Hunter Loses Meat Supply In Marshall Fire; CPW Offers Helping Hand

LOUISVILLE, Colo. (CBS4) - Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers jumped at a unique opportunity to help a family in Louisville after their house burned down in the Marshall Fire. CPW specifically grew a connection to Fleetwood Mathews, a bow hunter who lost two freezers full of meat he intended to use to feed his family.

Mathews says he and his wife started storing meat from hunts or a Colorado rancher to avoid buying from big box stores.

"I had been saving all the good cuts for a special occasion. It just crushes me to think that there was thousands of dollars of meat in those freezers," he said.

After Mathews requested a reprint of his elk hunting license, he asked if CPW could "point me in the direction of a problem herd in my unit."

CPW then realized the agency recently seized an elk carcass which was poached. The agency harvests an illegally taken animal and donates the meat to families or people in need.

In this case, they thought Mathews deserved it most.

"I haven't had a lot of interactions with CPW," Mathews recalled. "I've called the hunt planners a few times and I've met a game warden once or twice. When I got the call from Sam a few hours after CPW emailed me back, I was shocked. I remember I was at the end of a very long day juggling being back at work and taking calls from the insurance company. To hear CPW was going to give me a whole elk reminded me that good things can still happen even when it feels like all is lost. CPW came through for me in a major way and I was so happy to meet Sam."

The officer, Sam Peterson, who made the donation says the destruction from the Marshall Fire was in the forefront of his mind. He heard about Mathews story and didn't think twice about what to do.

"That elk was in my truck for only about 10 minutes before I was making calls to track down Fleetwood. I'm really happy to have had the opportunity to help out such a nice and deserving family."

Mathews shared his gratitude and relief with CPW.

"(The harvest) It's going to feed everyone in the family in 2022."