Alpha club announces Memorial Silhouette Shoot with free rifles, lunch

Free .22 rifles, ammunition and lunch will be part of the draw when the Alpha Rifle and Pistol Club hosts the annual Savannah Marcell Memorial Silhouette Shoot at its range on Mastodon Road in Alpha.

The club announced the event June 3, setting the competition for Saturday, June 6, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Organizers said the day will include door prizes, completion certificates, medals and a chance to win a .22 rifle, making the shoot as much a community gathering as a competition.

The memorial event has become a fixture in Iron County shooting sports. In 2024, it was marked as the eighth annual shoot, placing its start in 2017. That year, 33 shooters took part, 10 earned certificates and medals for “3 in the Red!,” 13 adults attended, numerous 4-H kids helped, 18 prizes were awarded and James Erickson won a .22 rifle.

The 2026 rules keep the focus tight and supervised. Only single-shot, bolt-action .22 rifles with iron sights will be allowed, and no other rifles may be used. Youth participants must have a parent or guardian remain at the facility while the youngster is at the range, a requirement that reflects the club’s emphasis on family participation and range safety.

The shoot honors Savannah Joy Marcell, who was born Dec. 4, 1996, and died March 23, 2017. Marcell was a seven-year member, youth leader and instructor in the Iron County 4-H Sharpshooters and Iron County 4-H Compass & Crosshairs, and she also worked as a lifeguard at Northern Lights YMCA in Iron Mountain.

That background helps explain why the memorial shoot has stayed tied to youth shooting and mentorship rather than simple recreation. A 2025 notice described the event as free for youth ages 6 through 17, underscoring its role as an entry point for younger shooters who may not have equipment of their own.

The event also fits within a larger organized silhouette-shooting tradition. The North American Silhouette Shooting Organization says its mission is to foster and promote rifle silhouette sports across Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, while the Michigan Rifle and Pistol Association maintains a silhouette calendar for competitions in the state. In Alpha, though, the memorial shoot remains rooted in local memory and the people who keep it going, including Ken Carlson, Dennis Carlson and Roy Carlson, whose contact information is being shared for those seeking more details.