Cornelius Højsgaard Redhead Memoir…
My name is Cornelius Højsgaard Redhead, and I am 16 years old, and yes, that is my real last name. I am a Rotary exchange student from Denmark. Right now, I’m living in Muskegon with my wonderful host family, Margie and Scott Hladki. My host dad, Scott, took me deer hunting in Alpena last November, 2024. I’ve never shot a deer before, but I’ve always dreamt of it. This is my story.
“But I don’t know where to shoot it, Scott!” I told my host dad.
“Don’t worry, I’ll teach you.” He pulls up a picture of a deer with a big red circle located right next to its shoulder. “The red circle is where the heart is. That’s where you gotta shoot it,” Scott says. “I’ll take you out shooting in a few days so we can see which rifle suits you the best.”
“Alright, sounds good,” I said.
Cornelius, with his first deer, a trophy 8-point, taken near Alpena with a great shot.
Now, there are 3 days until our hunting trip up north begins. Everything is packed. I know which gun I’m shooting with, the only thing I am unsure about is still where to shoot it. My mind tells me, “You’ve never shot a deer before!” “What if you shoot it the wrong place?” “What if you miss it?” While all of these thoughts are going through my head, I stumble over a game on Instagram reels. It’s a hunting game that teaches where to shoot animals like wild pigs, bears and white-tailed deer. The game is about competing with other people, and whoever gets the highest percentage of accuracy and perfect shots right through the heart wins.
I played the game the following days and instantly became the number one player in a group of 50. Now I knew exactly where to shoot it. Now I was ready.
It was 6:00 a.m. A cold Friday morning. We are in the north of the Lower Peninsula. Hunting a field near Alpena. It’s opening day. Scott tells me, “From now on, we will only be whispering. If you make any sudden noise, the deer will hear us.”
Now begins the timer. 15 hours of sitting, 3 days straight. Now we wait and wait and wait. Three hours in, and we haven’t seen a single deer. The only animals we’ve seen are wild bunnies, squirrels and birds. It almost looked like they had their own little party in front of our hunting blind.
Scott tells me about the deer dance. He claims if we start dancing, the deer will come. So, we start dancing the deer dance in our chair, and not even 3 seconds later, I look to my left, and 8 yards out stands a huge doe just staring at us. It worked!
I told Scott, “Look right there, Scott!” He turns and sees it. The deer then walks out of sight. We didn’t get to shoot it, but it’s okay. We are not here to shoot a doe, we are going for a big buck! I hope for a 4 or 6 point; an 8 point would be crazy for a first deer.
I’m beginning to get a little tired, so I close one eye. Scott wakes me up with, “Get up. There is a buck!” I quickly but silently get up on my chair. I got my gun out, and I was ready, but I couldn’t see it.
Scott says, “He went in the woods. He’s gonna come out again soon.” Scott is looking out with his binoculars. “Here he goes,” Scott says.
“Should I shoot?” I ask.
“If you want to, yes, it’s a nice one, yeah, it’s coming this way. Just wait for him. Yep, that’s the one you wanna shoot! Wait till he turns sideways.”
I get ready and have the deer in my scope. While I was waiting for Scott to tell me to shoot, my heart slowly started pumping, and my thoughts started going around, but in the middle of this, Scott whispered, “Shoot.”
I pressed the safety button and pulled the trigger. The deer runs into the forest again. Seconds later, I could feel my heart start pumping, I was sweating, my legs started shaking, and my ears were starting to make a high-pitched sound because of the loud gunshot. And I said to myself “I just shot a deer.”
I learned this is called “Buck Fever.” I see it running on the other side of the woods. I yell, “It’s running right there!”
We waited a couple more minutes. We then walked out to the spot where I shot it. On the way out, my legs were shaking uncontrollably, so I could barely walk. We couldn’t find any blood when we got to the spot I shot, so we tried to follow the path we believed he had run. I could feel that we were getting closer and closer. Then I saw a deer lying on the ground, so I ran over to it. Scott also says he sees a deer lying on the ground, but it was another one. When I ran over to the deer I saw, I saw a giant hole in its body. It looked like it had laid there for a couple of days; that couldn’t be my deer.
Scott says, “Cornelius, it’s over here, it’s a big one!” I sprint as quickly as I can over there, and I see it there on the ground. I got closer, and I couldn’t believe my eyes. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.
I count its antlers: “1, 2, … 5, 6 … 7 … 8!” I turn around and look at Scott and scream, “It’s an 8 point!”
I go over to the deer, and I get on my knees. I put my hands on its body. I looked at it and admired how beautiful a creature it was. I’ve never been so close to a deer before. It was such a beautiful one. I close my eyes, and I thank God for this beautiful deer. I couldn’t take my eyes off it. I was so happy and overwhelmed. I walked over to Scott and shook his hands, and he said, “Congratulations.”
I give him a huge hug and then he looks me in the eyes and says, “I am so proud of you.” And that phrase got me into tears, with the combination of the buck fever. I was so grateful for this experience and especially that I could share it with Scott. It was such a beautiful moment, and it’s an experience I will never forget.
We drag the deer up to the hunting blind. Scott guts the deer because I don’t know how to. So, I watch and learn. He takes the heart out and I couldn’t believe it. I shot right through it at 113 yards, 8 points. Opening day, a perfect shot, and I shared it with Scott.
Everything was just perfect.
ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE
Rotary Youth Exchange builds peace one young person at a time. Students learn a new language, discover another culture, and truly become global citizens. Exchanges for students ages 15-19 are sponsored by Rotary clubs in more than 100 countries. Long-term exchanges last a full academic year, and students attend local schools and live with multiple host families. Short-term exchanges last from several days to three months and are often structured as camps, tours, or homestays that take place when school is not in session. This program is possible because of the dedication, leadership, and passion of the tens of thousands of volunteers — Rotary members and nonmembers alike — who make this unique program so successful, like Cornelius’s wonderful host parents, Scott and Margie Hladki! Contact your local Rotary club to see what exchange opportunities are available and what the application process involves. Go to rotary.org for more information.
