Creston teen featured on outdoor TV show

Creston High School student Tanner Webb was part of a national hunting television show that aired three times last week on the Outdoor Network.

The Outdoor Network describes the episode of "Raised Hunting" as "Two high-school kids with different abilities and capabilities embark on a whitetail hunt only to find that a world of sports and hunting had never revealed the true meaning of 'winning.'"

“I watched a young man that despite all sorts of obstacles in life, sees everything from a point of view that makes everyone around him a better person,” said David Holder, host and narrator for the show, “Raised Hunting.”

The show revolves around Holder and his family’s outdoor experiences, and how their lives intertwine with the experiences of others. They learned about the opportunity to take a young man with Cerebral Palsy hunting, and teamed Webb on the deer bow-hunting expedition near Peru in Madison County with Warren Holder, David and Karin’s son who had played football against Creston/O-M the night before on Oct. 18, 2013.

They teamed up with a new organization named “Building Brighter Dreams.” Its mission is to promote and enhance the spiritual, physical and mental well-being of youth and adolescents with special needs, and their families through shared outdoor experiences

Webb was the manager for the Creston/O-M team in that game against Winterset, and still serves in that capacity as a senior.

“He totally changed the way I think about life,” Warren Holder said in the show.

“I met a lot of good people and it was a lot of fun,” Tanner Webb told his father, Kevin, during the ride home.

During the filming near a Madison County hunting lodge, Webb got one shot at a buck, narrowly missing it. Still, it was a thrill.

“I got a shot at a buck,” Webb said Monday. “It was a super windy day. I shot and the arrow was going perfect, and the wind just picked up and it took off. I was excited to get a shot, though.”

The show set the stage for the hunt with footage of the previous night’s football game at Panther Field, with a look behind the scenes at both teams, as well as footage from the game itself. As the teams were shaking hands afterward, Warren Holder was overheard saying to Webb, “I can’t wait to go hunting with you tomorrow.”

Creston/O-M head football coach Brian Morrison, an avid outdoorsman, is a fan of the show and said it was especially rewarding to see his team manager showcased, as well as the football team.

“That was neat,” he said. “Watching the guys on the show, and how nice they were with Tanner, that was great. Obviously, it’s a hunting show, but it’s more involved in their family, and what they’re going through. It’s a really good show, I’ve been following it.”

Webb said he gained a new friend in Warren Holder, and had a great time during the weekend.

“The hunting part was cool, but I would say just getting to meet all of the people and learning what Building Brighter Dreams is about. Just the whole experience,” Webb said. “They said they’d like to do another show with me next year.”