Keeping Stories Alive
The ballad “In the Pines” has been covered by legendary musicians from Loretta Lynn to Kurt Cobain with each artist adding their own interpretation to what the verses conjure for the listener. Today, a soulful adaptation will be added to the ranks with the release of the single from cowboy crooner Sterling Drake.
Nestled on the main drag of downtown Noble, Oklahoma, down from Tiffany’s breakfast spot and across from the Spurs and Lace boutique is a small shop where heritage is preserved through custom hat making. Schafer’s Hats, owned by Fred Schafer, produces custom, hand-made fine felt hats for men and women all over the country.
Sabrina Kramer has found healing through her ability to create vivid imagery out of air and tell stories without using words. A barrel racer, a soldier in the U.S. Army, a wife, mother, and friend to many, she is the main artist and owner of Wild Cactus Tack.
Kramer grew up unable to speak at the age of 5, an orphan to the drug epidemic, and labeled by doctors as a lost cause.
While Monty Dyer’s passion for rodeo is apparent, he modestly states he’s just done it so long he doesn’t know how to quit. Truly a lifelong cowboy, his dad put him on his first horse as a child growing up in Ottawa, Kansas. His dad rodeoed and focused on rough stock events such as bareback and bull riding until Monty was born and he switched over to calf roping exclusively. Monty followed in his footsteps, taking on calf roping as a young man and continuing to hone his craft today through competition in the United Rodeo Association’s (URA) over 40 division.
Kendra Santos knows the power in a name. Whether it belongs to your horse, your mother, or your newborn child, it will leave her lips or fingertips with the respect and compassion it deserves.
The impossible longing to be ever more deeply connected. To see glimpses of the creatures that live wild and free and be reminded of the one who created them all.
Tell me you wonder If the belly of a catfish got to be so soft from years of mud caresses and smoothing waters, as though if you’d slip in there on a warm summer night you too would start to shed your armor and develop soft spots of openings to your soul.
Tell me you imagine—the moment you join your horse in the pasture, toss your feet up in the air and run as fast as you can, sweet air pumping into your lungs and flaring your nostrils with the same sense of reckless abandon you felt during your first passionate kiss.
Kevin Weatherby is the leader of the nonprofit Save the Cowboy, the largest independent cowboy ministry in the world. Born on a West Texas forty-two section ranch, Weatherby’s roots were planted deep. Although his formative years were spent in Big Lake, Texas, a town where his father was sheriff (you may remember it from the Dennis Quaid movie The Rookie), he soon returned to his ranch roots. He started college at Texas Tech but found the classrooms no comparison to the wide-open spaces and became a full-time cowboy. The long hours he logged in the saddle over the years weren’t a passing trend and continue to be a part of his life today. In fact, it is this core of his identity that led him to a deeper relationship with Christ and the start of the ministry.
If you have an interest in the rope horse industry, you’ve likely heard the name Miles Baker. Miles and his wife Daci have established themselves in the industry over the past few years through the intentionality of their training and their creation of the Relentless Remuda alongside rodeo legend Trevor Brazile.
Tyler Mansell is a master of anticipation. The Idaho born bullfighter has arrived at the forefront of the bullfighting world through his agile movements and calm demeanor. His smooth footwork and strength allows him to wait until what appears to be the last second to out maneuver the bull, often employing one of his signature front reverse moves, or his other favorite, the mercy roll overtop of the bull. He is as gritty as he is quick, and dirt stains on his clothes from sudden hits or tumbles never break his mental concentration.
After much prayer and deliberation, Molly and Adam Hamilton moved across the country to develop a new niche within the roping field where all feel welcome. They landed in Shawnee, Oklahoma and established their vision through the creation of Arrow H Ranch. This young couple and their two sons are committed to providing an uplifting, encouraging environment for ropers of all ages and skill levels to come pursue their passions and forget the stress of the outside world.
