COMMUNITY
BlueMountainEagle.com
Wednesday, June 5, 2019
A3
Gary Gregg will ride as ’62 Days grand marshal
Annual celebration
set June 7-8
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Former rodeo rough-
stock competitor Gary
Gregg of John Day will ride
as grand marshal of the ‘62
Days Parade, scheduled for
11 a.m. Saturday, June 8, in
Canyon City.
Gregg will have his wife,
Loleita, by his side as they
ride in a stagecoach driven
by Prairie City resident Del
Raymond.
The June 7-8 festivi-
ties, organized by the Whis-
key Gulch Gang and oth-
ers, include a long list of
old-fashioned fun, celebrat-
ing the discovery of gold in
1962 in Canyon City.
Gary Gregg enjoys pro-
moting the Grant County
Ranch and Rodeo Museum
in John Day as a member
of the nonprofit’s board of
directors.
A saddle he won when he
became the 1959 National
Intercollegiate Rodeo Asso-
ciation saddle bronc cham-
pion in Casper, Wyoming, is
on display at the museum.
He also competed in
bareback and bull riding for
Oregon Tech in Klamath
Falls from 1958-59.
“I only had two years to
go for it,” he said, noting
that the college he attended
was a two-year school. “I
met a lot of good people
through rodeo.”
Gregg and other volun-
teers introduce visitors to
the museum to many of the
rodeo cowboys and cow-
girls of the past and pres-
ent, with photos and mem-
orabilia on display. Photos
of ranchers and how ranch-
ing and haying was done in
the past before tractors and
four-wheelers were used
line the foyer and hallway in
the museum.
Gregg’s roots run deep in
the county.
He was in high school
Contributed photo
The Whiskey Gulch Gang held their annual mock hanging
during the ‘62 Days event in Canyon City in 2018.
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Gary Gregg will ride as grand marshal of the ’62 Days Parade in Canyon City.
when he moved to Kimberly
in 1948, his dad working as
a timber feller for the W4
Ranch.
Gregg served in the Navy
from 1951-54 in a naval avi-
ation patrol squadron.
The pine cone didn’t
fall far from the ponderosa.
When Gregg returned from
military service, he became
a truck owner and operator
and spent 48 years hauling
long logs.
He said he enjoyed being
self employed and could
haul for anyone.
Building old-time bug-
gies was a hobby Gregg
picked up about 30 years
ago, and he has made sev-
eral custom-made horse
drawn vehicles, including
meadowbrook carts, over
the years.
Gregg has worked with
the Blue Mountain Eagle for
10 years, distributing news-
papers to area businesses.
He said he and his wife,
who spent her early years
in Dayville, enjoy living in
Grant County. They moved
away for short periods of
time, but always found
themselves returning to the
place they call home.
“As far as the whole
Northwest is concerned, I
wouldn’t want to live any-
where else,” he said.
The ‘62 Days Celebra-
tion kicks off Friday with
music from Copper Ridge at
Sels Brewery at 9 p.m. Sels
opens at 4 p.m.
The People Mover will
provide transportation every
half hour in the paved area
by the park. For more infor-
mation, call 541-575-0329
or email whiskeygulch-
gang@gmail.com. For more
information on the parade,
call Melissa Galbreath at
541-620-0898.
‘62 Days Celebration
Friday
• Sels Brewery opens
at 4 p.m. with music from
Copper Ridge at 9 p.m.
Saturday
• Breakfast at Mabel’s
Cafe at 7 a.m.
• Gold Rush Run and
Walk, registration at 7 a.m.,
5K starts at 8 a.m. in front of
Sels.
• Parade at 11 a.m.,
with registration starting at
9:30 a.m. in the Humbolt
Elementary School parking
lot. Inland Street and Nug-
get Street bridges are closed
off due to the spring flood.
Portal or other streets to the
north can be used.
• Activities after the
parade — bed races, ice
cream social and vendors at
the park.
• Simulated gun fight
and hanging re-enactment
is scheduled for 2 p.m. out-
side Sels.
• Grant County Histori-
cal Museum will offer tours
at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m.
and 2 p.m. with an Oli-
ver Milk Wagon presenta-
tion at 10:30 a.m., Ameri-
can fiddle tunes at 2:30 p.m.,
a Cy Bingham enactment at
3 p.m. and an Annie Luce
enactment at 3:15 p.m. For
tour reservations, call 541-
575-0362 or stop by the
museum.
Eagle file photo
Sam Palmer with his mining float for the ‘62 Days parade in
Canyon City in 2018.
Eagle file photo
One of the dragons from the Portland Lee’s Association
Dragon & Lion Dance Team draws a photographer during the
‘62 Days parade in Canyon City in 2018.
PROGRESS
Celebrating our communities and showcasing achievements, industries and tourism
Progress, a special publication of the Blue Mountain Eagle, highlights
developments that enhance the economy and livability of Grant County.
Show us YOUR progress by highlighting YOUR business!
SALES DEADLINE
10AM June 12, 2019
The
PUBLISHES
June 26, 2019
Blue Mountain
EAGLE
Grant County’s newspaper since 1868
CONTACT
KIM TODAY!
541-575-0710
kim@bmeagle.com
195 N. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR • MyEagleNews.com