Category: Library Corner

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Keeping You In The Loop — MHCP Newsletter April 2025 Edition

Howdy!

Medicine Hat Cowboy Poetry is all about making connections. It’s a way for Western entertainers (many live wide distances apart) to visit with each other at our annual event (this year September 26th and 27th). Their poems and songs help the audience be aware of the Western way of life and helps those with a rural background compare it to their experiences. City folk can get a taste of happenings on the ranch. Everybody has a story, and it’s through stories that we get to understand and relate to each other better.

Recently our reach has been to folks further afield. A friend from Regina connected us with Bob Ruschiensky. He has recently become a prolific poet, shared his excitement about publishing and shared many of his poems (every few days sends a new one), including the one to end this newsletter. Brian Tremblay from Ontario saw our website and asked for Full membership status (doesn’t want an Associate Member, yes, he wants to be at our AGM via Zoom). It’s always good to chat with Garnet and Marion Stacey from Cranbrook, BC. They feel Alberta Tourism should be doing much more to promote Cowboy Poetry. Invariably they attend our annual event. I wondered how to get in touch with two entertainers that performed at last year’s Open Mic. A cold call to Empress Town Office got me in touch with a talented young lady, Emma Roudeux. I mentioned Delbert Pratt’s name to Nancy (in our Suds in the Bucket Band), she gave my number and he called that very night. (He’s from Esther, NE of Oyen.) Both will be afternoon performers at our event. The Taber ‘Cowboy Poetry and Western Music Round-Up’ gave us a chance to meet-up. The enthusiasm all of these folks have for our Cowboy Poetry genre is contagious.

The purpose of our newsletter is to ‘Keep You in the Loop’. There are a number of our members/volunteers who struggle with technology. Any of us ‘older ones’ know about that all too well. In fact some don’t have internet, and keeping them ‘in the know’ is important, so we’ve been making paper copies for them. Telephone calls have also been a great way to ‘visit’. Technology is a two-sided coin. In this world of texting and Facebook etc. it is ever more important to be physically present to each other, even if it means using Zoom etc.

Dee Butterfield Documentary Screening

MHCP in partnership with the Canadian Professional Rodeo Hall of Fame is pleased to announce our first of our “Women in Rodeo” series, a documentary of Dee Butterfield. Public screening is April 18, 2025 in Ponoka, AB.

Every film starts with a story and Dee Butterfield gave us an inspiring story while sharing her rodeo journey. This is the first documentary produced by Cheryl Dust under the mentorship of Director, Eda Lishman. Eda has produced The Hounds of Notre Dame, The Wild Pony and directed Primo Baby and The World of Horses series with John Scott to name a few of her projects. Eda and her producing partner and sister, Nives Lever, operate Fetecine Filosophy where they create, develop and produce theatrical and television drama. Nives and her husband Barry Harvey donated the use of their home for Eda and Cheryl to edit this documentary. Peter Kennedy Smith, Eda’s partner and retired Hollywood cameraman, mentored Cheryl and assisted with the capture of the footage for this project. Don Kletke, Encore Recording, composed the music and donated the use of his song. This all started with a research grant from the Alberta Heritage Foundation to research the 15 women inducted into the Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in which Jen Zollner continues to conduct the research.

Thank you to all at Fetecine Filosophy for donating all of your time and providing a location to edit. Don Kletke, thank you for donating your time and musical talent! And big thanks to MHCP’s own videographer, Cheryl Dust, for countless hours of volunteer time and steadfast dedication to bring this project to life.

Western Music and Cowboy Poetry Event

Save the Date!!!

Friday, September 26th and Saturday, September 27th for 2 full days.

Friday, at 12-noon
-a dozen or so entertainers at the Meadowlark Village Club House


Friday, at 7:00pm
-Open Mic at the Moose


Saturday, at 12-noon
-a dozen or so entertainers at the MH College Theatre

Saturday, at 7:00pm
-our headliners: Hugh McLennan and his Spirit of the West Band and Charlie Ewing and his daughter, Lonnie

Click on the link below to hear Hugh McLennan’s song and the incredible backup accompaniment from Jim McLennan and Mike Dygert.

On his March 22 weekly program, Hugh McLennan sang, “Fence Building Blues”, the perfect addend to the barb wire theme in our recent newsletters. Each week he has interviews, ranch news and incredible music choices. Hear this week’s program on the internet:

Love Story

Easter is its own love story, sacrificing His life for us and giving us hope for a life hereafter. The recent death of Dolly Parton’s husband, Carl Dean, brings their love story into the news, married for nearly 60 years. Staying out of the public eye was his nature. He was a businessman and owner of an asphalt paving business in Nashville.

Their love story began when Dolly was 18 years old. ‘I met him outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat the day I moved to Nashville. I was surprised and delighted when he looked at my face (a rare thing for me)’. They got married 2 years later in a small country church. Though they didn’t have children of their own, they raised several of Dolly’s younger siblings as their own providing for them when her parents and other relatives were unable to.

-from cowgirlmagazine.com

Note: Here’s where Country Music and Western Music meet. Many of Dolly Parton’s songs tell a story, and when performing, she gives a preamble to her songs which adds to their meaning.

The Library Corral

The Incredible Gang Ranch
by Dale Alsager, 1990
NF 636.201 ALS
The Gang Ranch, The Real Story
by Judy Alsager, 1994
NF 636.2 ALS

The Gang Ranch was once Canada’s oldest cattle ranch; in fact it was the largest in the world (located in the Williams Lake area of B.C.). The story is told by two members of the Alsager family who owned the ranch from 1978 to 1982, then spent the next 10 years battling courts. Dale has his side of the story in the 1990 book he published; his sister’s rebuke is “The Real Story” in the book shown below. It tells how members of the Alsager family invested everything they ever owned or earned, and lost it through illegal wrangling and unethical dealings, even within the family. Judy Alsager, who worked this ranch, describes the hard work, the humor, the joys and the heartbreak. She also takes you through breath-taking scenic images of the landscape and the real workings of a ranch.

Note: Dee Butterfield grew up in the vicinity of the Gang Ranch as did Monica Wilson, another Hall of Famer MHCP has interviewed, videoed and is working to make into another mini-documentary.

Homegrown Tribute

Lynette Brodoway

Lynette Brodoway is a Barrel Racer from Brooks, AB, a Champion at the 2023 Canadian Finals Rodeo and was named Cowgirl of the Year in 2022. We watch as her success continues. There is more to her story than winning though. She started her professional career in her mid-fifties; almost all barrel racers turn pro when in their teens or early 20’s. Her role as wife, mother and grandmother has always been of utmost importance. She’s a horsewoman first and a barrel racer second. Over the years she has been able to embrace and balance her commitment to all of these.

Deep down, Lynnette has had ‘the itch’ to barrel race for as long as she can remember. Being raised on a ranch (in the Ranier, Alberta area) suited her fine, in fact it allowed her to be riding since she was four years old, and she’s been on the back of a horse ever since. Raised in a family of team ropers, starting with her dad, Ivan, she was a heeler with her mom, Marlene, at the All-Girl ropings. She then decided to become a header to turn steers for her brother, Dwight, and his friends. The Wigemyr family trained their own team roping horses, but Lynette would always be working them on the barrels.

When Lynette married Ken Brodoway, she began training horses on barrels and continued to compete at amateur level after started a family. She intentionally put her dream of going pro on hold to raise their two sons. She watched her brother’s professional success, and his CFR team roping championship in 2002 and 2008. She gave full support to Josie, their son who qualified to compete at the CFR in 2006. Her focus was having horsemanship training clinics, which started when she watched her dad’s special way with horses; watching how he was able to rehabilitate them. She attributes her barrel racing success to ‘Cowboy’, her sorrel gelding that was named ‘Horse With the Most Heart’ in 2023. Horses were also at the root of healing from the tragedy of losing a son, Wacey.

Lynette is proud to be a Canadian rodeo competitor. Her story is one of patience, and of constantly being open to learning from parents, books and horses, as well as learning from others and from her own experiences. She stresses the importance of having the right people around you to get you back on track when necessary. She has worked long and hard to achieve her dream and inspires us to never give up on our passions, that age is not a barrier.

At the age of 64, Lynette has a new indoor horse Poncho, and also on Cowboy is still a stiff competitor at professional rodeos. She works with and cares for horses most every day and welcomes others to come learn from her. Rodeo is her main passion at this time, but she always has a couple of young horses in training. She loves babysitting her 2 grandchildren, JR and Jack (aged 3 and 1) that live a mere 20 minutes away.

Taber Western Round-Up

On Saturday, March 29th Taber rounded up an entertaining group of poets and musicians. Two of the MHCP folks were there, Noel Burles as a performer and Jen as emcee. Val Beyer and David Woodruff from their club are always at our event to support us. There are a few things it would be good if we could replicate at our event on September 26th and 27th. They had 10 student performers, some were soloists, some sang in a group and some even had poems they had written. They had a dozen and a half sponsors, some of which were unbelievably generous. They had ‘a whole bunch’ of young guys doing the set-up and take down. And they had delicious food. I need to mention their baked potato topped with chili, cheese and sour cream. Also their cinnamon buns; the dough for them was rising in the kitchen when we got there. It would have been worth your trip to Taber for that alone. Thanks to Bud Edgar, the joker and trick roper who sent the photos.

Fence Idioms

  • fence mending — trying to end a disagreement or quarrel
  • sitting on the fence — not taking a stand
  • fence straddling — beating around the bush, weaseling, hemming and hawing
  • rush ones fences — to act in too much of a hurry (sometimes refers to a young couple)
  • from pillar to post — from one place to another

“Don’t Fence Me In”

Oh give me land, lots of land under starry skies above,
Don't fence me in,
Let me ride through the wide open prairie that I love,
Don't fence me in.

The inspiration for it came from a poem called “Open Range” by Robert Fletcher. He also wrote a non-fiction book called “Free Grass to Fences” about Montana’s cattle industry.

It was Cole Porter, in 1934, that wrote the hugely successful song “Don’t Fence Me In” using Robert Fletcher’s poem as a starting point. But he added broader dimensions. One of his
verses is about a highwayman, Wildcat Kelly, who desperately wanted to avoid being fenced in by jail or by marriage or by anything else for that matter. The popular version doesn’t use this verse, but Roy Rogers did:

Wildcat Kelly's lookin' mighty pale,
Was standin' by the sheriff's side,
And when that sheriff said I'm sending you to jail,
Wildcat raised his head and cried: Oh give me land, lots of land…

Another verse continues to touch on freedom:

I want to ride to the ridge where the West commences,
And gaze at the moon until I lose my senses,
I can't look at hobbles and I can't stand fences,
Don't fence me in.

Ranching Before Fences

It was through the investment of British aristocracy that ranching started in Saskatchewan and Alberta (then called Assiniboia and Alberta). Huge herds of cattle were grazed on the open range, owned by big ranches who didn’t see a need to put up feed in case Chinooks failed to appear. These were the ranches that took big losses in 1886-87. During that summer there were drought conditions and prairie fires. Then came a harsh winter that started in November and didn’t end until March. It was hailed “The Big Die-Up”. The infamous winter in 1906-07 likewise saw tens of thousands of cattle die of starvation. Many of the big corporate ranches on both sides of the U.S. border collapsed.

Ranching After the Fences

Barb wire was called “devil’s rope” by the big ranchers because it hampered the open graze method they used for their cattle herds numbering in the hundreds of thousands. It was the smaller ranches that survived because they were not controlled by absentee owners and adapted to conditions as they experienced them. They saw the need for fences to control the movement of cattle and to form enclosures to stack feed for the cattle in winter. With cross fences they could have a breeding schedule so calves weren’t born in winter. They could also improve their herd knowing which bulls were breeding their cattle.

Herding large numbers of cattle on the open range required cowboys, lots of them, young men that were skilled horsemen and cattlemen. Barb wire was a relatively inexpensive means of controlling the movement of cattle. Even an unskilled person could build a fence using posts, wire and staples. It carved the vast prairie into manageable chunks for ‘ranch farming’ as it was sometimes called. Barb wire not only changed the history of ranching, it changed the world of the cattle-trail cowboy too.

Barbed Wire and Boundaries

by Bob Ruschiensky from Regina, SK

The prairie once ran wide and free,
No posts, no lines, not locks, no key.
A cowboy rode where the sky touched land,
No fences cut, no walls to stand.

But times had changed, the borders grew,
The cattle strayed, the fights came too.
So men strung wire, mile by mile,
Through dust and sweat, through grit and trial.

And posts stood firm, the steel ran tight,
A twisting snake of rusted might.
It kept the herds where they should be,
Yet chained the land once wild and free.

Some say the wire tamed the West,
It marked the land, it drew the rest.
But every time I ride that line,
I feel the past still press in time.

For barbed wire hums a lonesome tune,
It sings of loss beneath the moon.
A cowboy rides, yet still he knows,
Some things are meant to stay unclosed.

Western Wisdom

There are three kinds of men:
– ones that learn by reading
– a few that learn by observation
– and the rest of them have to pee on the electric fence.
(this must have come from a guy)

I’ll leave you with this bit of wisdom:

A fence mended is a friendship tended.

Hope Calving is Going Well!

Happy Trails,
Jen

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Keeping You In The Loop — MHCP Newsletter March 2025 Edition

Howdy!

Welcome to the month of March. As time marches on, change is inevitable. The new and younger blood that has joined our herd of Board members should make for an exciting year with fresh ideas and better technical skills. As spring approaches we’re hoping the variable weather brings us lots of moisture. But snow storms aren’t exactly what the ranchers are hoping for because that’s when the cows all decide to calve, that’s inevitable.

The members of Borderline 4-H have also shown changes, remarkable improvement in their speech giving, how they used to be nervous and now look so comfortable on stage. Even the Weavers (the members too young to be 4-Hers yet) were excited to give a speech, some using cue cards (like their older siblings) even though they don’t know how to read yet. I remember the days when kids only did ‘the speech thing’ because it was a requirement.

Likewise the cattle industry has changed from open range grazing with minimal preparation for wintering cattle, to modern ranching with fences and ‘making hay’. Barb wire has an interesting history as well. Fences divide property. There is a saying: Good Fences make Good Neighbors. You don’t want the neighbour’s bull coming to visit the heifers on your side of the fence. (Unless he’s an upgrade for your herd, in which case you might want to make an opening in the fence.) Lately I see 5′ and 6′ solid fences going around city properties. I guess they make for privacy, but fences (and walls) also divide.

Here is what Robert Frost has to say about good fences and good neighbors:

“Take my next-door neighbor and I,
Waiting eight years to put one up,
And now that we’ve actually done it
Wondering why we bothered in the first place.”

Change is Good

At MHCP we start our new year with quite a number Board changes. Penita Schnell has taken over the Treasurer duties from Carol Eisenbarth who is still looking after the Memberships. Jacquie Noerenberg is stepping aside as Secretary as Jim Koch takes on that job. Many thanks to Carol and Jacquie.

It’s only been a half year since Penella Zollner has joined us and been our webmaster. Bob Thompson and Greg Herman are the newest members to ‘step on Board’. Thanks to each for their attendance and input at the meetings, especially all the ‘newbies’.

Borderline 4-H Club

Members of the club are proudly displaying the tack boxes they finished, the ones Jim Koch built for them, complete with dove-tailed corners. Plans are being made for members of Borderline to serve food as a fund-raiser at our next Western Music and Cowboy Poetry event on September 26th and 27th. They have had connections with MHCP since it’s beginning. In 2019 at our event at the Redcliff Harmony Hall they served snacks and drinks (and smiles). MHCP has coached five different 4-H members to write poems, some of which have been on our stage reciting them.

The Taber Round-Up

You don’t want to miss this day of down-home Western entertainment. Bud Edgar always has tricks up his sleeve and Larry Krause has been invited to MN, SK. AB. BC and the East Coast. He also entertained at our very first event in 2019. Raffles are always fun and the food is delicious (especially the homemade pies last year).

MHCP and Taber share our resources and skills. Val Beyer shared poetry at our Open Mic and ran the computer at our event (David Woodruff supported us too). Jen offered to MC their ‘Round Up” this year. The bales at our event belong to Val, and we are sharing the sandwich-board signs Jim Koch has made for both organizations.

Western Wisdom

Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight and bull strong.

Translating Cowboy Lingo

In a half-ton a cowboy asks one of his partners, “Do want to ride ‘girlfriend’ or ‘shotgun’?”

What does he mean?

Do you want to ride in the middle or by the window (the window is more comfortable, but he’s the one gettin’ the gates).

The Barbwire Fence

When Greg Herman recited his poem about barb wire at the Folk Club jam, it came to mind how important fences were in the history of ranching. It signaled the end of the days of vast areas of free grassland and the beginning of ranching as we see it today. It ended the trail drives and allowed the expansion of farming.

Hometown Tribute

Do you have someone local you’d like to acknowledge? Just let us know.

Dale Rose

He is remembered as a legendary bull rider and one of rodeo’s most colorful and entertaining cowboys. His nickname was “Hoot” because his hat was shaped like Hoot Gibson’s, a western movie star at the time. Calf roping and bullriding were his rodeo sports, an unusual combination. He was a crowd favorite for his various quirks and his unconventional white shirt and necktie attire in the arena. They watched for the cigar he smoked when he rode, the judges even giving him an extra point if he was still puffing on it at the end of the bull ride.

His career started when he entered his first rodeo in Medicine Hat in 1955 and his first pro rodeo was in Taber in 1961. The highlight of his career was in 1974 when he competed in the first Canadian Finals Rodeo, won the Guy Weadick Award and scored the highest marked ride on the Hall of Fame bull named Stubby.

Locally, anyone interested in becoming a cowboy knew about Dale Rose and his indoor arena along the #1 highway just outside Redcliff, Alberta. It was one of the first indoor arenas around, dug in the ground with wood sides that were maybe 4 or 5 feet high and a roof. It was always a little damp down there, but in the winter it was a bit warmer than outside. He had it set up with a roping box to practice calf roping and some bucking chutes with steers and bulls to ride. There was always something going on there and Dale was the kind of guy that promoted it.

Bull riding is a dangerous sport at the best of times, and in Dale’s arena it was even more so. After you got bucked off, you had to be the bull fighter for the next guy. There wasn’t anybody else there to protect you other than your buddies. The arena was relatively narrow, so when you came off of a bull you didn’t have very many places to go. Other draws to ‘Hoot’s Place’ were the alternate activities that came along with the rodeoing there.

Credit to Dale Rose that so many young guys have gone on with the cowboy lifestyle and done extremely well. All the successful bull riders that this part of the country turned out (and there were many) got their start in Hoot’s arena. At age 14 World Champion Cody Snyder was already riding a half dozen bulls there every night. In 2008 Dale Rose was inducted into the Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in the Legend category.

-thanks to Don Thompson and various internet site for the information

The Library Corral

Yellowstone
Season 1, DVD – 2018 YEL
Season 2, DVD – 2019 YEL
Season 3, DVD – 2020 YEL
Season 4, DVD – 2022 YEL
Season 5 Pt. 1, DVD – 2023 YEL

It’s the adult show everyone’s talking about, and the Medicine Hat Library has multiple copies of each season. It revolves around the Dutton family that controls the larges ranch in the United States. It is constantly being attacked by land developers, and Indian Reservation and America’s first National Park.

Some Secrets are Hard to Keep

The details in this poem are true, well, almost true. Phil tells the story:

Promises made are promises kept,
One exception I'm sure you'd agree,
If a question is asked, only one choice is left,
To tell them the truth it would be.

How to get even with Tyler, my friend,
He's a darn good ranch hand, I must say,
But tricks played on me, I must amend,
I knew it was payback time one of these days.

Tempers can flare all too easy with Ty,
Has got him in many a fix,
Caught him red-handed as I'm passing by,
To help him or laugh was a terrible mix.

He discovered his yearlings had gone through the fence,
At the corner was fixing the gate,
Herding them back wouldn't make him that tense,
But for fencing he had an absolute hate.

Tyler had almost completed the job___
When a nail on the post grabbed his shirt,
That got Ty feeling like he's a lynch mob,
Had a gash but my presence is what really hurt.

Ty got to hacking that spike with his might,
He's determined to take off its head,
The long-handled pincher would work just right,
I heard the wail, novel words were said.

His manhood was where the handles slammed shut,
Ty's jumping in anguish and hurt,
I kind of felt guilty, I felt like a nut,
So a promise to secrecy quickly I'd blurt.

Finally Ty got his breath back and sighed,
Please help me to get on my horse,
Going back was a slow walk, no joyride,
I helped him get home, sorry for him, of course___

But something was nagging, wish that Ty I could roast,
Keep my word and still get him back,
Ah! Nutcracker Corner; that's a sign I could post,
When folks ask about it, I'd describe Tyler's whack.

A story like that could spread 'cross the land,
Tourists visit Nutcracker Corner,
See the nail that's beheaded, and try their hand
At fixing the fence just like Tyler Warner.

by Jen Zollner, February, 2025

Happy Trails,
Jen

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Keeping You In The Loop — MHCP Newsletter September 2024 Edition

Howdy Y’All!

‘Tis the season — to hurry and harvest, to hustle telling everyone about our event and to celebrate school horses before no one remembers there was such a thing. (Kids weren’t supposed to race them, but they did.) We continue getting stories from Hall of Famers who had fast horses, barrel racers like Dee Butterfield and Monica Wilson. As we’re grateful for the memories of the season past, we say thanks for the chuckles Ol’ Ugly gave us with the characters he created to live in our midst. Some of us remember fondly (or not so fondly) the times and styles that were. Thanks to folks like the Forbes’ who wrote it all down (for younger folks to find almost unbelievable).

Enough of the past for a moment and a look at what’s up and coming, our Western Music and Cowboy Poetry event. The excitement is mounting. Poets and musicians are honing their skills and including topics about women when they’re on stage. The college culinary staff is excited about serving chuckwagon cuisine and the decorators can’t wait to make the place look western. I look forward to seeing you on the 4th and/or the 5th of October.

The chaps are the real deal. They belonged to my son-in-law’s father.

Upcoming Events

Medicine Hat Cowboy Poetry Presents:

Western Music & Cowboy Poetry Event

You don’t want to miss it!!
Western Music at it’s best,
With Cowboy Poetry you’ll be impressed.
To get in the mood, come western dressed.

It’ll be a hit with amazing talent at the Medicine Hat College where they have the best lighting and sound anywhere. We have singer/songwriters, amazing guitarists and folks with astonishing reciting talent.

  • Charlie Ewing
  • Greg Herman
  • Phyllis Rathwell
  • Dusty Dee Lichfield
  • Linda Nadon
  • Dave Woodruff
  • Scott Reesor
  • Miles Tornberg
  • Wally Garrioch
  • Harv Speers. Harv is known in Medicine Hat for his time on radio. A poet and powerful presenter, Harv is a welcome addition to our board.
  • Noel Burles. Noel has been involved in Cowboy Poetry for decades, as a performer as well as an organizer at gatherings at Pincher Creek and Stavely.
  • Shelley Goldbeck, Emcee

There are 16 different entertainers in the afternoon program and the evening performance features 4 of the best. Vocalists/musicians include Charlie Ewing from Claresholm, Dusty Dee Litchfield from the Lethbridge area, Miles Tornberg and our own Greg Herman.

Renowned poets include Linda Nadon from Meadow Lake, SK and Phyllis Rathwell living here in Medicine Hat now.

You’ll recognize local folks like Harv Speers, Scott Reesor, Wally Garrioch and Noel Burles (well, he is on the MHCP board). Our Emcee for the evening will be Shelley Goldbeck.

Wait till you see the unique items donated on the silent auction table: horsehead shaped boot jacks, patchwork blanket with horses, an award-winning framed photo, the list goes on. Decorations will greet you at the college entrance with a “Howdy” and treat you to an ambiance of complete western dress. It’s a good opportunity to get your picture taken with the Medicine Hat Rodeo Queen and Princess. And don’t forget the jingle in your jeans to get your 50/50 tickets!

It all starts on Friday night at 7:00pm with Open Mic in the Centennial Hall (outside the Eresman Theater.) Come and see the talent that is up and coming! Open Mic is free. Parking is free after 6:00pm.

The Saturday show starts at Noon in the Eresman Theater at the Medicine Hat College. Tickets for the afternoon performance are just $10.00 and parking is free all day.

Chuckwagon supper is served at 5:30pm. Supper emulates the chuckwagon fare in the cattle trail days: biscuits and stew, pie and so much more. Pre-order your ticket for what’s sure to be some mighty fine grub.

Saturday evening rounds out the festivities at 7:30pm in the Eresman Theater with our three honoured guests in attendance: Canadian ProRodeo Hall of Famers, Dee Butterfield and Maxine Girlitz and Medicine Hat’s renowned artist, Gena LaCoste. We are especially proud to present this year’s line up of performers and poets.

TICKETS: on sale at Hale Hearing in the Co-op Mall (3030 13 Ave SE #103) or contact MHCPPresident@gmail.com

Past Events

The Chuckwagon as Cowboy Heritage
At the Towne Square Heritage C-Cans across from City Hall in Medicine Hat, we celebrated the chuckwagon, that being where the cowhands gathered after trailing cattle all day. Yes, to eat, but also to entertain each other and pass the time by sharing their stories with songs and poems. That’s where Cowboy Poetry and Western Music started. Louise Maier and Donna Moore used paint to remake a cow into an oxen. Traditionally it was horses or oxen that pulled the chuckwagon, the food wagon, the world’s first food truck. Our miniature chuckwagon (chuck is food in cowboy lingo) had a ‘tarp’ held up by hoops for shade and in case of rain. The camp cook was often called Cookie, or a number of other names depending on his ability or inability to cook (???? ) Jim Koch (pardon the pun) made a
‘chuck box’ for the back of the wagon to hold Cookie’s essentials and form a make-shift table on one leg. Inside Cookie’s chuck box (cupboard) was a display of his supplies in cowboy lingo. There were skunk eggs (onions), almost hen’s fruit (bird’s eggs found along the way), lick (molasses) etc. Shelley Goldbeck, a MHCP member from Innisfail and emcee at our October event, was the Cookie at our camp. She (but it was always a guy) carefully protected the everlasting yeast (sour dough) used to make biscuits to serve with the beans he served every day. Visitors perused the display telling all about Cookie. Children enjoyed riding the stick horses the cowboys had come into camp with. Visitors left with some hardtack (dried biscuits) to pocket in case stampeding cattle would have them being late for supper.

Western Music Celebrated
On August Medicine Hat celebrated music at the Towne Square C-Cans (or Pods as they’re called). We were there in Pod #2 where we scattered the wall with hats and chaps. Supplying the music: Noel Burles from Coalhurst as well as locals Conrad Sandberg, Jack Humeny and Greg Herman. Stools to look like tree stumps were available for audience members to sit on. When we moved outside, we even had green grass underfoot (artificial turf). Thanks to Jennifer, her volunteers and the City of Medicine Hat for arranging the celebrations this summer.

Jen Zollner performing at High River

Trail’s End
The Alberta Cowboy Poetry Association held
its annual Cowboy Gathering at High River on September 6th, 7th and 8th. MHCP board member Noel Burles is the Secretary for it and MHCP President, Jen Zollner is also a member and put on a wonderful performance. In their organization you need to belong (have a membership) in order to perform. It took place in The Full Gospel Church, ended with Cowboy Church on the Sunday morning.

Farmer’s Market
MHCP was set up at the Medicine Hat Exhibition and Stampede Farmer’s Market on Saturday, September 14th and 21st.

Board members Harv Speers, Carol Eisenbarth, Donna Moor and Faye Fedrau (missing from the photo) handed out samples of hardtack that might not tide you over till supper … but it was free and so were the smiles!

New on the Website

Yarns by Ol’ Ugly — For your Tales, the Taller the Better, Thanks

Ol’ Ugly, aka John Glawson, is done knitting yarns for us. He’ll no longer be inventing unusual characters having hilarious exploits around the town he founded, Miniberries. Every month he concocted two stories for us; we’re proud to have them on our website as a permanent testament to his creativity and his sense of humor. Don’t worry about him though, he’s doing well. Yes, he’s had two heart operations but his heart is still in the right place. He says, “Laughter is the best medicine. I want to be the Pharmacist.”

Monica Wilson, Pioneer in Rodeo

Dr. Gizmo was the horse that made Monica Wilson famous. (We were at her induction into the ProRodeo Hall ofFame this Spring.) That came about because of her natural horsemanship coupled with her innate ability ‘to get inside Giz’s head’ and ultimately to heal him. She was able to accept him for who he was, and bring out the best in him. Two lines in Harold Sloan’s poem “The Old Kid Horse” say it well:
A horse to me is like a man, they’re both the same inside,
The qualities we like in men within the horse abide.


This is Monica telling her story:

GIZ IS THE BEST

    by Jen Zollner

When you're a mother, it's not wise to choose___
A favorite, the kid you like best,
But that's how it is with my barrel racing horses,
Dr. Gizmo topped all the rest.

By far he is not the only barrel horse___
That won me many-a first,
In fact, when it came to challenging times,
I think he'd be classed as the worst.

It was love at first sight when I tried him out,
When I rode him, he just floated,
Next day when I tried him round the barrels,
He ran-off like a bomb exploded.

Some folks were thinking he'd make good fox meat___
'Cause he'd run up the wall times galore.
But he could run faster than anything
I'd ever been on before,

I'd just smile when things went bad,
Tomorrow's another day,
The process to fix him was long and slow,
Later, the odd time, still had a misplay.

There's more to know 'bout this fiery sorrel,
You can't help but like the guy,
He's happy, except just before the race,
He loads good, don't kick and he's sly.

Sometimes he'd fool me, he'd take the left barrel___
When we usually take the right,
He understands English, he talks to you,
Though he's not good looking, he's bright.

One time I threatened Giz, told him if you___
Don't win the next two races,
I'm selling you to some big old bulldogger,
Our next two wins were first places.

Somebody gave me a blank cheque to buy him,
He'd pay any amount for that horse,
Their way wouldn't fix him, they'd not understand him,
And I'd never sell him, of course.

He is awarded "Horse with the Most Heart",
At a ripe old age Gizmo died,
And that's when my heart in barrel racing went,
I ran out of Giz by my side.

School Horses *** COMING SOON***

They were often the transportation to the one-room schools. Read about the horses that teachers and students used, ordeals that were part of the trip and the invaluable life lessons the horse provided. Members of MHCP also shared their recollections (if they were old enough to have had a school-horse). The women in rodeo we interviewed also had
schoolhorses.

Library Corner

What I’m reading is available at the Medicine Hat Public Library:

The Heart of a Horse: Life Lessons from Horses and Other Animals

by Candida Baker

636.1 BAK, 2021

Through a series of true stories, the author shares how each horse (and other animals) enhanced her sense of spiritual connection. She illustrates what she experienced as she  learned to “listen” using all her senses. She describes the magic that happens when we keep  an open mind about the world of silent communication from the animal world. “The greatest  lessons animals teach us is to get in touch with our intuition.”

A thought to leave you with:

A boy would make a better man who had a pal like him (a school horse) -Harold Sloan-

Take care,

Jen

Posted on

Keeping You In The Loop — MHCP May Newsletter

May, 2024

Howdy Y’all!!!

I was pondering, is it possible to earn a living doing ‘the Arts’? The western singers and cowboy poets I know have other incomes, or else they’re retired. I wish we could give bigger honorariums to the artists we’re in the process of inviting to perform at our upcoming event on October 5th .

What is this Alternative text
The 2024 edition the the Medicine Hat Cowboy Poetry and Western Music Show is an event you won’t want to miss … mark your calendar!!!

Though we can’t afford to ‘hire’ him, Ben Crane is a multi-talented artist that does manage to make a living by performing and by having a recording studio. Watch for his name on the back of many Leaning Tree cards.

Me, I could never make a living sewing memory blankets. I guess my wage would also come in pennies for the poetry and other writing I do. How exciting it is though to make discoveries when exploring and researching something of interest! Presently our focus is rodeo (in general), and the equestrian feats and the independent spirit of rodeo women, starting in the early 1900’s. I’m looking forward to sharing their stories. I didn’t realize that women’s participation in rodeo changed so drastically, and that since the 1940’s, it’s been a long hard struggle for women to be treated as equals in rodeo.

Taber Round-Up

It was a one-day program from 10:00 until 5:00 on April 13th. Entertainment was supplied by western singers (one was a junior), poets (one was a junior), a story teller (about a pioneer family) and a book reading (by the author who wrote a fictional western novel). They had 3 top notch entertainers: Charlie Ewing, Doc Mehl and Doris Daley. Cheryl ended up being their MC when they didn’t have one and it was only a week before their event date. She brought Peter who was the prolific photographer.

Their lunch was reasonably priced, a hot dog or delicious chili on a homemade bun as well as dessert (the best puffed wheat cake and giant homemade cinnamon buns). The use of the large auditorium was donated by the town, and though the sound was better than last year, a smaller room would be better. Many sponsor posters were on display and a rotating slides on a large screen gave ample advertising. With that kind of sponsorship, they were able to give honorariums (superior to what we can give) to the entertainers and the MC. The small audience looked even more sparse in such a large room. Admission was by donation. Hats off to the community around Taber and the town for their generous support.

New on the Website

Harry Forbes Remembers:

We’ve added two stories to our “Harry Forbes Remembers” series:

Yarns by Ol’ Ugly

We’re privileged to have this well-known storyteller inventing interesting characters that live around here and has them getting into unusual situations in places you can almost recognize. Ol’ Ugly has shared three new stories with us this month:

Hilda Barns Stories


Under the guidance of Cindy and Ross Straub, Cheryl Dust (MHCP’s videographer and
photographer) took pictures of all the old barns in the Hilda area to include in Hilda’s 100 th
anniversary history book. It was me that compiled stories as well as the history of the barns
based on interview with their owners. We waited until the history book was distributed before proceeding to post them as a series on our website.

  • Story #3: Wm Austin *** Coming Soon! ***
  • Story #4: Gordan Diebert *** Coming Soon! ***
  • Story #5: Durr Barn *** Coming Soon! ***

Old Recipes are Ties That Bind


“Dog-eared and loved, recipe collecting is not a hobby, it’s a cultural phenomenon,” says Bev Biggeman. Below is the link to her article in the Western Producer. Her writings after interviewing Rosalie Reinbolt will be posted on our website in the months to come.

https://www.producer.com/farmliving/dog-eared-and-loved-old-recipes-are-ties-that-bind/

Farm Crime — A Documentary Series on CBC Gem

You might find these mini-documentaries interesting, each one is only 15-20 minutes long.
Watch them by clicking the link below or google this address: gem.cbc.ca/farm-crime.

Library Corner

What I’m reading is available at the Medicine Hat Public Library:

The Cowgirl Way, Hat’s Off to America’s Women of the West

by Holly George- Warren

NF-Cb791.84 GEO

The author briefly highlights the history of trailblazing cowgirls, from those that helped settle the Wild West to the cowgirls of the 21st century.

Western Wisdom (from a cat’s perspective)

It’s the month of graduations, when we as parents and grandparents want to give guidance to fledgling young adults. The best way to give lasting advice (without having to do the preaching), is to stitch it on aida cloth and make it into a cozy memory blanket. Here are the pieces of wisdom we thought would be useful for a family member graduating from high school:

  • pounce when the op-purr-tuna-ty presents itself
  • anything is paw-sible
  • be curious, explore everything
  • always land on your feet
  • a cat chasing two mice catches neither
  • when you find sunshine, bask in it
  • eyes have the power to speak
  • you only live once, unless you’re a cat
  • catitude, have a mind of your own
  • never be too old fur play
  • don’t judge a cat by its coat
  • nap like no one is watching

Empty Saddles: Remembrance Day Every Day

We say goodbye to George Hope. I interviewed him at his home in Medicine Hat, but he and his wife Ruth were very much at home in Redcliff, especially at the Legion there. As a war veteran he helped me realize that those experiences live with you every day and into old age. On our website under “Country Stories” see him talking about it on video. In our book by that name and posted at the Redcliff Legion you can find the poem about him, “Our Veteran and Holland’s Liberation”.

Two Cowboy Poets to Remember:

We were hoping these two cowboys, Harold Webber and Bryn Thiessen would one day be able to bring their poetry to our event, but both have recently ridden into glory. I’ve been on stage with both of them at various times at Maple Creek and High River.

Harold Webber encouraged many budding entertainers like myself to perform. We appreciated him also being a member of MHCP.  Harold Webber was an honest-to-goodness guy.

We’ll miss the regular page Bryn had in the Canadian Cowboy Country Magazine in which he gave a gospel lesson from a cowboy’s perspective. Bryn’s obituary captures the kind of character he was.

A poet’s words live on as proven with the poem below and the song from it on YouTube. Ben Crane’s music, “Sunlight on Silver” to one of Bryn’s poems is a tribute to both cowboys.  


The Look by Bryn Thiessen

It's the look of sunlight on silver,
And the smell of frost in the air,
The sound of a tired horse blowing,
That keeps them riding out there.

It's horses jingled by starlight,
A herd held up for the cut,
The pride of the young cowboys riding,
And the warmth of the sun coming up.

For the memories are the rhymes that bring back the times,
And the places a cowboy has rode,
They seem to hang in the wind, then come back again,
To warm him when he gets old.

He'll remember the friendship and laughter,
And the feel of a horse working right,
The sunsets when the day's work is over,
And the times 'round the fire at night.

The sound of good cowboy singing,
The words of the poems that he said,
And the coolness of the night air he's breathing,
As he lays in his old canvas bed.
	
For if memories are rhymes, it's comes to the time,
When upwards his soul has soared,
He's standin' there amazed, where the star herds now graze,
As he stares 'round his heavenly home.

It's the look of sunlight on silver,
And the smell of frost in the air,
The sound of a tired horse blowing,
We'll meet him as he's riding out there.

Some Parting Wisdom

Friends shared these two pieces of wisdom with me:

“The brain can only absorb as much as the butt can stand.”

“No matter where you travel, your memories always follow, some in the baggage car.” — August Strindberg

Take care,          

Jen, for short