A longtime Deer & Deer Hunting contributor is one of the newest members of the prestigious Michigan Outdoor Hall of Fame.

Richard P. Smith of Marquette was tapped for inclusion recently during the The Michigan Outdoor Writers Association’s annual convention.

The Outdoor Hall of Fame, which began in 2017, recognizes Michigan outdoors communicators and authors, conservation volunteers, public sector employees, inventors, entrepreneurs, artists and instructors who have inspired us in the outdoors. These candidates demonstrate statewide, regional, and national significance and have made an undeniable impact on outdoor sport over their lifespans. Previous inductees include Fred Bear, Tom Huggler, Larry Kelly, Buzz Lockman, Mort Neff, Eppinger Manufacturing Co., Dr. Howard Tanner, Mark Martin, Steven Rinella, Jim Foote, Denny Geurink, and Kevin VanDam.

For 2025, the induction committee endorsed lifelong hunter and conservationist C. Alan “Al” Stewart, and Smith, an avid hunter, author, and outdoor writer.

Smith was one of the first “citizen scientists” to sign up for the Stump Sitters Whitetail Study Group after it was incorporated in Wisconsin in 1973. The Stump Sitters eventually turned their newsletter into a national magazine — Deer & Deer Hunting — in 1977. D&DH was the first publication devoted exclusively to whitetails and whitetail hunting.

For 50 years Al Stewart worked for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, starting as a wildlife technician and retiring as the Wildlife Division’s Upland Gamebird Specialist.

Stewart has played a role in every major Michigan upland-game bird program: redistribution and increase in the population of wild turkey throughout the state, Szechuan pheasant introduction, Pheasant Restoration Initiative, GEMS (Grouse Enhanced Management Sites), woodcock banding program, and the Upper Great Lakes Woodcock and Young Forest Initiative. He also lent expertise on projects to establish a population of sharp-tailed grouse and Hungarian partridge in northern Michigan and Osprey in southern Michigan. He is an internationally recognized authority on wild turkey, American woodcock, and ruffed grouse and has been a featured speaker on these subjects at official gatherings in other countries. Al is well-known for his leadership and mentoring abilities.

In a Woods-N-Water News article, MOWA Past President Tom Carney had this to say: “On a note that goes beyond fieldwork, Stewart has always understood the importance of public relations and marketing as far as wildlife conservation is concerned, saying, ‘If people don’t understand the whys, hows and needs of management, there will be no social value for the species and habitat … All is doomed, and no great partnerships are forged.’”

Smith has been a prolific outdoor writer for more than 50 years and began his career by writing for Marquette’s Mining Journal when he was in high school. He is a nationally recognized essayist, photographer, and speaker who has authored 32 books and thousands of magazine articles, specializing in all types of wildlife.

Smith writes monthly for Woods-N-Water News and Michigan Outdoor News, and his writing and photography appear regularly in national magazines including Deer and Deer Hunting, Buckmasters, Rack, North American Whitetail, Outdoor Life, Bowhunter and National Wildlife.

He has won numerous awards from MOWA and OWAA for his newspaper and magazine articles and photographs, and he has been awarded first place in the MOWA book division on multiple occasions. One of his more prestigious honors was the receipt of the coveted Ben East Prize from the Michigan United Conservation Clubs for conservation journalism about bear management. He also received the outdoor journalist of the year award from the Flint, Michigan Chapter of Safari Club International the same year.

Originally housed in Cadillac, Michigan, the MOWA Hall of Fame Committee elected to establish the new Hall of Fame display at the Jay’s and Webber Wildlife and Nature Center in Clare, Michigan.

Bog Vogel, MOWA President, said this: “I am very proud to have been part of reestablishing the Outdoor Hall of Fame, providing current and past inductees recognition for their important contributions to outdoor communications and conservation.” 

“We are grateful to the Poet family and their staff at Jay’s Sporting Goods for allowing us to honor our hall of fame members in the Webber Wildlife and Education Center; it is a must-see destination for outdoor enthusiasts, and we are thrilled that our inductees will be on display in this amazing facility.”

About MOWA: Founded in 1943, the Michigan Outdoor Writers Association (MOWA) is a non-profit organization comprised of outdoor communicators including writers, photographers, editors, illustrators for print and digital, as well video, lecturers and public relations specialists, and radio or television broadcast journalists with passions for communicating about the outdoors.

MOWA’s members communicate on various outdoor subjects including hunting, fishing, skiing, hiking, snowmobiling, backpacking, the environment, education, trapping, travel, humor, natural resources, conservation, travel, ecology, wildlife management, bird watching, boating, canoeing and many other outdoor related subjects.