TOM SNYDER

By Judy Jurek

Tom Snyder is a pioneer of our hunting heritage. Born in Massachusetts, Tom’s military dad moved to Pennsylvania before relocating to the Lone Star state where Tom’s mother’s family resided. He was in the second grade when he arrived. “I wasn’t born in Texas, but I got here as fast as I could,” Tom said.

His father loved the outdoors, so Tom claimed it naturally. Having hunted birds and big game, Tom’s dad suffered a heart attack at age 37, resulting in more fishing, and less hunting.

“It costs a lot to hunt in Texas,” Tom said, adding, “We didn’t have the means, so I hunted South Texas concrete senderos. Yes, I got caught poaching a few times but my desire to hunt often overshadowed the possible end result of a fine.”

At age 16, and sporting shotguns, Tom and a friend jumped a fence into the El Sauz Ranch with a plan to sneak up on a duckcovered pond. A truck drove up and parked, then a man exited with a rifle and commanded them to stop.

The man, Jerry Taylor, admonished the pair about trespassing, telling the young men IF they’d had rifles, he would have shot and buried them right there. After a stern warning to never trespass again, Taylor allowed them to leave. It worked, and the young men learned a valuable lesson.

Thirty years later, Tom had recently joined a hunting lease, and none other than Jerry Taylor stopped by camp to welcome newcomers. Someone asked Jerry if he had trouble with poachers. He replied, “Not really, but one time stands out.” He proceeded to tell of catching two boys toting shotguns 30 years before and scaring the you-know-what out of them.

“I kept my mouth shut,” Tom said with a grin. “I was scared I might get kicked off before I had a chance to hunt. My brother kept looking at me, knowing Jerry was talking about me. It’s amazing how things come back around in your life.”

At a young age, Tom made up his mind he would take kids hunting so they didn’t rely on poaching. He was raised in an atmosphere of “if you don’t have it (money), you don’t do it.” Tom worked hard, and with a talent for business, became successful, thus achieving his goal of letting kids experience hunting.

At first, Tom believed he could just write a check but didn’t like the thought of someone charging to take kids hunting. After talking to various organizations, Tom and his brother Mike took 12 kids hunting on their ranch. He never dreamed where it would lead.

The next year it jumped to 50. The third year, 100 youngsters enjoyed a hunt, courtesy of the Snyder brothers. However, both Tom’s attorney and his CPA advised he was an “idiot,” due to liability issues, as well as gifting guns to the kids who hunted.

This resulted in the formation of Trinity Oaks in 2007, a nonprofit organization. Tom said, “It is not a business but a true charity. Until recently, no one ever received a salary, but it grew so much that two paid positions were created in 2020.”

One day Tom received a call from TTHA about taking a young boy who had cancer on a hunt. Tom learned the Make

A Wish Foundation doesn’t grant wishes with firearms involved. Afterwards, Tom met the boy, Grant Wagner, who had told his doctor he wanted to hunt.

Grant named five species he wanted on the wall. He had a custom-built rifle made for his once-in-a-lifetime adventure. It was a great success, and now a cancer survivor, Grant said he beat it by using anticipation of hunting as motivation to keep going. This initial hunt led Tom to provide 40-50 trips per year for kids and adults facing serious medical issues.

Tom began giving hunts to military veterans, too. In 2018 the 2,000-acre Thumbtack Ranch near Batesville was named the first Purple Heart Ranch in the United States. Gold Star and first responder kids having lost a parent are now included for outdoor experiences.

Trinity Oaks also provided commercial processing of wild game meat for nine years. Over one million pounds of donated meat has contributed to more than five million individual meals to people in need. In 2022, the San Antonio Food Bank began servicing the wild game contributed by hunters and ranches.

In addition to the ranch, Trinity Oaks has an accessible fishing pier with accommodations for those with disabilities at Port Mansfield, called Paige’s Place. Tom donated it in 2011 in honor of his 17-yearold niece, Paige, who lost her battle with leukemia. She loved to fish but had trouble doing so from a wheelchair.