Hunting Adventure Of A Lifetime Won By Maryland Union Member

DERWOOD, MD — Zach Galis has hunted his share of waterfowl and whitetail deer in the wooded terrain of Maryland but tracking big game in the mountains was an adventure he never dreamed he would experience.

In March, the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance gave Galis the opportunity of a lifetime when he won a hunting expedition to pursue aoudad in the highlands of southwest Texas. His quest was filmed for an episode of "Brotherhood Outdoors," which airs this week on the Sportsman Channel.

Galis, 27, of Derwood, is a glass fitter by trade and a member of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Local 963. He is also a lifelong hunter, learning the sport with his uncles and cousins in southwest Pennsylvania before moving to Maryland as a teenager.

He first learned of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance as a youth when he attended their annual Capital Area Sporting Clays Shoot with his father, also a union member. He began applying for a chance to win a USA hunting expedition as a youth, but not until this year, as a full-fledged union member himself, did he finally win a coveted chance to hunt big game.

“I’ve hunted deer before, but I’d never shot more than 150 yards to hit my target,” Galis said. The Texas hunt for an aoudad involved shooting 300 and 400 feet to hit his target.

“Aoudad are a lot bigger than the whitetail deer I’ve hunted in the past,” Galis added. “An average whitetail is around 150 pounds; the aoudad I got was 260 pounds.”

His experience was captured on film by "Brotherhood Outdoors" as he hiked to 4,000 feet elevation to get into position for a shot. “Before we started out, the Brotherhood guys helped me prepare and practice firing with a rifle,” Galis recalled. “It was a strange experience for me, hunting in such an open space at such a high elevation.”

Galis hit his prey with his first shot, but it would take two more shots to bring the aoudad down. “Never in my life did I dream I’d be here,” he said. “It was the hunt of a lifetime, without a doubt.”

USA began taking union members on hunts in 2011, according to USA spokesperson Kate Nation. Since then, "Brotherhood Outdoors" has filmed 121 union members on hunting expeditions.

“The purpose of the show is to reward hardworking union members who go above and beyond at work and/or in their community while also showing the American public what it means to be union,” said Nation.

Galis was selected for this year’s hunt, Nation said, because of his dedication to his union. “He attends every union meeting and is involved in many of his union local’s charity events – food drives, backpack giveaways, etc. He is a lead union organizer for his District Council and is passionate about growing union membership.”

Catch every minute of Galis’ hunt for Texas aoudad when "Brotherhood Outdoors" airs on the Sportsman Channel Tuesday, Aug. 24, at 4 p.m. Eastern.