FEATURE ARTICLE
THIRTY YEARS OF
Vision and Leadership THE INTERNATIONAL RED BRANGUS BREEDERS ASSOCIATION CELEBRATES ITS 30TH ANNIVERSARY. by Emily Lochner “Our directors took a long-term view of association business and squarely faced the issues raised with open minds and foresight. The Brangus breed faces the coming years in a strong, aggressive position as a result of board actions.” These words were penned in the executive perspective article in the December 1991 Brangus Journal by Neil Orth, then executive vice president of the International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) in regard to the recent fall board meeting. At the meeting, held October 31, 1991, the 27 members of the IBBA board of directors had voted on a number of issues that would affect the course of the association, namely the adoption of Red Brangus into the IBBA registry system. Now 30 years later, vision, strong guidance, and leadership of tenacious Red Brangus breeders has afforded the International Red Brangus Breeders Association (IRBBA) a legacy of worldwide renown. In the early 1990s, a group of Red Brangus breeders began to seek a structured advancement of Red Brangus cattle knowing the need for accurate performance records and data keeping systems. “I remember sitting down with a few other Red Brangus breeders and meeting with Neil Orth at a restaurant in Schulenberg, Texas, in the spring of 1991 to explore the option of registering 3/8 x 5/8 red cattle in the IBBA registry,” says Don Cox, now past IBBA and IRBBA president. “Orth said he would approach the IBBA executive committee and board of directors in short order.” It didn’t take long for both the Red Brangus breeders and IBBA to see the value in joining forces. An excerpt from the 1991 IBBA fall board meeting minutes read, as follows: “J. Neil Orth, IBBA executive vice president, addresses the board informing the members of a developing interest by Red Brangus breeders to register cattle with the IBBA. After brief discussion, Lanny Vinson, Abilene, Texas, made a motion to allow Red Brangus cattle to be registered with the IBBA; allow the cattle used in breeding up to Red Brangus to be enrolled and certified with the IBBA; and allow Red Brangus breeders to 26
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become members of the IBBA and enjoy the same service and programs as existing members do, including advertising in the Brangus Journal. Vinson requested the president appoint a transition committee consisting of Red Brangus breeders and IBBA board members to adopt the proper rules and wording to allow Red Brangus cattle to be registered and the necessary foundation cattle to be enrolled and certified. After discussion, the IBBA board passed the motion with a unanimous show of hands.” “When Neil Orth first approached the executive committee [the president, vice president, secretary and exofficio] with the idea of adding red cattle into the registry system, we didn’t even think twice about it,” says Dr. Robert Vineyard, 1991 IBBA board of directors’ vice president. “The consensus we came to was a positive one. We were able to see the vision of the Red Brangus breeders right from the start; no matter the color they raised, these were just good cow people and we knew we needed to surround ourselves with more of that. Months later, when the executive committee presented the pitch to the full board for approval, we presented it with an outlook that spanned many decades. We wanted the IBBA to lay the groundwork for a successful Red Brangus incorporation, but the work to build it would be up to the red members themselves.” Initially, it was agreed upon that the IBBA would provide registration services and EPD calculations on Red Brangus cattle for $2/head. Previously, no certain percentage of Angus x Brahman mix was required for Red Brangus registration. Pete Keeling, a prominent Red Brangus breeder of the time, took on the arduous task of hand reviewing and calculating percentages by hand on every single Red Brangus animal to determine if they met the 3/8 x 5/8 threshold before passing onto the IBBA. In the spring of 1992, the red division of the IBBA was formed, now known as the International Red Brangus Breeders Association (IRBBA). Ten breeders: Don Cox, Jim Hunt, Pete Keeling, Johnny Kopycinski, Dennis Kmiec, Gordon Miller, Harry Simon, Clarence Reynolds, John
