|
|
|
|
|
After many years absence, a Queen will reign at the 2008 Sheridan-Wyo-Rodeo (SWR). The (SWR) last had a queen twenty-seven years ago. She was Teri Lilley who reined in 1980. Teri is now Teri D’Spain, a wife, mother and employee of the Soil Conservation Service who lives in Riverton, Wyoming. Though it was established in 1931, the SWR did not select a queen until Gladys Accola reined in 1936. Her court consisted of a Lady in Waiting, Virginia Kerr, and a Flag Bearer, Joan Churchill. Other members of the court were two Indian “Princesses”; Myrtle Big Man from the Crow Tribe and Josephine Stands-in-the-Timber of the Cheyenne Tribe. Over the next forty-four years, the SWR Queen program produced some amazing and lovely young ladies to represent the SWR as queen and attending royalty. Unfortunately, the program was, at times, subject to public criticism for a variety of reasons. For instance, at one time the queen was selected by a secret committee and political considerations were more important than horsemanship. In fact, one year the queen selectee could not ride and had to be given riding lessons to get through the rodeo. At another time, it was difficult to find girls to apply for the contest, and the SWR board had to beat the bushes to find enough contestants. As popular as the queen program was to most of the public, and as much good as it did for the girls who competed, the workload became too onerous for the Rodeo Board and they abandoned it in 1979. A former SWR Queen ran the program for one more year to produce the 1980 SWR Queen and that was that. But now, twenty-seven years later, a new SWR Queen program is rising from the ashes of the old in the form of the Sheridan County Rodeo Queen Board. The Queen Board was formed some years ago to provide royalty for the Sheridan County Rodeo. Recently, the Queen Board requested that their program be placed under the auspices of the SWR and this change was agreed to by the Sheridan County Rodeo and the SWR. So now the Queen Board will be called the SWR Queen Board and be under the umbrella of the SWR. This change means that the 2008 SWR will have a Rodeo Queen and attendants. They will be selected by the SWR Queen Board during the forthcoming rodeo week this summer. The SWR Queen Board is dedicated to bringing more recognition to rodeo royalty and the sport of rodeo and to insuring that the participants uphold high moral standards and conduct. In addition the SWR Queen Board plans to raise the minimum age of queen contestants to nineteen years of age and to allow queen entries from a one hundred miles radius within the state of Wyoming. The SWR Queen Board has also changed queen selection scoring rules; now contestants are scored 50% on horsemanship, 25% on personality and 25% on appearance. (Formerly, the percentages were equal thirds.) More information on this exciting resurrection of the SWR Queen Program will be forthcoming from the SWR Queen Board. Inquires can be directed to President, Kerri Cook at cowdogs77@hotmail.com (tel: 307-461-1217). In the meantime, the SWR Board of Directors is pleased about the recent turn of events and looks forward to the return of royalty to the SWR--many people will think it’s about time.
As a board we stand firm in our belief that rodeo royalty should uphold high moral standards and conduct, as they are in the public eye. The board has been under new leadership now for several years. We have new ideas and exciting changes and growth is well under way. We would like to see the reigning royalty continue to get involved in the community by public speaking at schools and sharing information about the sport of rodeo, what it takes to be a rodeo queen, and what Sheridan County has to offer in those areas. We would also like them to emphasize the importance of setting goals in life and working hard to achieve them and where they can take you. We are working to bring more recognition to the rodeo royalty and the sport of rodeo. As a board, together we want to be sure that becoming rodeo royalty is a fun and rewarding experience for those involved. We would like to see our Royalty utilized in the community and throughout the state. The Sheridan WYO Rodeo Royalty has a lot to offer the community in the way of public service at different functions, promoting what the county has to offer, preserving our western heritage, and being a positive role model for the public. We want also want to assist the reigning queen so she can be prepared for the Miss Rodeo Wyoming pageant. We hold annual Rodeo Queen Clinics to aid young ladies in preparing for this type of competition. In our clinics we strive to educate girls not only on horsemanship and rodeo knowledge, but also on what it takes to succeed in life, public speaking skills, how to be a positive role model, and what is expected of them as an ambassador of Sheridan County and the sport of Rodeo. You know you have made a difference in one’s life when a shy little girl walks into the first day of our rodeo queen clinic. She has poor speaking skills and little self-confidence, but behind those timid eyes is a sparkle that is waiting to be revealed. When the day is over, this little girl is walking with poise, speaking with confidence, has a goal in mind, and the knowledge to achieve it. Being a rodeo queen is not just about dressing up and riding around the rodeo arena waving. It’s about the smile on a girl’s face that shines as a result of all that she has accomplished and the lives she has touched, as she proudly represents her country, where she comes from, and the western way of life. Sheridan WYO Rodeo Queen Board Members
Current
Royalty
Copyright
© 2008 Sheridan WYO Rodeo Queen Board * All Rights Reserved |
|||
The
Sheridan WYO
