County support brings firearms access to 4-H shooting range
Dalton Massengill, left, coaches younger shooters during a practice session at the expanded range.
Dalton Massengill has enjoyed target shooting since he was 6 years old.
“The satisfaction of taking aim and making the perfect shot on a plastic bottle was a driving factor in developing my love for the sport,” he says.
By the time he reached middle school, Massengill was ready to join a shooting club. “When looking one day, I found the 4-H club,” he says of Johnston County 4-H Target Sports. “On my first day, I immediately knew it was the place I wanted to be. The instructors made me feel welcomed, and the club members around me were great people.”
But for all the club’s benefits, its shooting range on N.C. 210 near Smithfield had a drawback — nowhere for members to practice with their rifles, pistols, shotgun and muzzleloaders.
“Previously, we were only able to shoot archery and air guns at the range,” says Jonathan Stovall, the club’s adult leader.
But with the County’s blessing and an assist from earthmoving equipment at the nearby County landfill, club members can now bring their guns to the range.
“In order to safely shoot firearms, we made improvements to our existing berm to bring it to recommended NRA standards of 20 feet,” Stovall explains. “We also added two 8-foot side berms to safely separate simultaneous activities.”
He appreciates the assist from the landfill staff. “They brought stored dirt from the landfill side of the property to build up our berms,” Stovall says.
That work is making a world of difference to the club and its members, who had been traveling to a private shooting range in Harnett County.
“Johnston County is large, and our members come from all over the County,” Massengill notes. “Some of us had to drive over 40 minutes to get to the old range.”
Club members also spend less time now setting up the range for practice, he says.
“But most importantly, the shooting itself will improve,” Massengill believes.
In Harnett County, club members had three hours one Saturday a month to practice.
“The time constraints we faced drastically limited our ability to help new shooters improve,” Massengill says. “Now that time is not a problem, our instructors and junior instructors like myself will have the ability to more meticulously train new shooters without having to rush.”
Stovall believes the expanded range will create opportunities for the club. “Besides providing a centralized location in Johnston County, it is going to allow us much more flexibility to grow the club and expand the depth of activities,” he says.
The Johnston County range could even become a destination, Stovall says. “We eventually want to occasionally host smaller regional gatherings of 4-H shooting clubs for practice tournaments,” he says.
Stovall says the county is blessed to have the expanded range. “The biggest challenge faced by practically every shooting sports club in the state is access to a range,” he says. “Johnston County placing its support behind our 4-H shooting sports program with a dedicated range alleviates that challenge long term.”
And Stovall thinks the improved range will help 4-H accomplish its mission. “Leadership is a primary goal of 4-H, and much of our program is driven by teaching the members themselves to step up in planning and growing club engagement,” he says. “Being able to give them the opportunity to really take that to the next level will not only benefit their marksmanship skills, but further enhance the 4-H aspects of youth learning through camaraderie and collaboration with, now, an even broader 4-H community.”
Page last updated on: January 14, 2026