About us
Who We Are
The Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada is a not-for-profit national organization of professional communicators specializing in the outdoor field. Our membership includes writers, artists, illustrators, photographers, cinematographers, lecturers, broadcasters, podcasters, producers, and radio, television and internet personalities.
Our Value Statement
To promote hunting, angling and other outdoor activities as a valued part of our Canadian culture through the creation of high-quality content across all communications mediums.
Our Mission
As a community of professional outdoor communicators that is well informed, interconnected, and enthusiastic about hunting, fishing and other traditional outdoor activities, the Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada’s mission is to promote and recognize high standards of craftsmanship and professional conduct among our members.
Our Goals and Objectives
Through our member benefits, our goal is to assist outdoor media professionals in achieving success and excellence in their craft in order to:
- Encourage interest in and an appreciation for the outdoors;
- Stimulate high standards of craftsmanship among those concerned with the portrayal of outdoor life; and,
- Co-operate with others in support of the responsible use of Canada's natural resources.
Our Leadership
Jeffrey B. Smith, President – Alberta
Jeff has been a member of POMAC (OWC) since 1998. In 2009 he became the fly-tying columnist for Alberta Outdoorsmen and has written numerous conservation, how to and product reviews for Alberta Outdoorsmen, Western Woods and Waters, RV West, and most recently several features and product reviews for Canadian Firearms Journal. He has served on the board of directors as Director at Large, Western Regional Director, Vice President, and currently serving his 3rd term as the President.
Don MacLean, Chairman of the Board – Nova Scotia
Don has chaired the Outdoor Writers of Canada Board of Directors since 2019. Prior to that he served as Eastern Canada Director, Vice-President and President. He began writing professionally in 1999 with his first newspaper column. Since then, he has written over 1,000 columns and articles. He published three books: Discover Nova Scotia Sport Fishing, A Little Thing I Tied Myself-Stories of Atlantic Canadian Fly Tiers and With These Hands -Traditional Arts, Crafts and Trades of Atlantic Canada. Don and his wife Judy returned home to Cape Breton Island in 2020 where he is enjoying the opportunity to rediscover his home waters.
Timothy D. Fowler, Director-at-Large – Alberta
Timothy Fowler is an award-winning Podcaster and Journalist. His recovery from a 35-year career with a Fortune 200 global company is ongoing. Fowler is widely published, with 600+ credits to his name. While he continues to learn how to write, he seems unable to fully wash fountain pen ink from his index finger. Tim has been a member of the Board of Directors for four years.
Darryl Dahl, Director-at-Large
Darryl is an avid hunter and angler that enjoys helping others with digital marketing. Living in Edmonton, Alberta with his wife and daughter, Darryl gets outdoors year round and enjoys bow and rifle hunting for predators, big game, waterfowl, and fishing of all types. Darryl was previously a big game guide for outfitters through the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society. He has been engaged in marketing since 2009 and has been involved in retail sales and management since 1994. Currently he specializes in digital marketing and social media tactics. You can find him at many trade shows, gun shows, and other events. For years he has collaborated with individuals and companies, to help streamline their online presence. Darryl regularly contributes craft improvement articles to the POMAC News Blast and looks forward to serving on the Board of Directors.
T.J. Schwanky, Executive Director – Alberta
TJ has acted as Executive Director for the organization since 2008 and prior to that served several roles on the board of directors, including president. TJ had his first magazine feature published in 1986 and since then have had close to 1,500 features and columns published across the world. He authored the book Walleye Across the West and currently writes columns for Alberta Outdoorsmen and Outdoor Canada West. He is the producer/co-host of Canada’s longest running television hunting series, Outdoor Quest TV and when he is not manning the office here at POMAC, you can find him hunting across the world with his partner, Vanessa Harrop.
Andrew Lowles, Treasurer and Eastern Region Director – Nova Scotia
Andrew has been with the organization since 2015, when he joined and filled the role as Regional Director. He is a biologist and the Resource Manager for the Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture. With his partner, Erin and their three children, they maintain a small, sustainable farm and woodlot. Andrew is an avid fly fisher, waterfowler, and upland hunter who enjoys training dogs and spending time afield with family and friends. He is a provincially licensed hunting and fishing guide, avid photographer and writer, and volunteers with the Ruffed Grouse Society/American Woodcock Society, Ducks Unlimited, the Nova Scotia Salmon Association, and several others.
Tom Armstrong, Ontario Regional Director
Tom has been the Ontario Region Director since 2019, and a member of the organization for many years. Tom lives near Thunder Bay, in Northwestern Ontario with his wife and two girls, and spends a great deal of time introducing his girls to the outdoors, trying to instill in them a love for the outdoors, fishing, hunting and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Tom is an avid big game hunter, who also loves fishing, in particular the trout that inhabit Lake Superior and the Nipigon system, which he is lucky to live close to. Tom has a passion for writing and photography, and writes for several publications, including Ontario Out of Doors. Tom has served on a variety of boards of outdoors organizations over the years, and is happy to be a part of a growing organization like POMAC.
Jaren Baranyay, Corporate Director - Alberta
Jaren was recently named the Corporate Director for OWC. Jaren is the current Marketing Manager for Korth Group Ltd., a national distribution company for multiple lines of outdoor, shooting, and hunting equipment including Leupold, Hornady, Ruger, and Fabarm, to name a few. His role as Marketing Manager started mid 2023 but before that Jaren was the Alberta Sale Representative for Korth Group since he started with the company in 2017. Jaren currently lives in Okotoks Alberta with his wife Emily and son Luke. His past times include hunting, shooting, and wood carving.
Ken Bailey, Marketing Director - Alberta
Ken has been a member of the Outdoor Writers of Canada, now POMAC, since 1990, serving in an extensive range of roles over the years, including President and Chairman. A writer and editor, he has published more than 1400 articles in a wide variety of magazines, newspapers and book chapters. He has served as hunting editor of Outdoor Canada for nearly 30 years, is the editor of Barry Mitchell’s Alberta Fishing Guide, serves as the wingshooting columnist for African Hunting Gazette, and continues to freelance when time permits. His award-winning book, No Place Like Home, was published in 2019.
Josh Martin, Mid Western Director - Alberta
Josh wakes up every day with the goal of discovering something new, to be a catalyst for change, and to contribute to a more sustainable future. Unless it's hunting season… then his only goal is to put wild meat on the table for his family and find inspiration for his next feature. As an Alberta-based, late-onset hunter and new outdoor writer, he joined the POMAC two years ago and enthusiastically took on the Director role for the Mid-Western region this year. When he is not hunting or thinking about hunting, he is spending time with his wife and two young daughters enjoying the mountains and foothills around the Crowsnest Pass where they live and play.
Michaela Ludwig, British Columbia Director
Michaela has worked as a journalist and editor since 2006, beginning her career in community newspapers before making the move to magazines in 2013 with Western Sportsman and Outdoor Edge. Today, Michaela works as the assistant editor for BC Outdoors magazine, and she also lends her editing skills to the Canadian Firearms Journal and four of Canada’s wildlife federations. Michaela enjoys spending time outdoors and relishes any chance she gets to go fishing, shooting or flinging arrows.
Our History
Waterloo newspaperman Herb Smith founded the Outdoor Writers of Canada (OWC) in 1957 and served as its first president. A year later, in 1958, the OWC held its first annual meeting at Shoofly Lodge in Ontario. The original concept behind the OWC was craft improvement, but it quickly became evident that there was a need to work closely with government, industry, NGOs and private interests to educate and promote the responsible use of Canada's natural resources.
In 1983 the OWC membership expanded from being primarily Ontario–based to include more members from the Atlantic provinces and western Canada. The national expansion and presence of the OWC continued through the decades and, in 2008, the OWC Headquarters moved to Cochrane, Alberta.
In 2022, the OWC Board of Directors formally approved the re-branding of the OWC to the Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada (POMAC) as a means to better recognize the diversity in media formats through which our membership communicates its passion for the outdoors. POMAC was officially launched in May 2023.