Skip to content

Legendary Fishermen Bill Dance, Jimmy Houston and Roland Martin Accept National Conservation Awards

Awards ceremony in conjunction with the grand opening of Bass Pro’s Wonders of Wildlife and Aquarium and Museum
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. Sept. 11, 2017 –– Hall of Fame Professional Bass Anglers Bill Dance, Jimmy Houston and Roland Martin will receive the National Lewis and Clark Conservation Corps of Discovery Award at the Wonders of Wildlife Museum and Aquarium/White River Conference Center in Springfield, Missouri on September 22, 2017. The Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation (MCHF) will honor these conservation heroes at its National Lewis and Clark Conservation Awards event, which recognizes individuals who have made noteworthy impacts on conservation in the U.S.
“This honor, The Lewis and Clark National Conservation Award, will continue to remind Jimmy, Roland and I of our conservation goals for the future and encourage us even more to meet them.” Bill Dance explains. “Thanks to the Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation for making this possible. I’m humbled by this award, especially because we earned it, simply by loving what we do so much. We have always tried to share that with others.”
All three legendary fishermen produce their own fishing shows on national television with Bill Dance alone creating his show for 46 years. Dance is the recipient of three Angler of the Year titles and seven B.A.S.S. wins. Jimmy Houston has been in 246 Bass Master tournaments, and was named Angler of the Year on the Bass Master tour. Roland Martin carries the nine time B.A.S.S. Angler of the year title.
The event is in conjunction with the grand opening of Bass Pro’s Wonders of Wildlife and Aquarium and Museum and the 80th anniversary of the Missouri Department of Conservation. Other Lewis and Clark honorees include the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, recipient of the Sacagawea Community and Partnership State of Missouri Conservation Award, and Glenn D. Chambers, recipient of the Missouri Conservation Legacy Award.
“Lewis and Clark led the way as explorers, envoys and conservationists across our beautiful nation,” noted MCHF Board Chairman Carroll Wilkerson. “In the spirit of these great pioneers, our award winners exemplify the sacrificial commitment in blazing new trails in the conservation arena.”
The event will kick off at 4:00 p.m. and will include a reception, formal banquet, and awards ceremony.
About Our Honorees
Bill Dance is a legend in bass fishing history. In fact, he caught the first bass in the Bass Angler’s Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) event history. He established the first television program in Memphis, Tennessee in 1968 on WHBQ-TV and became the sport’s first superstar, propelling generations to take up bass fishing. Dance has been producing outdoor fishing shows for 46 years and currently has 39 half-hour programs on the NBC Sports Outdoors network and the Outdoor Channel. Dance is the recipient of 3 Angler of the Year titles and seven B.A.S.S. wins.
Jimmy Houston is known as America’s favorite fisherman and is a professional angler and TV Host. Jimmy spent years fishing in tournament leagues – Bass Master and Fishing League Worldwide (FLW). In FLW, he fished in 83 events and came out as a top 10 finisher three times. In Bass Master, he has been in 246 tournaments, appeared in 5 classics and was named Angler of the Year on the Bass Master tour. Houston has been on national television with Jimmy Houston Outdoors on NBC Sports Outdoors and other networks.
Roland Martin is known as one of the greatest tournament anglers ever. His extensive career includes 20 first place finishes, 19 second-place finishes, 24 appearances in the Bass Master Classic, and 9-time B.A.S.S. Angler of the year title. He has fished in 291 tournaments and is the host of Fishing with Roland Martin on NBCSN. Known as the “Babe Ruth” of fishing, Martin has been inducted in the International Game Fishing Association Hall of Fame.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) is a conservation organization with a mission to ensure the future of elk, other wildlife, their habitat and hunting habitat. Since 1984, the RMEF helped to conserve more than 6.7 million acres of habitat and has restored long-absent elk populations in Kentucky, North Carolina, Ontario, Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin and Missouri.
Glenn D. Chambers (1936-2017) was an iconic figure in the history of Missouri Conservation. Following graduation from the University of Missouri, Glenn managed the August A. Busch Memorial Wildlife and served as a Wildlife Biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). In 1974 Glenn took a dual role at MDC as biologist/cinematographer where he made feature length motion pictures for MDC. He continued his work with Ducks Unlimited. Glenn garnered a long list of Television and Motion Picture awards including 4 television Emmys. He had photographic exhibits at the Department of Interior and prestigious Smithsonian Institute.
Sponsors for the event include Vista Outdoor, Missouri Automobile Dealers Association, Lilley’s Landing Resort & Marina, Pure Air Natives, Piney River Brewing Company, Worldwide TV Products, Missouri Spirits, Hawthorn Bank, QMAXX Products Group, Wilkerson & Reynolds Wealth Management, and Booyah Hull Cleaner.