Demopolis Youth Wins ALBBAA Big Gobbler Photo Contest

DEMOPOLIS, AL — Demopolis native Mason McLaughlin was recently named the winner of the 2025 Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association (ALBBAA) Big Gobbler Photo Contest.

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McLaughlin is an 11-year-old who recently finished the sixth grade at Demopolis Middle School and was hunting with his grandfather, Wallace Walker, in hopes of harvesting his first turkey.

Before the big moment, the duo watched the gobbler and a group of hens strut into the field before returning to the wood, with Mason pointing out that it was the same gobbler they had seen the night before on a scouting trip in Lowndesboro in Lowndes County.

“Whenever the gobbler went back in to the woods, I was devastated,” Mason said. “I literally started crying because I was so sad.”

Undeterred, Mason and his grandfather battled through cold and rainy conditions to eventually lure the Tom back into the open to give Mason a shot with his .410 shotgun.

“Whenever he came into my range, I said this to myself: ‘If I miss this shot, I’m going to jump off a bridge,’” McLaughlin said. “I didn’t miss.”

A photo was then submitted to the ALBBAA's 13th annual Big Gobbler Photo Contest, where Mason received the most votes.

Mason will receive an Otis Elite Gun Care Kit — for shotguns, rifles and pistols — a Dead Ringer shotgun sight, a Knight & Hale Owl Call and a Willow Sage slate turkey call.

The grand prize package carries a total value of $275.

“The excitement was unreal, just to watch the excitement from him and taking this bird,” Walker said. “He sat there and was patient and let it all happen the way it did.”

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