What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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elaborate celebrations during the Fourth of July. This year, while there will still be fireworks to close out the event, it will take place from June 26 to 29, and there will be only one parade. "It becomes more difficult, the bigger it is, to get more people involved in the parade, because it's a lot of time, and it's hot," Johnson says. Today, her involvement is much different. Now, Johnson's and her father's company, RealtyMart-USA, acts as a sponsor for both the rodeo and the Rounders, the horse drill team that performs during the rodeo. "Our niche focus is in agriculture development," Johnson says. "So, we kind of fit into the realm of what the rodeo represents in its entirety." This year, they donated a saddle commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Rodeo of the Ozarks. Rodeo goers can pay $5 per entry to win the saddle, or $40 for 10 entries. The proceeds from the entries benefit the Springdale Benevolent Foundation Scholarship Program. Johnson's involvement with the rodeo did not stop with her school or her family's company. About three years ago, she says, her own daughters volunteered with the rodeo's different organizations to help with children. One of their tasks was assisting during kids' events, such as mutton bustin'. Jamie Ussery-Adair has been attending the rodeo since she was 4 years old. Her birthday is July 2, so she says she spent many birthdays, including her 18th, at the rodeo. She began performing and volunteering in 2005, riding with her father until he passed away. This year will be her second year riding without him, she says. Ussery-Adair rides with the Cave Springs-based Oakgrove Riding Club in the rodeo's grand entry and parade each year. Three years ago, she says, her riding club received a trophy for the second best-dressed riding club in the parade. "It's definitely an adventure to ride in the grand entry," Ussery-Adair says. "You never know what's going to happen with 1,000 horses coming in and out." Ussery-Adair has volunteered in many different positions at the rodeo, including working the entry gate with the Future Farmers of America booster club. The booster club helped raise money for the Springdale FFA/ Austin Ussery Scholarship. Austin, Ussery-Adair's younger brother, died in 2008. For several years after his death, the scholarship was awarded in his memory to a Har-Ber High School student who was also a member of the FFA. After almost 30 years of attending, performing and volunteering, Ussery- Adair describes the event as a family tradition. Her own children began participating in the rodeo at a young age, with her 4-year-old riding in the junior grand entry when she was just 2. Ussery-Adair says she has met a lot of people and developed many friendships through the rodeo. "Some people I only see there, once a year," Ussery-Adair says. At this year's event, Ussery-Adair will continue to ride in the parade and the grand entry, and she has also volunteered to help sell T-shirts. Amanda Young's father, Nelson Verl Hency, works as a sheriff's deputy for the Fayetteville area. Hency says he rode with the sheriff's department in the rodeo's grand entry for about five years. "Riding in the grand entry was a real blast," Hency says. Young says the event has always been a part of her family. Now, she is continuing the tradition with her own son. "We took him for the first time two years ago, and he loved it," Young says. "So we try to take him every year, just for fun, and the sights, and the smells and the camaraderie." Young has never participated in the rodeo or volunteered, but she says she plans to do so as her son gets older. "I want my son to always have those memories, but also just remember this is kind of where we come from," Young says. "Regardless of technology, regardless of where we're at, our roots in America come from, really, the hard- working man and woman, and I think the rodeo kind of encompasses all that." DINE IN ONLY! FLYING FISH For more information call 479-725-4017 or visit website amtrainrides.com 305 E Emma Ave • Springdale, AR 72764 SUMMER EXCURSIONS Fayetteville to Van Buren Saturday - 12pm Springdale to Winslow Sunday - 1pm Gift Certificates Available WELCOME RODEO FANS! JUNE 23-29, 2019 WHAT'S UP! 37 Rodeo Continued From Page 3 COVER STORY