I'm not worthy...

[B]I'm not worthy...
April 24, 2011
By Bob Zettler[/B]

“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live…”

Remember the movie Wayne's World where one of the catch phrases was, “We're not worthy,” as they met Alice Cooper? Well, that is how I feel today on Easter Sunday 2011. I was meeting Brian Cassidy of Cassidy's Fine Feathers Taxidermy in the Gander Mountain parking lot where he had just dropped off his daughter so she could return home with her mother. Ah, the joys of divorce and the sorrows of parenthood but I digress as usual...

Let's get in the (slightly) Way-Back Machine to January 2011 and my desire to find a taxidermist to mount my Blond Mallard. Now in the past I have been blessed and cursed with the choices I have made when it comes to mounting my accomplishments. The first quality buck I took back in the early 80's was done by Gary Brees of Murphysboro. He resides on the wall behind me still – the deer that is. Then I went to the other end of the spectrum and had two pheasants and my first Wood duck done by a man in central Illinois who charged me all of $25 to $50 per bird – and they look it.

Then I saw the light in the late 80's after I moved to Springfield and was fortunate enough to have come in contact with award winning taxidermists such as Harvey Ziegler and Chris Musser. If you haven't had a bird done by these two or someone else of their caliber...well, you are truly missing out.

Then in late December 2010 I was fortunate to harvest a Blond Mallard. Now a Blond Mallard, or, what others might call a leucystic Mallard, is a rare bird indeed! In fact, up until the time I had a couple of state wildlife biologists and two national commercial breeders confirm its genetics, I had wondered if I hadn't just killed some poor kids 4H project. So here I have a true trophy bird in the freezer and needed to choose someone to do it justice.

In the past I probably would have gone with one of the masters I had dealt with in the past but I had heard of a number of new guys who might not have the name recognition, yet, have a following for their dedication and quality of craftsmanship. And then I heard from my friend Tim Schultz of Bismarck about Brian Cassidy of Fithian, Illinois who specializes in birds. Now the Fithian area is not known for waterfowling and there aren't as many pheasants nowadays as there were in the 1960's but Brian has carved a name for himself nonetheless.

And not only does he have a small but solid customer base, Brian was being recognized for his creativity and abilities by none other than his peers (i.e., the Illinois Taxidermist Association). In fact, this past March, Brian was recognized for a Pintail with the Best Professional Entry Award and Best of Category Birds-Waterfowl. But, could he do justice to a duck that few have seen let alone harvested?

I had not made up my mind before I stopped by Brian's home and studio after hunting with Tim in Vermillion County. Sure, I had several people who recommended him and I had viewed several of his efforts exhibited on his web site but you can’t truly judge something through others eyes now can you? With all this and having seen what Brian had preserved for Tim, I still wasn't sure what to do...

Over the next hour, Brian and I talked in his studio. We talked about hunting and we talked about savoring and preserving the memories. I learned of how he had taken an interest, no, that is too weak a word as he seemed to have been obsessed with performing taxidermy on birds since he before he was a teenager. When other boys were out and about, Brian spent many a day and night trying to learn the art of taxidermy. In fact, he even spent time with Chris Musser where the student began to evolve into the teacher. And as we chatted about waterfowling from Mississippi, to the northeast coast, to the Dakota’s and to back here in Illinois, I started to believe I had found a truly unique and gifted individual who not only has a great passion for what he does but has a deep-seated respect for the feathered prey we pursue. But the true test will be how he captures and preserves my trophy…

As the hour was growing late and I had another 100 miles to drive home, I decided to ask him about the Blond Mallard. Now I had decided he was going to get the bird about 30 minutes earlier and as he carefully uncovered my frozen trophy I knew in my heart I had made the right decision. As he examined it I could clearly see the care and respect he had for it. It was more than what you find when visiting a funeral director as they are paid to do what they do and if they have a passion for the deceased…well, that’s just plain wrong! With Brian you could see and almost taste the passion he has for preserving what others desire. I even noticed a Redhead on his wall that he mounted and was blown away to learn he had done it himself some 21 years ago! And as I left his home nearly two hours after arriving, I felt good about my decision.

I had made my down-payment but still needed to decide on whether I wanted a wall mount or something else, like one that can be viewed from 360-degrees. Now I had plenty of time on my hands as I am use to not seeing something come back from a taxidermist in less than nine-months. And, I placed my trust in Brian to do what was necessary to capture the Blond Mallard as I found it - he could use my pictures and the story I wrote. Yet, you can’t imagine how surprised I was to learn in early April that he had it done just 80 days later! Now Fithian is nearly 100 miles from home, so it wasn’t like I could just drop by after work. And when he called and offered to drop it off when he took his daughter back to her mother, I was thrilled. I mean this is service!

As it was Easter Sunday, the parking lot was empty except for Brian and me. And even though I could see the outline of the bird through his rear window while we chatted away for maybe 10 minutes, I had my breath taken away when he opened the hatchback! I mean not only was the setting he had built for the duck looked just like what you would find in just about any wetland, the Blond Mallard taking flight looked like it was still alive and unharmed. And as Brian turned it completely around so I could view the mount…well, words still escape me.

It was if what he had preserved, no, make that recreated life as this was the same duck I discovered less than four months earlier prior to my taking the shots that ended its life. I mean not only was he able to capture the lifelike colors of the webbed feet with their unusual mottled spots, the truly lifelike bill and eyes (with eyelids no less), and the feathers all in their correct positions, my new prize just put other mounts I have acquired and even Mother Nature to shame!

Not knowing him well enough, I had to refrain from hugging and giving him a big kiss on the cheek for what he had bestowed on me this Easter afternoon. As I continued to admire his creation, I learned how he had tried to ensure that it looked exactly like it did in real life. No, not after it was dead but how it looked as it had moments before its demise. This involved more than simply skinning and stretching its remains over a form, for Brian discussed how he could manipulate individual feathers just so they would look more life-like when he was done. That he has grateful for the opportunity to preserve a true trophy and hoped I was satisfied with his efforts.

Satisfied! Hell, I was almost in tears of joy as I continued to take in the results of his talents. I mean I went to dozens of award winning taxidermists web sites to review their works prior to my deciding on Brian, and then even more when I was trying to decide on that special pose I wanted for my Blond Mallard, and what I saw in front of me simply outshone the rest. But, don’t let my words try to persuade you as the following pictures will come closer to what I am now blessed with that resides in my home. A home that does not do this work of art justice and makes me feel that I am not worthy of having it – period.

Now there might be a bunch of you out there who are use to partaking of fine wines, expensive shotguns and the like. In fact, I know there are a lot of very good taxidermists out there and that they receive pretty good compensation for their efforts. I don’t dispute that. Yet, never in my dreams had I thought I would be able to afford or be the beneficiary of such a beautiful creation as I have now. This bird has a story behind it and now it can live on for others to admire, enjoy and reflect on due to the efforts of Brian; and I will be eternally grateful. His passion has preserved a moment in my life that will never be duplicated and as I said earlier, I just don’t feel worthy of what I now have resting in my home…

I will forever feel fortunate for being introduced to Brian Cassidy and eternally grateful for what he has bestowed on me. Not so much a work of art as it is a creation of eternal life through his ability as a taxidermist, so that I and all those who view my Blond Mallard can admire, enjoy and above all else reflect upon a special time and place in my life...