BIGFORK – The Smith Wildlife Artistry taxidermy workshop sits quietly down a country road up near the Swan mountains, a refuge and source of creativity for owners Scott and Barbara Smith.
On the walls are the mounted trophies of hunters and anglers from across the country, but few are as special as the project Smith began last week.
The Flathead Valley was still in the middle of a cold snap on Nov. 12, allowing for Smith to store the head and shoulders of a recently hunted large bull elk near the entrance to his shop.
Inside, he takes the elk and its cape and sets it up on the workbench, near the pelt of a black bear and wolf and a pair of massive, interlocked antlers from Alaskan moose.
The elk was taken during a recent hunt put on by the Montana Wounded Warriors. The organization took 30 veterans – each of whom is at least 30 percent disabled – on a hunt this fall.
To do his part for the organization, Smith donated a free shoulder mount for anyone who shot an elk on the trip. Veteran Devereux Stutsman was able to take one, and Smith plans on presenting the final mount at the upcoming Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation dinner in February.
The taxidermy project costs about $1,200, but Smith is happy to do the work for free as a thank you for those who have served the United States.
“Without the veterans, we wouldn’t have this,” he said, gesturing out the window at the snow-covered landscape. “We appreciate what they do by giving us our freedom to do this.”
The taxidermy project is also made possible with work from Glacier Fur Dressing and Research Mannikins out of Oregon, which donated their products that would have otherwise added $300 to the cost.
Smith has shipments coming in and leaving his shop about every day this time of year, and has plenty of client work to keep him busy. But being involved with the elk foundation and an organization that helps veterans return to the outdoors is important, and has moved to the front of his queue.
“To wake up in the morning and have a cup of coffee and be able to go to work at something you love is the dream of a lifetime,” he said. “And our veterans have given us a chance to do that in this country.”
For more information on Montana Wounded Warriors, visit www.montanawoundedwarriors.org.