting, it is only logical that their son, T.A., tags along. He has been around hunting his whole life and has been shooting since he was given a Daisy Red Ryder BB Gun when he was 3 years old, but Arkansas hunting regulations dictate that big-game hunters be at least 6.
T.A. turned 6 on Aug. 12, and he said he was excited to do more than spot deer and play on his parents’ phones in the deer stand this year.
“I was excited that I could shoot,” he said.
The Triple Trophy Award is earned by hunters who take deer by archery, muzzleloader and modern-gun methods in the same season. Because T.A. has been 6 for only a few months, it is possible he is the youngest to have ever received this honor.
To earn the Triple Trophy Award, T.A. took a four-point buck with a crossbow, a doe with a muzzleloader and an eight-point buck with a rifle that finished up the Triple Trophy requirements in early November.
T.A.’s father, Blake, said he was 15 when he earned his first Triple Trophy Award, and he and Amanda are proud of T.A.’s accomplishment.
“Everything worked to his advantage,” Blake said.
Blake and Amanda said T.A. has been immersed in the outdoors — hunting and fishing — his whole life, and that exposure has helped them teach him the skills he needs to be successful in those fields. At 2 years old, he was fishing, and last year during dove season, T.A. had his first chance to hunt with something more than a BB gun.
“We went the first day of dove season and had a real good day, but T.A. was crying because I wouldn’t let him shoot my shotgun,” Blake said. “I said, ‘You can’t shoot a 12-gauge. No way.’ And he just said, ‘Well, let’s go get something I can shoot.’”
That afternoon, Blake took his son to buy a shotgun. They purchased a 20-gauge, but it needed some modifications to fit the then-5-year-old.
“They didn’t have one that fit him. The youth size was too big for him,” Blake said. “I bought an over-and-under 20-gauge. We went straight from the store to my best friend’s dad, who’s a woodworker. We had just bought the gun — it’s maybe an hour old — and we cut the stock off and put a recoil pad back on it so it would fit T.A.”
The next day, the family went out in the yard to see if T.A. could shoot the newly modified gun. He took five shots at a can and hit the target every time. The next morning, T.A. went dove hunting and harvested a dove right off the bat. Since then, he has been hunting small game while waiting for his 6th birthday.
The family processes their own meat, and T.A. said he enjoys eating the deer sausage that comes from the deer they harvest.
Along with T.A.’s obvious talent for hunting, Blake and Amanda are utilizing T.A.’s hobby to teach him life lessons. Safety is of utmost importance, and he has been taught safety since before he owned his first BB gun. His parents always supervise their son and hold the gun until it is time to shoot.
“Don’t think that there is a 6-year-old in the woods with a loaded gun,” Blake said.
T.A. is also learning about how important it is to work and save up to purchase items. Amanda said he had to earn his own money to pay for his gun. He did this by doing chores around the house and utilizing some of his birthday money.
“We made a deal with him that he had to earn his own money. He would pay for the gun, and we would buy the scope,” Amanda said. “We believe in teaching him the value of the dollar.”
Trusting a child with a responsibility like hunting is not something the Lewises take lightly, but with T.A.’s dedication and maturity, they have confidence he will continue to be safe and cultivate his skills.
“Not a lot of kids get first pick,” Amanda said. “A lot of dads take their kids and can lose their patience with them. T.A.’s always been really good in the deer stand. He’s always been really calm.”
T.A. received a certificate and a patch from the AGFC for earning the Triple Trophy Award.
Staff writer Angela Spencer can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or aspencer@arkansasonline.com.