July 2019 10 It’s the 15th Annual National DAY OF THE COWBOY! This milestone calls for a big celebration. As the 15th Annual National Day of the Cowboy approaches on July 27, we have persuaded 15 state legislatures to officially recognize the 4th Saturday in July as a day to celebrate cowboy culture and pioneer heritage. And, Sean Gleason has now made it his personal mission to help us enlist the remaining 35 states. After the Montana vote, he launched a National Cowboy Council as an advisory arm of the National Day of the Cowboy, which will work to promote this effort and to secure the operating funds needed to continue our work. Sean also graciously arranged for me to travel to Arkansas to attend the NDOC bill signing ceremony which Arkansas Governor, Asa Hutchinson, held in Little Rock, in May. It was quite an illustrious gathering. Both of our Arkansas volunteers, Marshall Mitchell and Jennifer Michaels, were able to attend, as was Sean Gleason himself. Singer/songwriter Wade Kimes arrived with Ms. Arkansas as his guest. The governor invited cowboys and cowgirls from all over the state, including PBR bull rider, cowboy Chase Outlaw, who hails from Arkansas. Staff from Bad Boy Mowers, Justin Boots and Ariat were present. Representative Clint Penzo and Senator L. Eads, who co-sponsored the bill, were also there. People could watch the ceremony live over the internet and later that day it was covered by several TV news stations which was a significant level of public relations exposure for this effort. I especially appreciated the willingness of the Governor and Sean to pose for pictures with the National Day of the Cowboy flag which Jennifer Michaels had brought along. Unfortunately, the cowboy bill did not make it through either the Missouri legislature or the Tennessee legislature, although it was introduced in both. In Colorado, where it was again sponsored by Representative Donald Valdez, it never got out of committee, so Valdez once again introduced a resolution, which did pass. Time flies. Here we are, approaching the many NDOC celebrations taking place around the country in July on this its 15th anniversary. Volunteer, Cindy Longoria, has been adding to the events calendar on our website as more and more people and organizations send in the details of their events. Please visit that page on our site to find out what’s going on in your territory. And remember, if you don’t find anything, this is a good time to start a celebration of your own. It’s great to get the bill passed, but it’s equally important to celebrate. Our team of amazing, dedicated spokespersons, Hotshot Johnny, Brent Slutsky, Kelsee Bradshaw, Dr. Buck Montgomery, Will Roberts, Lee Anderson, Bob DeMitry and Concho, all know where they’ll be celebrating on July 27th, including Prescott, Arizona, Dodge City, Kansas, and Salinas, California. The secretary of our board, Barb “Western Belle” Richhart, will be hosting her annual NDOC backyard concert in Mancos, Colorado, showcasing The Rifters band. Vice-chair, Jerry Betley will be hosting an annual celebration at Moose Lake in Indiana. There’s still a possibility that I’ll be a guest at an inaugural NDOC event in New Hampshire. As always, we have some extremely impressive Cowboy Keeper Award recipients this year, to be announced around July 20th. The art image for this year’s award, “The Fencing Crew,” has been donated to us by Montana artist, David Graham. Thanks again to Sean Gleason and the PBR, a fundraising organization known as “Omaze,” will be launching a national raffle for the National Day of the Cowboy organization at Cheyenne Frontier Days. First prize includes two Elite tickets to the PBR World Finals in Las Vegas; including airfare and hotel, and a behind the scenes tour of the chutes with Sean himself. They’ll be selling 10,000 tickets for $10 each with half the proceeds benefiting the NDOC, so watch for their announcement and launch of the raffle on July 18th and ending October 6th. It really is the 15th Annual National Day of the Cowboy coming up! Don’t forget to celebrate! By Bethany Braley, National Day of the Cowboy Executive Director & Publisher Like us on Facebook - National Day of the Cowboy; nationaldayofthecowboy.com The Montana National Day of the Cowboy cliff hanger finally ended on April 25, 2019. The NDOC bill, which the Montana House originally voted down, passed in a 2/3 majority blast motion to be reintroduced. That meant it had to be read and voted on in the House three times again. No sooner had it finally passed the House, than legislators realized the wording was not exactly the same as the bill that passed in the Senate, which of course meant, it had to go back to the Senate and be passed there again; three times. Crazy stuff! Nevertheless, thanks to the monumental perseverance of volunteer Ted Valentiner and Senator Kenneth Bogner, Montana did take its place as the 15th state to pass the National Day of the Cowboy bill into law, following Arkansas (#13) and North Dakota (#14). At the Ceremonial signing of the Arkansas National Day of the Cowboy bill in Little Rock Arkansas May 20th. Front row, NDOC AR Volunteer Jennifer Michaels, co-sponsor Senator L. Eads, and Bethany Braley. Back row, bill co-sponsor Representative Clint Penzo and Arkansas NDOC volunteer, Marshall Mitchell. In the office of Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson before he signed the Arkansas National Day of the Cowboy bill into law. Left to right, Cowboy Chase Outlaw, Bethany Braley National Day of the Cowboy Executive Director, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, Sean Gleason CEO of PBR, and Arkansas Senator L. Eads. The final Montana effort received an enormous assist from Sean Gleason, CEO of the PBR as well. Had he not stepped in and pointed out the huge economic impact cowboy culture has on Montana, including its history of pro bull riding there, our hopes for Montana passage might have gone down in flames. FREE admission to the Desert Caballeros Western Museum on July 27th in honor of the National Day of the Cowboy