By Rob Sexton, POMA Executive Director
Our Ohio hosts have outdone themselves to make sure the POMA Annual Meeting at Maumee Bay is a great success. Our hosts at Destination Toledo, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Divisions of Parks & Watercraft and Wildlife, and Lake Erie Shores & Islands have all provided great feedback, manpower and funding to make this year’s event unforgettable.
It was during a site trip to the area with Justin Morrisey of NSSF-The Firearm Industry Trade Association that we discovered one of the great opportunities that will be featured at this year’s conference. Ben Simon, with Lake Erie Shores & Islands, continuously encouraged us to add a new shooting facility to our itinerary. Both Justin and I were a bit reluctant due to its proximity to Maumee State Lodge which is housing POMA members. But Ben was insistent, telling me, “You won’t be sorry!”
That turned out to be a gross understatement. Justin and I met Ben in the parking lot of Lake Erie Arms (LEA), a state-of-the-art indoor shooting facility. Over the next two hours we received a tour from co-owner Jim West. LEA provides many different experiences including firearm retail, “build your own AR” workshops, dynamic indoor rifle and pistol ranges and an amazing indoor clay bird shooting range! (You’ll have to see it to understand just how cool it is! You can take a virtual tour here.)
The facility includes meeting room space, a restaurant open to the public, a members’ only restaurant, a cigar bar and an entire locker room of gun safes! The unique and comprehensive nature of Lake Erie Arms instantly convinced Justin and I that POMA had to offer attendees this experience. Jim was on board from the start, and soon after we returned to our respective hometowns, he assigned Shelby Brossia, LEA’s Vice President of Business Development, to be our main point of contact. She and Jim have rolled out the red carpet!
Shelby and POMA’s 1st Vice President Britney Booth designed this year’s Content Creation Day to be hosted by Lake Erie Arms. Attendees will get the incredible tour, be able to shoot clay birds, experience darkroom shooting and attend other content sessions, all under the one roof of this massive facility.
In more than 30 years in the hunting and shooting business, I have never been to a shooting facility as incredible as Lake Erie Arms. Along with their experiences, attendees on Content Creation Day will also hear from other great presenters at the LEA meeting facilities. The only way you will miss out on this incredible experience is if you fail to register to attend POMA 2025!
The POMA Annual Meeting at Maumee Bay Hosted by Destination Toledo is a completely revamped experience that will send you home jam packed with useful content, great fun and networking opportunities. Register today!
POMA’s 2025 Annual Meeting is June 23-25. You do not have to be a POMA member to attend. Media members can register here. POMA corporate partners can register here.