In my last deeranddeerhunting.com NugeBlog#146 last week, I celebrated the incredible and very special human and spiritual bond shared by our fellow hunting families across America, and in fact, according to a few million facebookers, far across the globe. We of the hunting lifestyle who dedicate ourselves to genuine hands-on conservation and natural world stewardship are simply more aware of our consumerism and therefor understand our responsibility to give back.
By Ted Nugent
Because of my relentless hellraising against the politically correct scourge of anti-hunting and antiAmerica insanity out there, my life has been more than humbled and blessed forever by connecting with like-minded souls for more than 45 years.
This connection has nothing to do with the joke of celebrity, but rather the purely American spirit of defiance and we the people activism. You remember that “experiment in self-government” don’t you?
Since the late 1960s, I have heard from families that thank me for my nonstop promotion of the perfection of hunting, fishing, trapping, the self-evident truth of our 2nd Amendment guaranteed God given individual right to keep and bear arms and all the hellraising that goes with it.
When you are constantly thanked by the hero warriors of the US Military you know you are on the right track.
I cherish these connections but have never shared the emotional details of 100s and 100s of such personal bonds, until now.
In order to emphasize this powerful brotherhood to its ultimate manifestation, I share with you a recent example of what I am convinced is one of mankind’s most powerful bonds.
I do so not to shine the light on me by any stretch of the imagination, but rather to shine the light on us, the hunting families of America. This oft repeated communication is not about a Ted Nugent love affair, but rather a Spirit BloodBrotherhood love affair that includes all good families who believe in the US Constitution, the sacred Bill of Rights, uncompromising independence, raw, rugged individualism, the pursuit of happiness, goodwill, decency, working hard playing hard, earning your own way, rough and tumble, Spirit of the Wild outdoorsmen and our families.
This letter appears to be directed at me, but I assure you, it is about you. And I hope my response accurately represents us all.
After a very emotional phonecall with Dennis Walter’s family, they gave me permission to share this with you.
Take it to heart my friends. Nobody gets out of here alive, so live your life like you mean it.
To whom it may concern,
I read on TedNugent.com that Ted does not reply to the emails sent to this website, but I do hope that this email does reach him.
The reason that I am writing to you is because the world lost an amazing man yesterday after a two year battle with cancer. My “Papa,” Dennis Walters was an AMAZING man. And I am so sure that you all hear that from many fans who write you, but please hear me out. This man impacted so many lives in so many ways. He was humble, kind, hardworking, and always saw the best in everyone. He was an avid hunter, ( I have never seen him out of his camo) a wonderful friend, a supportive father and the best grandfather a girl could have. Anyone who knew him was extremely lucky. He would give the shirt off his back for someone in need and he truly believed that you got back what good you gave to the world. He was a carpenter who worked so hard and he hired those men who were not heading down the best path in life and he would turn them around. They actually call him “a legend.”
My Papa loved nature. He taught me at a young age what hunting was and got me my first Remington 20 gauge shot gun at the age of 7. His sacred place was to be outside. He loved to talk about hunting, his guns, and the wonderful country we live in. You may be wondering why I am writing you, and the reason is that he loved listening to Ted. They are actually a lot alike! He would listen to Fred Bear over and over and strum it on his guitar.
In May of 2014, my Papa had a golf ball sized tumor removed from his kidney. The tumor was discovered months prior while conducting an x-ray of his lungs that miraculously went down too far. We had a lot of hope since the doctors had confirmed that the cancer was only in his kidney and it now had been removed. My Christmas present to him was a donation in his honor to the American Cancer Society. A few hours after donating, we found out that, unfortunately, the cancer had returned and spread to his stomach, liver, and esophagus; his doctor diagnosed him with Stage Four Esophageal Cancer.
In January 2015, he had another scan, and the cancer had spread to his lungs. He made the decision to fight for his life. He endured aggressive chemotherapy, radiation, and surgeries over the last year and a half; my family never gave up hope. In early April 2016 we found out that the cancer had spread to his brain. If you do not know much about cancer, let me tell you that this was not a good sign. Chemo cannot reach the brain, and radiation is extremely painful.
My Papa was a fighter. And when I say that he fought HARD, it would not do his fight or his strength enough justice. He fought for his family, for his faith, and for himself everyday. And it was not easy. He began losing feeling in his fingers and the bottom of his feet due to the chemo. He eventually lost functionality of his left arm and left leg, and for the last few months of his life he was wheelchair bound. Cancer is raw. It doesn’t bring good emotions, or feelings. It really sucks the life out of people and my Papa kept his head high and fought till the end.
I understand that Ted is an extremely busy man and I also understand that he begins his tour July 1st. My Papa loved his music and respected the type of man Ted was and I believe it was because they’re a lot alike. Fred Bear was his song that he related to. And after he has passed yesterday, we played Fred Bear and we all sat around and intently listened. It is my Papa’s song to a tee. I believe he was looking down on us, smiling, and strumming along to it on his guitar.
Like I said, I understand Ted is an extremely busy man. I am asking that you reach down to the bottom of your heart and please let him see this email. Let him know that a great soul passed yesterday who really loved his music. He will have a viewing in Napoleon, Ohio, this upcoming week. We are having a tribute section during the service so that people can share stories; as I said he touched a lot of lives, and it would mean the world to my family, my Papa, and I if we could read a letter from Ted, or even a recording of “Fred Bear.”
Every time I would leave, he would always call me by my nickname, “Punkin” and say, “I love you. Make us proud, Punk.” And I know in my heart that this would. I have attached my information if contact should be made.
Maddie Korak
Dear friends, family & my Spirit BloodBrothers of Dennis Walters,
The Nugent family is with you today as we fight back the pain & hurt of losing this great man. I cannot be there physically with you all at this moving time, but I bring you massive love, goodwill & support at this trying time. Though I cannot be right there with you, I did take a special walk into a special forest this morning, and want you to know that Dennis was there with me. He smiled strongly into the shadows and sun rays of our sacred deer woods as we walked slowly and paused often to contemplate this mystery of life, and the phenomenon of death as we know it and the miraculous healing powers of nature. Dennis said to be strong. He knows you are all hurt to the core, but he wanted you to know that the Big Hunt is pretty damn cool.
The campfires never go out, and the critters are everywhere. He wants you to visit him often in his favorite deer woods where his spirit runs wild and free, and to never forget the wonderful memories that you all worked so hard to make and cherish them forever. He hopes you shoot a big old buck right out of his favorite deer stand! The spirit of the woods is like an old good friend. It makes us feel warm and good inside. We know his name and its good to see him again, because in the wind he’s still alive.
Godbless you all. Godspeed the Dennis Walters tribe.
American BloodBrothers forever,
Ted Nugent & family
Ted Nugent is an award-winning musician and writer, with numerous best-seller books including “Ted, White and Blue: The Nugent Manifesto,” “God, Guns and Rock ‘n Roll,” and “Kill It and Grill It: A Guide to Preparing and Cooking Wild Game and Fish” with his wife, Shemane, among other books. Be sure to check out his website for more news on his latest music, thoughts and upcoming shows, and also at World News Daily, Newsmax and Daily Caller for more insights.
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