SHINGLEHOUSE, Pa. — For 49 years, area churches have been hosting a banquet geared toward hunters and outdoors enthusiasts.

This year, the annual Outdoor Banquet will focus on bear hunting with area resident and hunter Gary Morley in attendance and part of a video presentation. Doors open at 5 p.m. Feb. 28 at the Shinglehouse Fire Hall. All tickets must be purchased in advance; no tickets will be sold at the door.

Tickets can be purchased by calling (814) 697-6556 or at Sprout’s Drug Store, 2922 Sylvis Road, Cherry Tree.

Clint Pearsall, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Shinglehouse, said the banquet began in 1978 when Charlie Alsheimer, a successful deer hunter and photographer in the Southern Tier of New York state, approached him about holding an outdoors-themed dinner.

Alsheimer, who died in 2017, was the featured speaker. The dinner was an immediate success, Pearsall said.

“We would have him in every year, sometimes twice a year early on,” Pearsall said.

The first event, held in the fellowship hall of the church where Pearsall was then pastor, “had 65 guys squeezed in.” His wife prepared the meal.

Over the years, the banquet has moved around the area, with attendance ranging from 65 to 379 and averaging around 200.

The meal is a mixture of wild game and traditional meats (beef, pork, chicken), along with sides, desserts and beverages. With multiple serving lines, organizers are able to have everyone served within about 10 minutes. Following the meal, a program is presented, Pearsall said.

“This year is a first for us. We have an untapped group. We have some guys who are legends in Potter County area and we needed to hear from them,” Pearsall said.

Morley’s taped interview will be the focus of the evening.

“Basically, it’s about my experience in how I became a bear hunter and what intrigues me about bears,” Morley said. “I’ve dragged eight of them home. That’s over a 40-year span of chasing them.”

The Outdoor Banquet is a time for people of similar interests to get together, share in a good meal and fellowship.

“I wouldn’t encourage them to come for me, but I would encourage them to come for a good meal and a good time with people cut from the same cloth,” Morley said.

He typically hunts with friends and family and doesn’t consider himself an avid hunter, but does enjoy the hunt for bears.

“I’m just a guy who enjoys chasing and, once in a while, catching a bear,” Morley said.

Morley was chosen and spoke about his hunting background and experiences hunting black bear for a video crew this past September. From about 35 minutes of footage, a final 19-minute video was created, which will be shown at the banquet. Morley will attend the dinner and probably be the subject of some good-natured ribbing, Pearsall said.

After Morley’s presentation, another speaker will share some thoughts. This year, the theme will be about leaving a legacy.

The dinner will conclude with a giveaway of more than 20 door prizes with the most coveted being a Traditions muzzleloader rifle. Other prizes, in total valued at more than $1,000, include hunting and fishing gear, gift cards and camping supplies.

All the door prizes are donated by the church family.

“It’s a nice evening, something for the church to give back to the community,” Pearsall said. “It’s a lot of fun for us; it’s a lot of work but we’ve never had church folk begrudging doing it.”