Vista Outdoor employees raised more than $70,000 for the families of two Kansas City law-enforcement officers, Detective Brad Lancaster and Captain Dave Melton. Lancaster was killed in the line of duty on May 9 and Melton suffered the same fate July 19. They leave behind a wife and two children, and a wife and four children, respectively.
Lancaster died while backing up patrol officers who responded to a suspicious person call at a local casino. Melton succumbed to gunshot wounds from an armed suspect who’d managed to flee from other officers.
"We believe in the importance of giving back to people in need in the communities where we live and work,” said Jason Vanderbrink, senior vice president of sales for Vista Outdoor. “Many of our brands have a long-standing commitment to supporting law enforcement, and we knew this was a cause that our employees would support. Detective Lancaster and Captain Melton gave their lives defending the people of the Kansas City community, and we were honored to present this small gesture of thanks to their families.”
The money was presented in July during Vista Outdoor’s Hunt/Shoot Sales Conference in Overland Park, KS, where more than 30 of the company’s brands were represented— including Bushnell, Primos, Blackhawk, Hoppe’s, Butler Creek and Uncle Mike’s. Attendees had the opportunity to bid during a silent/live auction to help raise money during the meeting. The auctions and cash donations led to each family receiving a check for $36,584.
Vista Outdoor has a long history of supporting deserving organizations. This year several of its key companies signed on as Conservation Partners with the Boy Scouts of America. Its Federal Premium and CCI lines of ammunition also donated heavily to the NRA Youth Adventure Camp, which is held annually at NRA’s Whittington Center near Raton, NM.
