LINGLE – The Lingle Fire Department is gearing up for the second annual coyote calling contest fundraiser which will be held next weekend at the Lingle Fire Hall in Lingle. 

On Friday, January 10 dinner will be held at 6 p.m. along with the Calcutta of hunting teams. The raffle and rule meeting will follow at the Lingle Fire Hall. The final check-in and dinner will be held at the fire hall on Saturday, January 11, at 6 p.m. Remote check-in is available and all entries must be paid in advance. 

Prizes are awarded for the heaviest five coyotes with a side pot for the biggest/smallest coyote. Raffle tickets are available for $20 and winners must be present. There is an entry fee of $300 for up to a three-man team. All proceeds go to benefit the local fire department. 

“We strive to provide the best service we can to the people of Goshen County and those who pass through no matter if it’s a fire, car accident, or a medical emergency and that comes with a high cost to maintain equipment, train personnel, buy new equipment and everything else that comes along with operating a fire department,” Lingle Fire Chief, Kasey Bangerter said. “We operate on a fairly small budget coming from the town and our rural fire district so we try to fill in the gaps with fundraisers to keep the doors open.”

According to Bangerter, there is a large interest in hunting coyotes in Goshen County and the department decided to turn the highly enjoyed pasttime into a fundraising opportunity. 

“With the large interest in hunting coyotes in Goshen County, we thought there’s no better way to raise money than that. We keep a percentage of all the monies brought in during the hunt and the rest gets paid out to the top teams and the Calcutta winners,” Bangerter said.

Team entries are open for anyone interested in participating in the annual fundraiser.

“We just don’t keep entries to Goshen County, we have a remote check-in option where you can pay 50 bucks more for your team and remotely check in the first night but show up in person to check in the final night,” Bangerter explained. “That has allowed us to get teams from all over Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming which in the end helps us raise more money for the department.” 

This year’s event will be similar to last year’s event where the public is invited to join in on the fun. 

“Our hunt this year starts the evening of January 10 at the fire station in Lingle with team registration a Calcutta and gun raffles. The community is invited to come and participate in the Calcutta or gun raffles the night of the 10th,” Bangerter said. “We had a lot of community members last year that came to watch and bid in the Calcutta auction and try for a chance to win a gun or maybe some prize money from a winning team. The teams will get the rules for the hunt that evening and then when it is over they will depart to start hunting.”

According to Bangerter, all teams are due back to the fire stations at 6 p.m. on Saturday, January 11 and prizes will be awarded thereafter. 

For more information on the annual calling contest, please reach out to Bangerter at (435) 671-0532. Registration is available on Facebook.com/LingleFire, in person at Insight Precision Arms, or in person at the Lingle Fire Hall on January 10.