CAMP PERRY, OHIO – The presence of the late U.S. Representative John Murtha of Pennsylvania was felt throughout the proceedings at the First Shot Ceremony on Monday, 12 July on Rodriguez Range adjoining the Shooters Memorial Plaza.

The National Matches include the CMP National Trophy Pistol and Rifle Matches, the Pistol and Rifle Small Arms Firing Schools, CMP Games rifle events and the NRA National Pistol, Smallbore Rifle and Highpower Rifle Championships. The matches are conducted jointly each year by the CMP and the NRA and are hosted by the Ohio National Guard.

A staunch supporter of U.S. troops and shooting sports, Rep. Murtha was the first veteran of the Vietnam War to enter Congress and one of the House's most influential lawmakers. He died unexpectedly on 8 February, 2010 due to complications from gall bladder surgery. He was honored by First Shot Ceremony featured speaker Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and later by USMC Col. (Ret.) John Hugya, Rep. Murtha’s Chief of Staff and friend of 51 years.

“I am especially honored to be here this evening because I know that were it not for his untimely death, our friend the great Congressman John Murtha would be standing where I’m standing and he would be shooting the first shot,” Gov. Strickland said in his opening remarks.

“It’s impossible to stand in his place or to replace him, but we do honor him tonight.”

A special pair of memorial bricks bearing Rep. Murtha’s years of service was placed in the Shooters Memorial Plaza and a replica brick was presented to Col. Hugya to deliver to Rep. Murtha’s widow, Joyce.

The ceremony marked the opening of the nation’s most prestigious rifle and pistol competition, a tradition that dates back to the late 1800s and has been a part of Camp Perry tradition for 103 years.

“Since 1907, the nation’s finest marksmen have been gathering here at Camp Perry to test themselves against the very best competition that exists. Along the way, the National Matches have honed the skills and deepened the pride in their country of countless participants,” he said.
 

“The Civilian Marksmanship Program and the National Matches began more than a century ago with a commitment from President Theodore Roosevelt and the Congress to strengthen our national defense by improving the marksmanship skills of Americans,” he said.

The Governor also expressed pride in the state of Ohio for being home to the National Matches, citing the economic impact on the local economy and the preservation of the Matches as the “World Series of the Shooting Sports.”

“You know in Ohio we have a long cultural tradition of the shooting sports and we have an even longer tradition of answering the call to duty. In fact, Ohio is the proud home of more than 900,000 veterans. And that’s why I think it is fitting that Ohio is home to the National Matches.”

The ceremony featured many colorful and exciting moments including the ceremonial first shot by Gov. Strickland who fired a .45-70 round downrange from a Sharps-Borchardt Model 1878 single shot rifle from the original collection of Col. George W. Wingate, an officer in the 22nd Regiment of the New York National Guard. He was the first official secretary of the NRA and later president of the organization for 25 years, according to Michael P. Keefe, the rifle’s current owner.

It’s likely the rifle was used by Col. Wingate in competition at the National Matches in 1880s at Creedmoor in New York State. The matches were later relocated to the larger ranges of Camp Perry in 1907.

Gov. Strickland also welcomed the more than six thousand shooters from across America and the officials, volunteers and staff and those who support their efforts including the Ohio National Guard, CMP and NRA who work together to conduct the Matches.

Prior to the governor’s opening shot, members of the Ohio Air National Guard 19th Special Forces arrived by parachute with the official American Flag to be flown throughout the matches. The parachute drop was made from a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter.