Certain people have a gift for getting things done, and Carmen Ross definitely exhibits hard work and dedication like a badge of honour when it comes to rodeo planning.
Ross has been a hard-working volunteer for more than 40 years when it comes to putting on the best show possible at the annual North Thompson Fall Fair and Rodeo. The combined event is now in its 75th year, and for the past four decades Ross has been involved in the planning and progressive thinking surrounding this popular rodeo in the interior of B.C.
On Aug. 31, Ross received well-deserved accolades during the opening day of the rodeo, and was presented with a huge bouquet of flowers as her two grandsons, Tanner and Teagan Tutt, stood proudly by her side.
The Ross family has a long history of association with rodeo in the North Thompson Valley. Dick Ross organized the rodeo during the first year it was combined with the Fall Fair, which took which took place in 1973. It was a junior rodeo for the first couple of years, with rodeo horses coming from Laurie Walkem of Spences Bridge, and cattle from Barriere area rancher Charlie Fennell.
Ross then brought the Interior Rodeo Association to the North Thompson Fall Fair, and in 1975 Joe Bardget Sr. became the rough stock contractor, with his daughter Cathy and son-in-law Danny Corr eventually stepping into his shoes.
Carmen Ross co-managed the rodeo for many years in the early days with her husband Dick Ross, who passed away in 2013. She continues to carry on his legacy as NTFFRA rodeo chairperson along with a group of "amazing helpers": her team of volunteers, who continue to support this beloved rodeo each and every year in partnership with the North Thompson Fall Fair.
Thanks to Carmen's dream and mission of having a Jumbotron screen installed this year, fans were able to have a full view of the activity in the arena, as well as enjoy some fun and memorable moments of people in the stands as well.
"Forty years with the sport of rodeo for my Mom, and what an amazing accomplishment it has been," says Ross's daughter, Tracy Tutt. "Little Britches Rodeo, High School Rodeo, BCRA: she has helped with all of the associations, to name a few. Now the last few years with putting on the BCRA Finals and wanting to make it the best she possibly can. She has an incredible crew behind her that she could never do without as well.
"She lives for the sport of rodeo and loves watching all of the competitors, especially the ones she has seen right from the Little Britches days, with many having their own kids here too. We are so proud of her as a family and very grateful to everyone who continues to support her in this sport."
