Aiming High: Omaha Citadel Corps Offers Archery Program
Five millimeters made the determination between gold and silver in the archery competition at the Olympics games this summer. The sport is one that requires precision, accuracy and form, and it is not one for which you can walk into any gym and acquire skills. There are only a half a dozen places in Omaha where one can learn archery — one of those places is The Salvation Army of Omaha’s Citadel Corps center on 3738 Cuming St.
Major Mark Martsolf, a certified archery instructor who teaches the National Archery in the Schools Program, began thinking of ways to start an archery program soon after arriving in Omaha in 2021. The Women’s Auxiliary made a donation that helped to purchase bows, arrows, and other supplies, getting this program off the ground in March 2023.
Lyle Lazure has been coming to Citadel for the archery program since March 2023, and three of his five children — Lael, age 12; Lucy, age 11; and Levi, age 8 — have participated in the program with him. Two other children are too young to participate at this time.
Lazure’s kids started doing archery in their yard, as Lyle bought the family “some simple bows to play with.” After his kids had been using them for a bit, Lazure thought it would be nice to get some formal training in bow-and-arrow shooting. That’s when he found Martsolf’s class.
Lazure appreciates that the class is well structured, with Martsolf placing a high emphasis on the safety of all participating. He said there are two to three people assisting with the class to make sure everyone stays safe.
The NAP method that Martsolf teaches places a high emphasis on technique and refining of the 11 steps to shooting an arrow.
“I think a lot of students find it initially frustrating, but then, as they learn how to get through the steps, by the end of the six-week course that we offer, they have dramatically improved,” Martsolf said. “It’s great to see the kids go from not being able to hit the target to being able to hit the yellow zone.”
Lazure enjoys watching his kids overcome the frustration to become trained archers. “Everything in life is going to be a struggle. When things aren’t going right, to be able to put that aside, and to put in the effort, so you can see the reward, that improvement, is absolutely fantastic.”
Beyond that, he said of his own interest in the sport, “It really just allows you to relax, for me anyway, it allows you to shut everything out while you’re shooting. It’s really Zen-like, it’s like meditation.”
The archery program is run on Tuesday evenings at Citadel, with classes happening from 6-7 p.m., 7-8 p.m. and 8-9 p.m.