Northmont grad is always on the hunt

Bruce Haffner says waterfowl hunting is his forte. “All of my waterfowl hunting is done on dry land — field hunts only,” he said. “The most important thing is calling the birds and setting decoys. If you do those things right, you’ll be successful.”

Staff photo by Jim Morris Bruce Haffner says waterfowl hunting is his forte. “All of my waterfowl hunting is done on dry land — field hunts only,” he said. “The most important thing is calling the birds and setting decoys. If you do those things right, you’ll be successful.”

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By Jim Morris, Staff Writer Updated 9:06 PM Saturday, October 24, 2009

LEWISBURG — Bruce Haffner is a hunter. No question about it.

“My father took me squirrel hunting when I was 5 or 6 years old and I have been hooked on it ever since,” said Haffner, who grew up in Union and graduated from Northmont High School in 1983.

Most people hunt for fun, and perhaps a way to supplement their food supply. Haffner does that, but he also hunts for a living, working as a guide in Ohio, other states and Canada. He recently returned from a bear hunt in northern Ontario and an elk hunt in Colorado.

He adds another twist to his hunting activities: He’s a videographer. He often uses videos to teach hunting techniques and sells the videos when he puts on seminars.

He has found another use for his video work. When people want to find out what kind of wildlife is on their property, he will set up trail cameras to record activity. So if, for example, a large buck is seen, a property owner will have a good idea of its location.

Haffner, 44, who lives near Lewisburg, won the state sporting clays championship in 1999 and the Middletown Sportsmen’s Club title in 2009. When he’s not hunting, he’s fishing, so his freezer is filled with venison, fish, duck, goose, bear and elk.

He and his girlfriend Debbie have five children.

“We’re all involved in hunting (except the two youngest) and in my business. Debbie is very talented on the computer, so that is very important.”

Haffner can be reached at (937) 623-1633 or through his Web site: facetofaceoutdoors.com.

In his words

“When I was growing up, my dad (Bruce Haffner, Sr.) used to take us to Pennsylvania to hunt deer, because there weren’t many deer around here back then. There were a few, but nothing like the deer hunting in Ohio today.

“Out of high school I worked for a flooring business, but I was constantly hunting and fishing. I think I spent more time hunting and fishing than I did working.

“I started the guide service so I could stay around home. Being an avid hunter, I knew all the good spots and the word got around that I could take people on successful hunting trips, especially for geese. I never had to advertise — I built the business on word of mouth.

“Once the waterfowl season starts here, I probably hunt 60 out of the 70 days of the season. Most of the other days are spent scouting. Weather isn’t a problem, because the nastier the better for waterfowl. Unless it ices up, I’ll be out there. Waterfowl hunting is my forte.

“I put on some seminars each year with the Lewisburg Trailraiders and that’s how people find out about my guiding. I will take people out under the apprenticeship program, but I really want them to take a hunter safety class before we go hunting. You can’t preach safety enough.

“There are a few hunts I’ve never done that I would like to do. I want to do an alligator hunt and I would like to go bow fishing for flying fish (Asian carp) on the Missouri River. You try to shoot them out of the air with your bow.”

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