House Mom
Brenden Gallagher for SPLIT REED
Most lodges across the country are fueled by the whistling wingbeats of birds overhead and the smell of gunpowder in the early morning, however, one lodge, in particular, is driven by much more than that. Located in the heart of the Central Flyway in North-Central Oklahoma, FowlCo Outfitters is fueled by creating life-lasting experiences and more importantly, people. Like every outfit, FowlCo needs birds, guides, and dedicated owners to be successful in a competitive and albeit crowded space that is the waterfowl hunting industry. What most people overlook however is the people behind the scenes that put in equally as much work taking care of clients, upkeeping lodges, and making sure basic and premier amenities are all in order.
Valarie Maly was born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and has been with FowlCo since 2019. She works behind the scenes of FowlCo doing anything you can think of, restocking supplies, lodge upkeep, hanging out with clients, helping serve meals and if she likes you, you might just get one of her signature old-fashioneds. Val had heard about FowlCo through a friend and soon after, Val had found herself working at one of the country's most incredible lodges. “I started out helping at FowlCo before and after my day job for a few weeks, and after that, I told Josh Teff I’d really like to become a part of this place, there's a vibe about it that I felt from the get-go so I told him to let me know what he could do about me becoming a part of this and within ten minutes he came back and said welcome to the family”.
Val
Although Val is and was not a waterfowl hunter when she started with FowlCo, hunting was still a part of her lifestyle. “In the past, I had never sport-hunted, I hunted to feed my family so big into deer hunting and small game, but I grew up in the city and I never felt like I belonged there. As soon as I was old enough I moved to the country and my mom had even told me I was never meant for the city, even one as small as Bartlesville. So after that, I was just around people that hunted and fished all the time but I was more on the ‘you kill it I’ll cook it’ side of things. I’m still not a big hunter but I do like it and I love the anticipation and I enjoy going and watching people hunt”.
Often people get wrapped up in their opinions and views of others based on whether or not someone hunts but if you ask Val, hunting season is one of her favorite times of the year- as well as the busiest. “I am the lodge mom of a premiere hunting lodge and I have never been duck hunting! This is a huge running joke with a lot of the regular clients but I am just so busy during the season that even if I did go on a duck hunt, to watch the guys hunt, I would probably end up falling asleep, that's just how busy I am! I have five children and I have never been more exhausted, even as a mother, as I have at that lodge, so if anyone trying to check their stamina, go hang out at a waterfowl lodge for about two weeks”.
FowlCo has no shortage of personalities and energy, especially when Val is around and if you're planning on going to FowlCo anytime soon I’d give you one piece of advice. Don't piss off Val. “I'm really pushy, I’m an alpha female and I'm used to being the only girl in the boys club. I've worked around cowboys, welders, and truckers so I've been around that male-dominated industry type all my life and I've got five daughters and five granddaughters so I don’t put up with much”. Now maybe I’m making Val out to be a little more rugged than she is; then again maybe I’m not, but that's for you to find out.
The truth of the matter is that there is an incredible dynamic between everyone at FowlCo with both employees and clients, and you’d be hard-pressed to find an outfit that is more in tune with human interaction and as driven as the FowlCo crew is to show their clients not only a good time but to create memories that will last a lifetime. “The guides have to be on their A-game because in two or three days we’re gonna get new clients and they want to be treated like they are the first person of the season... My favorite night is the first night when clients get there because there is just this inferno of energy, they’re excited to be there, they're ready to hunt and I love it because they have so much energy you literally get a spark off of it and that's definitely what keeps me going.”
FowlCo Lodge
One of Val’s many talents is her ability to connect with clients, “I learn on my feet. I don't have the hunting background experience that the guides have but I still know that asking questions.. ‘How was your hunt? Did y'all shoot your limit?’ Clients love it because they’re totally stoked and they get to continue that excitement in the lodge and it's electric. Sometimes hunts aren't good and that's where my job really kicks in, you know, ‘sorry you had a bad hunt but we are going to take care of you and you're gonna have a good time so let's just get started right now”. On top of everything FowlCo offers it shouldn't be a surprise that it's not just a workplace or just another outfitter, it’s a family rooted in a hunting experience and strengthened by faith. “I wouldn't say we are totally a faith based lodge but there is a lot of faith in that lodge and love for our lord and I am right there with them. Everyone has the right to worship and believe what they want because we aren't there to hand you a bible at the door we are just there to say welcome brother and welcome to hopefully the best time you've had in your life.”
Whether it's cleaning the lodge, shooting the shit with the clients, or saying a prayer before supper; Val is someone who can flip on a switch. Even at the end of an exhausting day keeping up with the lodge, when clients roll in and when someone needs something done she can flip on the house mom switch and keep the excitement rolling, and when needed she can get down to earth and make clients feel like family. “At the end of it, I just want people to be stoked about having a beer at the lodge if that's their thing, or stoked about the food and the lodge or having a fire outback- and just stoked about everything! It’s not all about the hunting. Like Teff likes to say, we are in the hospitality business. You’re gonna bust your ass but there's a lot of benefits and not just material-wise but for your heart, your faith, and your mind”.
FowlCo Team
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