REGION VIII

8434 N. US Hwy 183 • Goliad, Texas 77963830.570.7302 • kim_nicholson@att.net

JASON UNDERBRINK

520 Phillips Rd • Pleasanton, Texas 78064 210.854.7718 • jasonunderbrink@yahoo.com

STUDENT OFFICERS PRESIDENT - KATE MCNEIL VICE PRESIDENT - RYLEE DODSON SECRETARY - SYDNEY BLAIR

PO Box 787 • Asherton, TX 78837 830-999-3344 • tom@catarosaranch.com

SECRETARY - CELINA FETTY

3005 Santa Ana St. • Corpus Christi, Texas 78415 361.739.9858 • region8thsra@gmail.com

STATE DIRECTORS / REGION OFFICERS TOM AASBO

PO Box 787 • Asherton, TX 78837 830-999-3344 • tom@catarosaranch.com

PERFORMANCE REPORT

By BAILEY GUBERT – Performance Reporter

Spring is Here: 2020 will definitely be a year to remember. Our lives, as we know it are forever changed in many ways. As the youth, we have learned to be a little more gracious and humble when it comes to others.

As a society, we have learned to social distance and have our extracurricular activities taken away from us. Luckily for rodeo, committees have strived to keep the youth events on going. It was so amazing for Texas to host the NFR this year!!

Have you planned your 2021 year? Have you started making a calendar of all of your events and places you want to go? The calendar in my family, is the Bible. As a Senior this year, I didn’t want to have any regrets and wanted to attend all the youth events possible. We are only this age once and we get to compete in a youth age group, where the payout is great. Don’t miss it!

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This year, region 8 has 28 graduating seniors! Each one of these individuals are unique in their own way and have many talents. Our region is so proud of each you and will miss you. Most of our Seniors have already planned the next step in their future. Some of our seniors will be on college rodeo teams and others will focus on just their studies. I wish you all good luck and never stop reaching for your goals!

HERE’S TO 12 NEW CHAPTERS

2021 GRADUATING SENIORS

• Rymond Haby • Kadi Fretwell • Tyler Bauerle • Kylie Mask • Joel Cavazos • Kelan Bode • Pablo DeLaGarza • Rylee Dodson • Victoria Brewer • Jacquelyn Graff • Victoria Vela • Isabelle Picklo • Fallon Bridges • Chance Little • Madison Brown • Cameran Cantu • Dannie Davison • Bailey Gubert • Garrett Koch • Camry Mangum • Chase Montague • Christina Moore • Kennidy Nicholson • Brooke Peterson • Katherine Stokes • Taryl Topperwein • Valentin Trujillo • McKenna Tschirhart

ROLE MODEL:

What do you think makes a good role model? The biggest money earner in the PRCA/WPRA? Examples: Who rides the best looking horse? The best looking competitor? There are many factors that make a good role model……The example of this prestigious person should take a lot of thought and raise the bar for you as a competitor. My thoughts are; does this person have a great work ethic? Do they possess greatness, honesty and integrity? Are they a gracious winner and a gracious loser? Make sure your role model makes you want to be better and rise up to the competition. You are only as good as your competition!

“My hope and prayer is that everyone know and love our country for what she really is and what she stands for.” ― John Wayne

Farm & Ranch Family

The folks at McCoy’s Building Supply understand that it takes a lot of hard work and the whole family pitching in to get things done on a farm or ranch. That’s why we’d like to take some time out to salute Texas High School Rodeo Association families who are farmers and ranchers. In our monthly Farm & Ranch Family Spotlight, we’ll feature one family, sharing their story of how they work together as a family to make their farm or ranch successful. The spotlight will run for 10 months; each month will feature a different Region. Each Regional McCoy’s Farm and Ranch Family will receive a $100 McCoy’s Gift Card. The McCoy’s Farm and Ranch Family of the Year will receive a $500 McCoy’s Gift Card and will be announced at the 2021 THSRA State Finals.

The Ohrt Family of Region VI

by Jacqueline Knox

Congratulations to this month’s McCoys Farm and Ranch Family, the Ohrts! Clay and Wendy have two children, Kyler (15) and Natalie (13). The entire family works together to make their three businesses—Ohrt Farms, CW Cattle Company and Ohrt Cattle Company—such a success!

Their ranch spreads out over thousands of acres with their home base located in Victoria, Texas (Region 6). Ohrt cattle has been in business for roughly ten years and is comprised of Clay, his brother and mother. CW Cattle is Clay and Wendy’s cattle company that they started together about three years ago. Both cattle companies are cow calf operations. Clay shared that they have around 1,040 cattle and 20 horses on the ranch.

Clay has been farming for over 18 years, but Ohrt Farms was formed just three years ago. For the farming operation, they farm roughly 4,000 acres of corn and cotton. They have also planted some sorghum in the past.

Every day, the cattle and horses have to be fed, watered and checked on. The farming work varies based on the season. Right now, they are starting to plant and then they will care for the crops before they are ready to be harvested. Wendy joked that it is always “early rise, late nights” around the Ohrt ranch.

Working on the ranch is a family affair for the Ohrts, as everyone pitches in where they can. While Wendy works an outside job a generation and transmission company, she helps out around the ranch whenever she can. Clay, Kyler and Natalie all work together on a daily basis, whether that’s feeding or helping with the crops. “This creates a really unique bond between them,” Wendy said.

Kyler and Natalie are mainly in charge of taking care of the animals, which usually includes mixing the feed and feeding the horses and cattle. While talking to Wendy, Kyler was driving the tractor and doing some planting work. “Natalie is a go-getter,” Wendy said. “She makes sure everything gets fed. She keeps her brother and her dad in line with everything that needs to get done.”

Wendy and Clay both grew up in the ranching lifestyle and knew it was something that they wanted their children to experience. When they got married, both Clay and Wendy had outside jobs. However, their ranching grew so much that they could no longer both have an outside job and maintain the ranching operation. So, Clay chose to quit his job and start the cattle and farming business full-time. Ranching has taught Wendy and Clay that it takes a team to make something successful. They have also learned that when it comes to doing the ranch chores, it is more fun to do something together than alone. They hope that ranching has taught their children that nothing comes easy and that it takes hard work to be successful. “I want them to know that the family is the backbone and is what makes us who we are today, but the most important thing to remember is to always have God in their life,” Wendy said. When they aren’t on the ranch, the family’s favorite thing to do is go to rodeos. Currently, Kyler is a member of THSRA, and Natalie is a member of TJHRA. While Kyler competes in both tie down and team roping, Natalie competes in poles, barrels, breakaway, goats and ribbon roping. They love the community that surrounds the rodeo world and how rewarding the relationships are that they have made through rodeo. They also love getting to watch their kids compete. “At the end of the day, when you see kids go out there and they are successful and they enjoy what they are doing, it makes it all worthwhile,” Wendy said. Luckily, the Ohrt family has a McCoys close to them and they shop there often. They can find all sorts of ranching supplies there, like water troughs, lumber and even parts to fix their wells after the recent winter storm. The Ohrts are honored to be named this month’s McCoys Farm and Ranch Family! Additionally, “we are so thankful for a company like McCoys that supports our youth because our youth is our future,” Wendy said.