Nominee: Rodney W. Schreurs
Date of birth: December 28, 1954
Place of birth: Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Current Location: Cedar Gove, Wisconsin
Rodney Schreurs was born in 1954 into a family of six children in the city of Sheboygan, Wisconsin. His father was an avid hunter and even as a young boy, Rodney shared his father’s affinity for hunting and the outdoors. From a young age, he exhibited a natural talent for art and spent many hours studying and sketching wildlife. This fascination with the natural world developed into a passion for taxidermy. Like many budding taxidermists of the time, his training began with the Northwest School of Taxidermy Correspondence Course at age twelve after he split the cost of the course with a friend. Over the years, Rodney practiced taxidermy and his skills continued to develop and improve. It was always his intention that taxidermy be a means to express himself and preserve the memories from his time afield.
In the early 1980s, he attended the Milwaukee Sports Show with his wife, Linda, which was being held in conjunction with the Wisconsin State Taxidermy Championships. He was so inspired by the work at the show that it motivated him to compete himself. He worked his way up through the ranks and was soon competing at the Master’s Division. He decided to enter his first World Taxidermy Championships in 1997. As he debated what to work on for the show he recalled, in awe, some of the beautiful specimens he had seen displayed at past competitions. Realizing that he didn’t have access to anything similarly beautiful or exotic, he decided to take a risk by picking a lesser admired member of the animal kingdom and try to get it noticed. The subject for his first World Show piece would be an Opossum.
Rodney also noticed what seemed to be an underdeveloped aspect of taxidermy in competition pieces, convincing and realistic open mouth work. He had been perfecting his mouth work skills, but had yet to compete using the techniques he was developing. He decided to take an even greater risk and display the Opossum with an ultra-realistic open mouth in the process of raiding a duck nest.
After countless hours working on his piece, his gamble paid off tremendously. He won his first two gold medallions at the 1997 World Championships, Best in World Lifesize Mammal and Judge’s Choice Best of Show. The piece also took home People’s Choice Best of Show. With his first World Show win, the bar had been raised. Many competitors came to realize that not only opening the subject’s mouth, but doing so in an ultra realistic and flawlessly executed manner, was necessary to compete at the highest levels. This trend still continues even to this day. With this remarkable piece of taxidermy, Rodney had singlehandedly awakened the industry to the degree of realism that was possible.
Over the next twenty two years, he went on to collect seven more Best in World Titles and eight more gold medallions utilizing subjects that were less mainstream that most competitors. Of his World Titles, four have come in different categories and he has accomplished every Best in World title with a difference species, a staggering accomplishment that may never be eclipsed. Many years ago he set a personal milestone to reach ten World Taxidermy Championship gold medallions. He realized this dream at the World Championships in 2019, surrounded by many members of the Wisconsin Taxidermy Association that have looked up to him and competed against him for decades. That night, he won his eighth Best in World gold medallion and his tenth overall gold, which placed him at the top of the all-time list.
Rodney’s accomplishments in the competitive taxidermy arena are unparalleled. His longevity in the industry and his ability to compete at such a high level for so long are astonishing. His innovative open mouth techniques have produced some of the finest, most memorable and realistic pieces of taxidermy the industry has ever seen. He has been a judge, seminar instructor and during his long tenure as a member of the Wisconsin Taxidermy Association he has served as a steady and constant inspiration to many young and experienced taxidermists alike, motivating them to compete harder and push their own limits.
Throughout his career, Rodney Schreurs has embodied the many qualities that should garner consideration for induction to the Taxidermy Hall of Fame. He has been a humble, yet fierce competitor; in fact, the most decorated of all time. He has pushed his personal limits and in turn brought innovation to the industry; expanding the vision of what many taxidermists thought was possible. Rodney Schreurs has elevated the art of taxidermy to new heights and your consideration to induct him to the Taxidermy Hall of Fame is greatly appreciated.
