Friends of Rodeo - Latest News

President's Challenge
by Linda Burdick, Executive Director, Friends of Rodeo Organization

A milestone was reached by the Friends of Rodeo organization in October — it marked ten years of support and service to rodeo by this group of dedicated volunteers.

Friends of Rodeo (FoR) was formed out of the necessity to combat animal rights groups that wish to do away with all animals in exhibition — rodeos, circuses, fairs, 4H, FFA, etc. A group of very insightful individuals from Texas decided that such an organization needed to be created to inform and educate in order to protect and preserve rodeo and our Western Heritage. This idea was inspired when in early 1992 the Kostmayer Bill (known as HR 3252) was almost passed — the bill was only defeated by ONE vote. If the Kostmayer Bill would have become law, the sport of rodeo would have been history as we know it.

On October 6-7, 1992 an organizational meeting was held in Dallas, Texas. This meeting was a monumental event — for the first time in the history of the sport, rodeo associations (over 40, in fact) united to set forth the plans to form the non-profit and non-partisan organization to be known as "Friends of Rodeo".

The original National Office was set up in McKinney, Texas. FoR's first Board of Directors was represented by Bob Ragsdale as President, Kenny Ross as Vice President and Pat Carlson as its Secretary-Treasurer. Denny Watkins and Ginger Crotta were added soon thereafter as Board Members.

An Advisory Board was soon formed with an impressive list of representatives from most major rodeo association's, including the American Junior Rodeo Association (AJRA), American Professional Rodeo Association (APRA), International Professional Rodeo Association (IPRA), National High School Rodeo Association (NHSRA), National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA), National Little Britches Rodeo Association (NLBRA), National Senior Pro Rodeo Association (NSPRA), North American Rodeo Commission (NARC), and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA).

Dean Flenniken (now Ticoulat) was the "artist" that created the original FoR logo — she drew the little cowboy from a photo she had taken earlier in 1992 of Bo Jake Barnes, son of world champion team roper Jake Barnes.

The first FoR State "Chapter" was organized in January of 1993 in Montana, when Karen Miller was appointed the Montana State Executive Director. The second state to organize a chapter was Oregon in February, followed by Colorado in March and then California in April. New York organized a chapter soon after, followed by New Mexico and Louisiana.

The ever popular and informational FoR Booth Program was thought of, originated by, and first tested by President Bob Ragsdale. This program came from Bob possessing the experience and insight to see the necessity of FoR being at every event, to not only inform and educate, but to acquaint this organization and it's goals to the rodeo world — including it's very important fans that attend the events. The very first FoR Booth to be set up at a rodeo was at the Senior Pro Rodeo Finals held in Reno, Nevada in November of 1992. Montana was the first chapter to produce a "State" FoR Booth at an event, when Karen Miller set one up at the Cowboy Christmas Reunion in Billings in December 1992.

The first FoR Newsletter, a one page "letter" format, was sent out from the National Office in Texas on January 1, 1993. When FoR reorganized and regrouped in July of 1995 one of the main goals made was to update the newsletter. It has now increased its pages to twenty-four, added advertising, and changed the format to a "tabloid" style. This publication, now called the FoR News, still incorporates the same values and standards of informing and educating within it's literature that was embodied in that very first issue. The opening statement from that first newsletter still holds true today — it read: "Friends of Rodeo is off and rolling, we will not let animal rights activists destroy our children's dream!"

To keep up with our fast paced society of today, Friends of Rodeo has an informational, educational, and very interesting Website — www.FriendsofRodeo.com. And, in 1999 FoR adopted a new and more energy-packed logo that was introduced to coincide with the new millennium.

All in all, Friends of Rodeo has seen many changes and continues to be the only organization of its type — a non-profit, non-partisan, grass roots membership based organization — that the rodeo world has on its side to protect and preserve the future of the sport and our Western Heritage.

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