EVANSTON — A local family was recently recognized by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department for opening their private land north of Evanston for hunters and fisherman. Brothers Buster Faddis and Scott Faddis, along with their cousins, Chris Faddis and Bob Faddis and the families of all four men were honored through the department’s Access Recognition Program.

WGFD regional access coordinator Andy Countryman said the program began five years ago, and state officials divide the state into four quadrants then select four people or families to recognize each year. The Faddis family received the award for southwest Wyoming, which Countryman said goes from Evanston up to Jackson and over to Baggs.

The family received the award in Casper during an ag board luncheon on Nov. 28. Attendees included Gov. Matt Mead and Game and Fish top brass. Countryman said Buster’s wife Peggy was right when she said, “Oh, this is kind of a big deal.”

Although the recognition program is fairly new, the Faddis family’s cooperation with Game and Fish and local sportsmen goes back to 2001, when the family began working with the department through a hunter management program to allow access to their land — including land that’s been in the family for a very long time, approaching 150 years.

“My great-granddad worked in the Almy coal mines,” he said, “so we’ve been here … let’s see . .. I’ll be the fifth generation on the ranch out there. The ranch (a cow and calf operation) has been there since the 1870s. We’ve got some 1870-something, 1880 territorial water rights.”

Buster said there are four sections of land near Painter that outdoorsmen use in coordination with Game and Fish, but the family has also opened its Almy ranch to hunters. He said the family’s willingness to allow access to the private property fulfills a community need.

“I’m a hunter as well as being a landowner,” Buster said. “When I was a kid you used to be able to go hunting anywhere around here. There’s very few places to hunt now.”

Giving access to the land also helps some local hunters feed their families.

“Most people around Evanston want a piece of meat for the winter,” he said. “I always felt like that was a contribution to my community to allow people to hunt out there and take their families out and hunt. We’re only about 15 minutes from town, and you can be into some good deer huntin’ 15 minutes from town.”

Countryman said that through the Faddis family’s cooperation, 630 permits were issued this fall to hunt various large game animals on the private property. Through the hunter management program, hunters apply for permits online and get written permission to hunt on the land. But Countryman said the Faddis family’s contributions go far beyond that.

“There’s a lot more people using that property than 630 people,” Countryman said. “Another thing that’s unique about their property is that they also let people travel across their property to get into the Bear River Divide hunter management area.”

He said that’s a huge contribution because otherwise, there aren’t many ways to access the area from the south.

Buster and Chris, along with their wives, Peggy and Karen, respectively, made it to the Casper luncheon a couple of weeks ago. After a short presentation by Countryman, the family received a trophy and a $2,000 check.