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By PAUL DELANEY
Staff Reporter 

Rascal Rodeo provides 'can-do' experience

 

Last updated 7/26/2018 at 8:48am

Paul Delaney

This participant was one of over three dozen members of the special needs commmunity to participate in the first Rascal Rodeo in Cheney on July 15.

Over three dozen members of the special needs community in the area had their special day prior to the final performance of the 51st annual Cheney Rodeo on July 15.

The Rascal Rodeo made its appearance at the Bi Mart Arena just before the sun began to seriously bake the dirt and the smiles were easy to spot - from participants, parents and caregivers.

The Rascal Rodeo idea is that of Tri-Cities resident Ann-Erica Whitemarsh. At an early age she befriended a Down Syndrome boy. That led to producing her first rodeo in 2001 and in 2018 she produces 16 events across the Northwest.

Not only has the concept grown, but so have perceptions of participants.

Many parents come with the notion that their kids cannot ride a horse, Whitemarsh said. "No, they're going to be afraid of that, no they can't do that."

"I say let them come, let them decide what they can be, what they can and can't do," Whitemarsh said. "That's when the parents are in tears because they can't believe what just happened."


When a person confined to a wheelchair, is lifted onto the back of a horse and the first word out of their mouth is "horse," Whitemarsh calls it a miracle. "There's no other way to explain it."

As an elementary school student, Whitemarsh said she had a heart for those with special needs. "(I) could tell that there was something special and loving about them."

"My dad played a big part in bringing Special Olympics to the Tri-Cities back in the early 80s," Whitemarsh said. That organization celebrates its 50th birthday this year.

"I believe it's my God-given calling and my purpose on earth to do these events," Whitemarsh said.


While it's easy to be thankful for having family members who do not require the attention that those with special needs do, Whitemarsh offers an important point.

"People think that special needs people would be a burden, but the way I see it is that you have healthy kids that would be going out and doing things that they're not supposed to be doing, staying out past their curfew,"

Special needs kids offer challenges in other ways, Whitemarsh said. "Any kid can cause you trouble, whether it's health or with the law."

Sunday's rodeo included the opportunity to ride a real horse, toss a lasso and a number of other farm and ranch-related activities. Participants were aided with a large number of volunteers, including Miss Washington Rodeo, Beth Snider.

Northwest Farm Credit Services of Cheney provided the sponsorship of special belt buckles that each participant took home for their morning's experience. Each also received cowboy hats and bandanas, plus for many the experience of a lifetime.

The Rascal Rodeo name was something "that popped into my head one day in college," Whitemarsh said. "When I think of a 'rascal' I think fun, loving, like to tease; that's our cowboys and cowgirls."

What does the future hold, besides a for sure return to Cheney in 2019?

While others across the nation produce "one-off" rodeo events for their local special needs residents, Rascal Rodeo is the only organization that will come to an event and produce a turn-key activity.

They have received inquiries from across the nation - as far away as Texas and Illinois - asking, "How do we get you here," Whitemarsh said.

That effort is currently underway with a reorganization with new board members with financial, fundraising and business experience to reach the next level, Whitemarsh said.

"The last eight years we have just exploded," she said

The biggest takeaway for Whitemarsh is when parents are at first hesitant but later, "In tears and coming and giving me hugs, and the other volunteers hugs because they can't believe what their child just accomplished."

It could be a simple hello, or as daring as mounting a horse after having been in a wheelchair, Whitemarsh said.

Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.

 

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