2011 Will Rogers Medallion Award
Winners
The Will Rogers Medallion Award Committee is proud to announce the winners
of the 2011 Will Rogers Medallion Awards for Outstanding Achievement in
the Publishing of Western Literature. The books, authors and
publishers to be honored this year are:
Cowboy Poetry:
Cowboy Poetry: In
This Land Of Little Rain Author
Jane Ambrose Morton, Colorado Springs, Colorado; Publisher-
Cowboy Miner Productions, Phoenix, Arizona
Western Nonfiction:
Cowboy's Lament
Author - Frank Maynard/Jim
Hoy; Publisher - Texas Tech University Press, Lubbock, Texas
Georgia Cowboy Poets Author- David Fillingim, Rome,
Georgia; Publisher - Mercer University Press, Macon, Georgia
Western Fiction Young Adult:
Love Finds You In
Golden, New Mexico Author Lena Nelson Dooley, Hurst, Texas;
Publisher - Summerside Press, Bloomington, Minnesota
Western Fiction:
The Scorpion Trail
Author Larry Sweazy, Noblesville, Indiana; Publisher Berkley Books,
New York, New York
The General and Monaville, Texas Author - Joe Bax,
Richards, Texas; Publisher - Greenleaf Book Group, Austin, Texas
100 Miles To Water Author - Mike Kearby, Lometa, Texas'
Publisher - ReadWest/Goldmine Publishing, Missouri
The Chameleon Rancher Author - Pat Jacobs; Publisher -
Glory Ann Kurtz, Boyd, Texas
Photographic Essays:
Humboldt Heartland
Author - Andy Westfall, Ferndale, California; Publisher - Humboldt
Heartland, Ferndale, California
Tell Me About That Horse Author - Vaughn Wilson, Petal,
Mississippi; Publisher - Hawk Crest Publishing, Petal, Mississippi
It's All About The Buckle: Cooking With The C-C Authors -
Sue Cunningham, Hartley, Texas and Jean Cates, Amarillo, Texas;
Publisher - Cowbarn Cowboy Productions
Western Humor:
Just A Cowboy
Author - Kenny Phipps, Ardmore, Oklahoma; Publisher - In-Cahoots
Literary Inc, Allan, Texas
Hotter 'N Pecos Author - Bobby Weaver, Edmond, Oklahoma;
Publisher - Texas Tech University Press
Western Cookbooks:
Cow Country Cooking
Author - Kathy McCraine, Prescott, Arizona; Publisher - Cow Country
Cooking, Arizona
This is a very exciting
year for Western Media. said Charles Williams, Executive Director of the
Will Rogers Medallion Committee. It starts with two of the most
spectacular Photographic Essays we've ever had, joined by a third which
has the added pleasure of excellent recipes along with the great photos
and water colors. Both Non-Fiction books are important contributions to
scholarship of the West. The Fiction is well written and engrossing,
particularly The General and Monavalle, Texas, which is sort of
To Kill A Mockingbird set in reconstruction Texas. We are particularly
excited about the addition of a new Category, Western Humor, and the two
winnerswho represent cowboy humor at its best. Once more, the winners
represent a truly outstanding selection of Western Literature of all types
for many interests and ages. These authors and publishers are examples of
the variety and quality that make Western books and films so popular.
Will Rogers was a respected writer as well as cowboy entertainer. The
Medallion Committee hopes and believes that the Will Rogers Medallion
Awards will help to expand the heritage of literature which honors the
traditions and values of the American Cowboy, which Will did so much to
embody and demonstrate. Initially, the Medallion Award was created to
encourage the continued upgrading of the quality of published books of
Cowboy Poetry. The honored books and films continue the establishment of
this tradition of presenting Cowboy Poetry and other types of Western
Literature and Media to the general public in an appealing and accessible
manner. High quality publications like the books above invite readership
in competition with many other forms of literature. As with Wills
published words, we believe that Medallion books have that timeless
quality which allows them to be enjoyed over and over again.
Outstanding books and films are the result of a collaborative effort
between authors, editors, publishers and printers, and the award criterion
emphasizes production values as well as artistic merit. The Will Rogers
Medallion Award for Outstanding Merit/Excellence in Printing and
Production is awarded annually to those publishing houses that contribute
the high production values, commercial viability and prestige to volumes
of Western literature and to high quality media presentations.
[Find a list of recipients
since 2002 in the CowboyPoetry.com feature
here.]
Posted 7/7
Esteemed recipients of the 2011 Cowboy
Keeper Awards announced
The National Day of the
Cowboy 501(c)3 and its Board of Directors have chosen eight individuals
and organizations to receive its 2011 Cowboy Keeper Award.
Selection for the annual award is based on the level and significance of
contributions to the preservation of pioneer heritage and cowboy culture.
Inspired by artist Joelle Smith, the award was conceived in support of the
NDOCs mission to increase awareness for and celebration of the annual
National Day of the Cowboy resolution.
The 2011 Cowboy Keeper Award
recipients are: Westernaires, a mounted precision drill
organization comprised of Jefferson County, Colorado, youngsters age 9 to
19. Since its founding in 1949, Westernaires has provided training to
youth in western riding, precision drills, and horse care. Members develop
qualities such as self discipline from years of weekly training to achieve
promotion to the organizations top teams, a respect for teamwork through
riding week after week with fellow horsemen working together to execute a
well polished performance, a sense of responsibility from caring for
horses, and intense community pride through the cultivation if a shared
appreciation for western heritage.
Successful Florida rancher and Cracker cowboy, Pete Clemons, is a
famed former rodeo star who for over 50 years has been the owner/operator
of the Okeechobee Livestock Market which became Floridas premier cattle
market under his leadership. He is held in high regard for his
friendliness, honesty, and genuine desire to help people. In the early
1980s, he served as chairman of the Florida Beef Council and, for the last
40 years, Clemons, who at 81 still lives life in the saddle, has served as
a board member or officer of the Okeechobee County Cattlemens
Association. Pete Clemons is considered by many to be the best-known and
best-loved cattleman in the entire State of Florida.
In 1975, multi-Cowboy Hall of Famer and legendary calf roper, Cleo
Hearn, designed and founded his historic Cowboys of Color Rodeo
to highlight the cultural diversity of African American, Native American,
and Hispanic rodeo cowboys and cowgirls while providing family fun for
all. His National Finals brings together top ranked Indian, Black, and
Hispanic participants to compete and exhibit in bull riding, calf roping,
and other traditional rodeo events, providing history lessons with the
entertainment. Cultural elements abound, such as an Hispanic female drill
team riding sidesaddle, and tuxedoed riders strutting Tennessee Walking
horses to BB King music. Cleo's organization aims to engage and educate
young people, thus there are performances and stories about Mexican
charros, Indian traditions and Buffalo soldiers between events. Hearn,
himself half African American and half Indian, was the first African
American to attend college on a rodeo scholarship, and in 1970, was the
first African American to win the calf-roping event at a major rodeo. Hes
competed at all major rodeos for 36 consecutive years, joining the Rodeo
Cowboy Association in 1959, and he has a star on the Texas Trail of Fame.
Throughout his career hes won ribbons, trophies, buckles, saddles and
thousands in cash prizes. Cleo Hearn and his Cowboys of Color Rodeo
represent the largest, most significant, multi-cultural rodeo circuit in
the country.
Americas favorite cowboys, Riders in the Sky, have been
entertaining and educating audiences with their musical talent and comedic
flair for over 30 years. Two-time Grammy winners, for the Riders, there is
only one way and, Its the Cowboy Way. Ranger Doug, Too Slim, Woody
Paul, and Joey the Cowpolka King, have over 5,400 concert performances
under their hats and have starred in their own TV and radio shows. They
are beloved members of the Grand Ole Opry (since 1982) and they brought
western music to the White House. Billboard magazine's Jim Bessman counts
Riders as one of the most historically significant acts in the history of
American music." Mission Control even played their cut "Woody's Roundup,"
to wake up NASA's own riders in the sky.
Tom Bishop Sr.'s father arrived in Canada a Scottish orphan filled
with dreams of the frontier. A city boy with no skills, he nearly starved
homesteading Canadian winters in a sod dugout hut. When he saw Buffalo
Bills Wild West Show, he knew it was what he wanted to do, so he began to
put on Wild West shows at local fairs. Tom Bishop Sr. has continued his
father's traditions and has taken his own Wild West shows to the next
level, one of many ways he preserves pioneer heritage. Toms father was
one of five founding members of the Western Horsemens Association of
Ontario, which Tom has continued to support throughout his own life. In
the 1960s Tom and his wife, both expert trick riders and trick ropers,
traveled to England to perform at the Canadian Way of Life Exhibition.
Tom went on to produce rodeos and eastern Canadas only Wild West shows,
inspiring many others to rodeo or perform. A horse coordinator for TV and
film, he provides the horses and wagons for Canadas TV show Murdoch
Mysteries. Tom owns over 50 wagons and carriages he's preserved. He was
one of the original Canadian stuntmen when the film industry came to
Canada in the 1950s, and has doubled many actors. Recently nominated
Entrepreneur of the Year for the Niagara region, people there are
fascinated by his one-of-a-kind lifestyle. Said to personify Code of the
West tenets, Tom Bishop Sr. is characterized as tough but fair, firm but
quiet, and well respected by all. A modern day cowboy, he represents the
second generation of a Canadian family devoted to maintaining the
tradition of Wild West shows.
Nevadas National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, a week-long celebration
of cowboy and ranch life, features contemporary and traditional arts
arising from lives lived caring for land and livestock. Showcasing the
finest cowboy poetry and western music, it also includes workshops in arts
such as rawhide braiding and saddle making. During the gathering, Elko
overflows with cowboys and cowgirls, poets, musicians, artisans, rural
people and city folk, those new to these historic genres and those already
captivated by them. Produced by the Western Folklife Center, the National
Cowboy Poetry Gathering was started in 1985 by a group of folklorists and
poets. It is now an annual ritual for thousands who value and practice the
artistic traditions of ranching heritage and are concerned about the
present and future of these traditions. Hundreds more cowboy poetry
gatherings have taken root over the last 27 years as the Elko Gathering
revitalized a literary art that remains a vital part of the lives of
ranchers and cowboys. In 2000, a U.S. Senate resolution recognized the
cultural value of this art form and the event responsible for its
renaissance, by naming the Elko Gathering the National Cowboy Poetry
Gathering.
California rancher, cowgirl,
and pickup man, inducted into both the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and
the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, Bertha Kaepernik Blancett is
said to have been set astride a horse at age five and told to stay
aboard and keep the cattle out of the garden. She became an expert
horsewoman and saddlebronc rider and in 1904, at age 25, was the first
woman to ever ride a bucking bronc in the open mens division at Cheyenne
Frontier Days Rodeo. She was such a force in early rodeos that in 1914,
she came within 4 points of winning the Pendleton Round-Ups All Around
Cowboy title. In 1915, the Round-Up committee changed the rules so
cowgirls could only compete for second place. She married cowboy Del
Blancett, whom she met while performing for the Millers 101 Wild West
Show. It is said of Bertha Blancett, There wasnt a horse she could not
nor would not ride.
Dubois Main Street works to promote and preserve the unique
cultural and western heritage of Dubois, Wyoming, by fostering and
supporting activities such as their annual 3-day National Day of the
Cowboy event. The organization goes all out to involve the whole community
in celebration. Their heritage based event, now in its third year, offers
something for everyone, including horse clinics, a cowboy parade, family
activities, equine theater with roman riders, rodeo, a presentation about
early women in rodeo, mutton busting for young cowboys and cowgirls,
cowboy storytelling, lessons and demonstrations in western crafts, an art
gallery walk, a barbeque by local restaurants, country dancing, celebrity
look-a-like contests, the National Day of the Cowboy flag, concerts by
local musicians, and a western costume contest for local merchants with
National Day of the Cowboy buckles and flags as prizes. Dubois Main Street
delivers on its promise to its growing legion of NDOC attendees, Join us
and youll experience the cowboy way and see his imprint on the forging of
this country."
The National Day of the Cowboy organization is honored to spotlight the
efforts and accomplishments of these eight exceptional 2011 Cowboy Keeper
Award recipients. Each one represents a powerful element in the
preservation of pioneer heritage and an energizing force in the ongoing
expansion of the worlds cowboy culture. The image for the 2011 Cowboy
Keeper Award is the work of legendary artist, Till Goodan, whose authentic
renderings of the West are easily recognized by all. In addition to the
framed award, Dusty Hart donated eight bronze "let er buck" sculptures
derived from vintage molds he unearthed which were created by his late
grandfather, William Hartnell.
Past Cowboy Keeper recipients include U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle
Giffords, U.S. Senator Craig Thomas, Cheyenne Frontier Days Committee, Old
Cowtown Museum, Dorothy Wood, Julie Ream, Margo Metegrano, Dakota Livesay,
Doc Stovall, Don & Sharon Endsley, Scott OMalley, Kathleen Collins,
Michael Martin Murphey, and the Desert Cowboys. The 2011 Cowboy Keeper
Awards will be presented throughout the year, including one on July 23,
2011; the 7th Annual National Day of the Cowboy.
For additional information visit:
www.nationaldayofthecowboy.com.
[See the CowboyPoetry.com
special National Day of the Cowboy Art Spur
here and our feature about the National Day of the Cowboy
here.]
