Enjoy the Morrow
County Fair and
Rodeo August 17-21
50¢
VOL. 141
NO. 33
8 Pages
Wednesday, August 17, 2022
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
2022 Grand Marshal Darlene
Hoskins was 1946 Queen of the
Heppner Rodeo
Pictured above is the 4-H dog show held Tuesday morning. Cadance Ferguson of Boardman
(right) is preparing to put her dog Hemi through his paces for the judge (left). The helpers
in the middle are being “posts” through which Hemi will be walked to show his figure eight
maneuvering skills. -Photo by David Sykes.
The Morrow County Fair and Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo is underway this week with
lots of good food, exhibits, entertainment and rodeo for enjoyment at the fairgrounds
in Heppner. The activities are ongoing and will culminate with the Morrow County
Rodeo this Sunday.
By Anne Hoskins Munkers
Darlene Biddle
Hoskins, 1946 Heppner
rodeo queen, has been se-
lected as grand marshal for
the 2022 Morrow County
Fair and Rodeo.
Darlene Biddle Hoskins
was born on the Connor
Place close to Olex, OR in
1927. She was delivered by
her grandmother as the doc-
tor didn’t get there in time.
Her parents were Clarence
and Lela (Salter) Biddle.
Her dad was a teamster
who trained horses to pull
the equipment as teams.
Her mother worked in the
cookhouse during harvest
as the crew moved from
field to field.
The family moved to
the mouth of Willow Creek
on a small place where they
had a small hay field for
extra income. Her older
sister, Joy, brother, Bill and
Darlene attended school
in Arlington. They moved
to Ione next and went to
school there for a time,
but soon moved between
Heppner and Lexington
and went to school in Lex-
ington. Her folks operated
a dairy there until her dad
passed away. Her mother
moved the family back
to Ione where Darlene’s
grandparents were and
that’s where she graduated
in 1945.
Darlene was selected
as queen of the Heppner
Rodeo early in the spring of
1946. The princesses were
Gwen Coleman (Healy),
Jean Hanna (Bennett), Bet-
ty Lovgren (Way) and Bet-
ty Smethurst (Zeagler).
The court chaperones, Mrs.
Clyde Nutting and Mrs. Leo
Beckner, took the girls to
Pendleton to select outfits.
This was the first year the
court wore pants instead
of skirts.
In Pendleton, their first
stop was the New York
store. Jenny Gorfkle, one
of the owners, came to wait
on the court. A white shirt
was selected for the queen,
but there were no pants
and a very scarce selection
of white materials, due to
a post-war shortage. Mrs.
Gorfkle had two pieces of
white wool, a heavy weight
and a light weight. Darlene
selected the lighter and the
Pendleton Round-Up queen
received the heavy material.
After sending Darlene’s
pick to Nudelman’s in Los
Angeles, the pants were
too sheer, so Mrs. Nutting
proceeded to line them,
an unheard-of thing then.
Princesses Gwen and Bet-
ty L. wore green shirts, as
they were redheads. Prin-
cesses Jean and Betty S.
wore pale yellow, but all
five of the girls’ shirts were
beautifully embroidered.
The princesses wore darker
pants. The next stop was at
Hamley’s for the court hats.
Mr. Hamley came to them
carrying two hat boxes
containing the last white
hats that had been saved
for the next courts. The hat
Darlene chose was made by
Shuddle Bros. of Houston,
Texas, sometime during
the late 1930’s. The war
effort changed much of the
production; thus, light hats
were rare. The princesses
wore a darker tan hat, more
in the style of the 1940s.
Darlene still has her outfit
and hat.
Darlene had a sad-
dle made for the summer
events. She worked for
anyone she could, cooking
and washing dishes for five
to 10 dollars a day. Joe Sny-
der and his partner built the
saddle and Darlene still has
that saddle and it’s in good
condition.
She remembers travel-
ing to rodeos and parades
in Elgin, Lexington’s 4 th of
July, John Day and Pendle-
ton. In those days, horses
were loaded into trucks,
along with the tack, girls
and outfits. A car would go
along with the chaperones
and provide extra space for
girls and outfits.
Betty Lovgren and Bet-
ty Smethurst went on to
school. Darlene, Gwen and
Jean remained close friends
their entire lives. She sin-
cerely wishes they were
here to share in this won-
derful celebration. Darlene
had been a princess on the
court of Colleen Kilkenny
(Greenup) in 1945. She
remembers an event from
that year too. During that
year they attended a night
parade in Pendleton. Col-
leen’s father had passed
away in her early teens
and Colleen began tending
the sheep camps. As they
approached the pastimes,
the old herders recognized
Colleen and she turned her
horse toward them, and
they came out to the street.
She shook hands with each
of them, thus stopping the
entire parade for some time.
The princesses learned a lot
about greeting people and
promoting the rodeo from
Colleen Kilkenny.
Darlene married Robert
Hoskins late in the fall of
1946. They spent their early
years between the ranch at
Rhea Creek and the Wilber
mountain property near
Meacham. They herded
sheep, raised pet lambs,
helped move and set up the
camps, loaded sheep on
the trains to and from the
mountains and put up hay.
Their livestock business
eventually included cattle
too. They built a log home
on the south end of the Rhea
Creek place. It was similar
to the cabin built on Wilbur
Mt. years before. The logs
for both were harvested
from Wilbur Mt.
Elks collect hides
for Veterans
A volunteer collects hides do-
nated by hunters.
The Heppner Elks
Lodge Hides for Veterans
program will begin col-
lecting big game animal
hides starting September
1. Successful hunters who
wish to donate their animal
hide will need to drop them
off at the junction of High-
way 207 and Willow Creek
Road in Heppner. There
will be two additional drop-
off locations set up for rifle
elk season at the Morrow
County OHV Park and the
Highway 395 junction near
Ukiah.
Proceeds from the sale
of the hides benefit resi-
dents of the Oregon Vet-
erans Home in The Dalles,
OR. The Hides for Vets
committee appreciates the
support of the program
from Morrow County Grain
Growers and Miller & Sons
Disposal. “We would not be
able to carry on this tradi-
tion without their help,” a
spokesperson noted. Cen-
tralia Fur and Hide, Inc.,
a family owned business,
purchases the hides each
year at a fair price. They
also sell amazing Native
American goods they create
with the leather at furand-
hide.com.
With the help of 12
Elks members, almost 60
volunteer hours and 1,000
miles driven while col-
lecting hides the Hides for
Veterans committee was
able to raise over $1,300
for the 2021 season. For
additional information or
to learn of ways to contrib-
ute to this program, please
contact Donald Matthews at
donaldgmatthews@gmail.
com. Happy Hunting.
Chamber transitions to new
leadership team
In the last few weeks,
the community has voiced
valid concerns about the
future of the Heppner
Chamber of Commerce.
The Heppner Chamber re-
cently experienced a finan-
cial shortfall due to some
funding no longer available,
and it ultimately redirected
Chamber Director JoAnna
Lamb and the chamber
board to re-evaluate the
chamber’s position.
Due to the financial
change, the chamber direc-
tor position is now limited
to approximately 15 hours
per week. When present-
ed with an option for a
part-time position, Lamb
decided to move on from
her current position. “The
chamber board gives a huge
thank you to JoAnna for
stepping up in a position
that had been vacated and
keeping the chamber mov-
ing forward with limited
support,” chamber board
president Andy Fletcher
remarked. “She did Hep-
pner and the chamber board
a great service, and we are
very grateful.”
To keep the important
services the chamber pro-
vides to Heppner ongoing,
the Heppner Communi-
ty Foundation (HCF) has
agreed to manage the cham-
ber moving forward. HCF is
directed by Katie Siri-Mur-
ray, who will act as lead in
operations of the chamber
with the support of events
manager, Shelby Matthews.
With a new team model,
-See CHAMBER/PAGE TWO
E L E VAT E YO U R A DV E N T U R E
CALL
541-989-8221
ext 204
NEW
2022
FOR
1946 Queen Darlene and her horse, Lady. -Photo from the Heppner Gazette.
Daughters Anne (‘54)
and Mary (‘56) made the
family complete. Robert
took Darlene and the girls
as much as possible. The
girls learned to ride by
sitting in front of their par-
ents while still in diapers,
eventually being led on a
shared horse and finally
each girl was able to ride on
her own horse. Anne was a
princess on the 50 th Anni-
versary Court in 1972 and
Mary was a princess in ‘74
and queen in ‘75. So those
years of riding lessons and
chasing cattle paid off.
Robert and Darlene
bought a home and acres on
the Umatilla River near the
mouth of Meacham Creek
around 1960. Then in 1976,
they purchased the Elmer
and Sam Heath place on the
south side of the Hoskins
Ranch at Rhea Creek.
Robert passed away in
2016, but Darlene continues
in the livestock business
today. She still moves with
the cattle to Umatilla in the
spring and back again in the
fall to Morrow County. She
says she’s had quite a life
and the best decision she
ever made was marrying
Robert.
for more
information
CHECK OUT THE ALL-NEW
2 0 2 2 P O L A R I S L I N E U P.
WE’LL HELP YOU LOCK
I N W H AT Y O U W A N T.
WARNING: Polaris ® off‑road vehicles can be hazardous to operate and
are not intended for on‑road use. Driver must be at least 16 years old with
a valid driver’s license to operate. Passengers, if permitted, must be at
least 12 years old. All riders should always wear helmets, eye protection,
and protective clothing. Always use seat belts and cab nets or doors (as
equipped). Never engage in stunt driving, and avoid excessive speeds
and sharp turns. Riding and alcohol/drugs don’t mix. All riders should take
a safety training course. Call 800-342-3764 for additional information.
Check local laws before riding on trails. ©2021 Polaris Inc.