East Oregonian : E.O., September 13, 2019, Page 8, Image 8

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ROUND-UP
East Oregonian
Friday, September 13, 2019
Children take over Round-Up Arena
Kids with special
needs got a taste of
the cowboy life at
Children’s Rodeo
By JESSICA POLLARD
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — For
Angie Betts, Thursday is the
best day of Round-Up week.
The Adams resident
— who’s been attending
Round-Up for more than
two decades — watched her
daughter, Isabelle, 9, par-
ticipate in the 35th annual
Children’s Rodeo at the
Round-Up Grounds.
“A lot of these kids don’t
get the opportunity to par-
ticipate in these sort of
activities,” Betts said.
When slack cleared out
of the arena Thursday morn-
ing, the hourlong Children’s
Rodeo — organized for
children ages 5 to 10 with
special needs — took over.
More than 50 kids took part
in the event. The arena was
a sea of rosy pinks, thanks
to the annual Tough Enough
to Wear Pink fundraiser that
takes place on Round-Up
Thursdays.
Betts said her daughter
watched her brother partic-
ipate in the rodeo last year
and joined in for the first
time this year. She said one
of the hardest things for
some children with special
needs is watching other kids
participate in something
they can’t.
“This is an opportunity
for them to shine,” she said.
Each child was partnered
with an assistant volunteer,
and a cowboy or cowgirl to
walk them through a wide
array of rodeo activities.
Volunteers included area
FFA members, Round-Up
contestants and Intermoun-
tain Education Service Dis-
trict employees.
Frank Rendon, who owns
Legendary
Longhorns,
brought four of his steers —
Showgun, Shotgun, Win-
chester and Rawhide — out
to the Children’s Rodeo for
kids to ride.
“I knew these guys were
bombproof,” Rendon said.
He’s been coming to the
Children’s Rodeo for about
five years from Sweet Home
in Linn County.
“This is part of Western
tradition. Kids see steers
as these big animals. They
learn they are majestic, gen-
tle giants,” Rendon said.
Children also had the
chance to participate in other
activities like roping a hay-
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Memphis Jones, a student at Sam Boardman Elementary School, rides a horse with the help of his cowboy, Kenzie Hansell, during Thursday’s Children’s Rodeo.
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
A young cowgirl takes a ride on a faux bull with the help of her cowboy during Thursday’s
Children’s Rodeo at the Pendleton Round-Up Arena.
Kindergartner Miguel Lozano gazes into the eyes of a goat
during Thursday’s Children’s Rodeo at the Pendleton Round-
Up Arena.
bale steer, riding in a horse-
drawn carriage, petting
goats and practicing Native
American drumming.
Courtney Carter, mother
of 5-year-old Brandon,
enjoyed taking her son to
“There are plenty of pro-
fessionals around. It’s nice
to sit back and watch, and let
him enjoy things,” Courtney
said.
The Children’s Rodeo
is organized by the Inter-
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
the Children’s Rodeo for the
first time now that he’s old
enough.
Brandon attends Pendle-
ton Early Learning Center,
where Courtney first heard
about the rodeo. Being from
the area, she said that Bran-
don had grown up around
western culture.
Courtney said she was
happy to see the support pro-
vided by the assistants and
the cowboys and cowgirls.
mountain Education Service
District in partnership with
the Pendleton Round-Up,
and is open to children from
school districts in Baker,
Umatilla, Morrow and
Union counties.
Spokane teen wins Junior American Indian Beauty Pageant
Above: Pageant winners (from left) Faith Sobotta, 12, of
Lapwai, Idaho; Adoniah Guillory, 11, of Spokane, Wash.;
and Ava Ashleigh Zamudio, 13, of Corvallis, pose with
Chief Gary Burke at the Junior Native American Beauty
Pageant on Thursday at Roy Raley Park in Pendleton.
Left: Adoniah Guillory, 11, of Spokane, Wash., waves to
the crowd during the Junior American Indian Beauty Pag-
eant at Roy Raley Park on Thursday afternoon. Guillory
finished first place in the contest.
Photos by Rachael Owen for the East Oregonian