Double J Longhorns
Dirk & Carla Voorheis
2822 FM 1446
Waxahachie, Tx. 75167

Our Region 11 Qualifying show was open to all exhibitors, and a review from our Belton Show reveals that we had 93 total entries from the show, with exhibitors showing from all across Texas and Oklahoma. Initially, it looks like we took in $4200 in proceeds from the show, and our expenses will be outlined shortly. We have elected new officers, and there will be a transition period in moving the accounts where Laurie has served as Treasurer for the past few years, to an account where Donna can begin managing our accounts.

We got settled in on Friday, while violent storms swept across central and north Texas. Lizz Huntzberry was our judge for the Open shows, and called to say that she was having trouble making her flight connections due to the storms. I really want to thank Lizz for making the effort to get down here despite all the trouble she had to go through. She did a wonderful job for us in the show ring evaluating our cattle. Larry Smith II had the duties of evaluating our youth show, and did a great job with the kids evaluating their cattle. John Hodges served as judge for our showmanship classes, and really put the kids through the motions in his evaluations. A big thanks to all of our judges that helped us with the show.

Helping with the loose show was Rick Baldwin, John Hodges, Ken Berryman, Gilbert Vickers, and John Ingle in the back, with Brad Hancock, Pam Kinsel and Dirk Voorheis working the show arena. Bill Kinsel handled the microphone throughout the show, and managed control of the show from his high tower. Helping with the official books and with registrations was Robin Hancock. Handling the awards was Caroline Aydelotte, Margaret Kinsel, Joan Wilken and Pat Ward. Ring steward for the youth show was Stan Jernigan, and for the haltered show is was Brad Hancock. Working the gates were Gilbert Vickers and Donny Heinze. I want to thank everyone that helped get things set up, and then torn down and packed back in the trailer after the show. It is great to know that you can count on your volunteers to help get the job done.

Saturday night after our board meeting, we went to the Ox Bow restaurant for our social dinner. They served a rack of ribs that fell off the plate on both ends. It was yummy! Sunday morning we had our membership meeting and signed up some new members. Thanks to everyone who brought or bought an item. Lizz got the show under way and was able to move at a comfortable pace, getting done by around 3:30 pm.

With the price of gas nearing $3.00 a gallon, we weren't sure how many animals to expect for the show, so it was with a great deal of appreciation that we welcomed all of the exhibitors that made the sacrifice to support our show and our affiliate. We made cuts in our budget last year during our show planning, but even with $1500, we were still able to offer some very nice awards. Thanks to our sponsors and advertisers, we were able to take the edge off a bit more. It is truly the efforts of a good number of great people that make a show successful, and we have been truly blessed. Thank you all!

BELTON SHOW AWARDS

This is the first in a series to spotlight our members, with our Directors being the first subject. Hopefully, you will get to learn something you might not have known. Bill Kinsel and his family got involved in the Texas Longhorn business through our youth program. He called and asked about the youth camp for his oldest daughter Pam, and I told him that we had activities that would fit his younger boys, BJ and Tuff as well. They all showed up on a wet Friday night, and that weekend, got their feet wet so to speak in their love of longhorns. Bill said that on the way home it was, "daddy we blah blah blah longhorns", or "we want a longhorn blah blah blah" all the way back to Houston. The next thing I know, Bill is calling saying that "The Kinsel Family" are wanting to relocate to the area. The Lonestar show was coming up, and they found a calf that Pam could show. She went out and won big in the youth show and I saw Bill come running out of the stands with camera in hand. I stopped him and said, "Congratulations, and welcome to the Longhorn business". They haven't slowed down yet. They finally did get moved to Stephenville, where the kids are active in sports and school activities, as well as taking care of their longhorns just outside of town. They have been active on the show circuit and have won, but more importantly they have made life changing friendships with breeders and owners of Longhorns all over the country. Stephanie Carrington started showing longhorns as a youth member in 1998, and is now one of our newest Directors. As usual, she started with just a couple of animals and from there the herd grew. A quick look at her bedroom walls is testament to the success she has seen from her involvement in Longhorns. Her first time to ever show, she won a first place ribbon with a calf we bought from Bart May, and her grandfather whooped and hollered like a kid. Little did any of us know how far that ribbon would propel our family down the Longhorn trail. Stephanie, through our youth camps and involvement in the youth program has learned the industry from the ground up. Lacking the money to go out and buy the calves she would like to have, she’s had to build her success on the calves we have raised. She retired her steer, RB Teddy, that she raised from a calf, as Region 11 Champion Trophy Steer last year, and at a recent show, she took Reserve All Age Female with her Senior Cow, Charlotte, that she raised from a baby. She has served as an ITLA youth officer, and a youth officer in Metroplex. She returns to the camp now as an instructor and mentor for the youth to help them be successful in the show ring. Today, Stephanie is attending Weatherford Junior College, with plans to transfer to Tarleton State University. She is already working in the field she wishes to pursue, as a vet tech with a vet in Granbury. Her service to our board and affiliate is something that we hope will help her in the future. Any organization hopes to generate their future leaders from nurturing their youth, and Stephanie has already set her foot on that path. Your new Vice President is Randy Ingle, who has served on the MTLA board for several years. Randy retired from the FWISD in 1980 after 31 years. He started with the schools as a custodian, and retired as Director of Transportation. There were about 13 busses in the FWISD fleet when he took over, and well over 400 when he retired. He pioneered school bus safety where no laws previously existed, and allowed special education and handicapped access for kids that were not mainstream candidates. He met his wife of 48 years, Vada, on base while stationed in San Antonio, and is now widowed. We all got started in the longhorn business when he came to the ranch one day and informed me that he had bought an animal for Stephanie to start showing. I asked what kind of animal and he said a calf. Stephanie had not been active in showing animals of any kind, and I thought to myself that a calf might be a bit much to start out with. When I asked what kind of calf and he said, “Longhorn calf”, I thought he was out of his mind. We have had cattle for most of the time that we have owned the ranch, but didn’t have any experience at all with Longhorns. Our first few shows, we didn’t really know what was going on. Shortly, we had other kids and families that were showing with us that had gotten involved through the ranch, and it was quite a spectacle to see us trying to get to a show. I had been in management, managing the bakery at Wal-Mart, and Jose’s Mexican Restaurant here in town, and that didn’t allow me the time I needed to go to the shows. I switched to a production job with weekends and holidays off so that I could spend time with my family in their new hobby. I have been working in a cabinet shop for the past 5 years. One was for a custom builder, and now I’m in a production shop where we build for several different contractors in the area. I am in my second term on the board for MTLA, having served as President and Vice President. Thanks to a nod from Darrell McClanahan, I have also taken on the newsletter for the past few years. After watching the first few shows, it was evident that our kids needed something to help them in the show ring with their showmanship and judging skills. Dad and I talked about having a youth camp to get instructors help the kids get on an even playing field. Our first camp had only 6 kids, but we worked the next year on making better plans. Soon the head count was up. 22 kids, 34 kids, 40+ kids, and then they started coming from out of state. Certainly the camps were growing each year, and we found generous sponsors to keep the camp free to all who wanted to attend. Our plan worked! Not only did we see improved skills in the kids we were working closely with, but I soon started receiving calls from moms who would tell me that their son or daughter received their first showmanship award and that their ring presence had really improved. It was rewarding to think that you had been successful in your efforts, and that kids were building on their future through the youth program. Although my sister and I were dragged kicking and screaming into the world of Longhorns, we have enjoyed the opportunity to be involved in an activity we can share as a family. Renee has served on our board for two years, and has worked at Lockheed in Fort Worth for 9 years under contract with their phone department. She has worked previously as a home health aide for several years. We have all shared in the success of our longhorns, and rally under our ranch name, RV Ranch, rather than individual owners. We had 7 Region 11 Champions just last year, and many previous trophies to celebrate our success. New Director Debby Goodrich and her husband, Dave, both work as Educational Diagnosticians for Parker County Co-op Special Services. Dave is also pastor of Holder's Chapel United Methodist Church in Cool, TX while Debby manages their ranch in Poolville, TX and does the cattle showing. They bought their ranch in 1991 and moved their residence there in 1992, beginning their cattle operation with a few head of Hereford cattle. While returning from a visit with parents in the Hill Country they saw a trailer advertising longhorn cattle going down the road and decided a longhorn would look nice in their pasture. They quickly wrote down the phone number and called to see about buying one. To make a long story short, they couldn't settle on just one so they bought two from Stan and Priscilla Briney. Those multiplied into the herd of about 24-40 head, minus the Herefords, that comprise the focus of the Double D Ranch operation. Debby also raises miniature horses and a variety of fowl: geese, chickens, turkeys, ducks, guineas, and peafowl. Debby and Dave began showing their cattle in 1992 with their first calf crop and won 1st place with their heifer. Cheyenne's Star went on to win Champion Senior Heifer at the 1993 Farnam Championship Show in Fort Worth. They showed cattle off and on for a few years, winning some and losing a lot, then took a break to re-evaluate their breeding program returning to show about 3-4 years ago. With the addition of their herd sire DD McTavish, an AI product of one of their cows, L5B 177 Golden Sage, and semem from Dixie Top Deck, a Briney bull, their cattle have finally "made a showing" in the show ring. McTavish has consistently produced calves with good confirmation, horn and size. Two of his two year old steers have alternately won champion junior steer and champion senior steer in almost every show entered, with DD Buck Shot winning Reserve Champion All Age Non-haltered Steer at the LLA Spring Show. One of his two year old heifers, DD Little Susie, just won Champion All Age Non-haltered Female at the WTLA Show in Post and the MTLA Show in Belton, and one of his yearling heifers, DD Chocolate Malt, won Reserve Champion All Age Non-haltered Female at the LLA Spring Show in March. Debby likes to spend her spare time walking through the pasture looking at their cattle and deciding who will be the next show prospects or future ranch steers. It is always a great joy to take others out to the pasture also to admire or purchase a longhorn and perhaps begin their journey into the magnificent world of the Texas Longhorn. It seems that Longhorn cattle are somewhat like Lays potato chips; you can't have just one. Debby is looking forward to serving as a director for the MTLA and helping to inspire others to get involved with these marvelous animals. Thank you for the opportunity to serve our organization.

We had a Directors meeting at our show recently in Belton, Texas. Directors in attendance were, Donny Heinze, John Ingle, Renee Carrington, Bill Kinsel, Randy Ingle, Gilbert Vickers, and Donna Bridges. Tim Drake, Bob Rubel, Craig Buchanan, Janice Heinze and Laurie McCullar had asked to be excused. Our first order of business was our recent elections. Since the elections, we have lost contact with Mark Chapman, and made a motion to remove him from the board. The person receiving the next highest number of votes from the election was Stephanie Carrington, and a motion was made to accept her to the board. Debby Goodrich accepted an offer to serve our affiliate and was appointed to serve in a vacant position. This brings our Directors back to 14, and we appreciate everyone who has volunteered to serve.

Our next order of business was to select officers for the upcoming year. For President, Gilbert Vickers has accepted the position. Randy Ingle accepted the nomination to serve as Vice President, and Donna Bridges agreed to serve as Secretary/Treasurer. Officer's terms are selected from our board of directors and serve for a one year term. With our new officers and board in place, we continued with our remaining business.

We had been contacted by ITLA Director, Wes Watson, to submit members from our affiliate to be considered for national recognition as "Pioneer Breeder of the Year", "Breeder of the Year", and the Jim Palmer "Shock and Awe Award". Two of our members have received the Pioneer Award in recent years. Wes Watson has received the award, and last year, Bart May was recognized. Persons considered for this year's Pioneer Award who met the requirements were, Joe & Lorinda Valentine, Robert Cox, Larry Smith II, and Dale Hunt. For Breeder of the Year, nominations were Rocking B Ranch, Dave & Debby Goodrich, Stan & Jimmie Jernigan, and Easy Money Longhorns. For the Jim Palmer award, only one name was submitted. The Shock & Awe award was meant to recognize persons who supported the longhorn business through a positive approach, and drew attention in the promotion of the breed etc. For his dedication to the youth, and for his support of our youth program through the youth camps and participation awards, Randy Ingle was nominated for the Shock & Awe award.

We talked about plans for our second show this year, and our thoughts were to have a jackpot show, for cash rather than awards. It would be a Region 11 show for ITLA points, and would be held possibly in the fall. Details are still being considered for this show. We also talked about the possibility of having a sale as a means of marketing our ropers and market cattle. So far this is only a discussion and no plans are concrete.

Other items discussed at the meeting included the possibility of establishing a scholarship fund for our youth, the possibility of having a sale, and nominating our unsung hero for the year.

Sunday morning we had our membership meeting at the Belton Show. Donny Heinze chaired the meeting as Gilbert Vickers had been called away. In attendance were Larry Smith II, Rick & Joan Baldwin, Donna Bridges, Janice Heinze, Stan Tidwell, Randy Ingle, Renee Carrington, Stephanie Carrington, Pat Ward, Debby Goodrich, John Ingle, Bill Kinsel, and Donny Heinze.

We proceeded with the announcement of our new officers. No financial report was available, so we estimated our finances based on our December report. Next, our nominations were presented to the membership for consideration on the Pioneer, Breeder of the Year, and Shock and Awe awards. From the names submitted, Larry Smith II was chosen to represent MTLA as Pioneer Breeder of the year. Larry has been involved in raising and showing longhorns since he was a youth member. He's an ITLA Director, a long time MTLA member, a well respected ITLA judge, and has produced some of the top selling animals in our industry. For the Breeder of the Year, Pat Ward said that Easy Money Longhorns had received the award last year and asked to be removed from consideration. The Jernigans were chosen unanimously to represent MTLA. Stan & Jimmie have developed a well balanced breeding program which has been well represented in the show arena, and recently in the sale arena as well. They are always eager to support our affiliate and our youth program, and are well deserving of our recognition. Randy Ingle's name was submitted for RV Ranch to be recognized for the Shock & Awe award and with no other nominations coming from the membership, he was unanimously chosen to represent MTLA for this award.

Discussion followed about the possibility of a jackpot show and a sale, and suggestions were taken from the members. We thanked everyone for making the sacrifice of getting to the show and supporting our affiliate, and we soon adjourned.

Pioneer Breeder Of The Year Larry Smith II	Shock & Awe Award Randy Ingle
Breeder Of The Year The Jernigans

By way of a previous motion from the board, John Ingle was selected to represent MTLA as their Unsung Hero for 2006, and be recognized for his service to our affiliate. John donated his time to make the All Age trophies for the Belton show, and saved the affiliate a considerable amount of money for trophies of this size. His dedication to the youth, through the camps and other activities was recognized, and the board bestowed this honor unanimously.

The Unsung Hero award is given by the ITLA to honor each affiliates selection of a member who goes above and beyond what might be expected. Distribution of the awards takes place at the National Convention.

At our Belton Show, we decided that we would match any donations received from our exhibitors (up to $200) to give to Brian & Dyann Foster to help with their expenses. We received $215 in donations, and matched that with our funds for a total of $415 to be donated to the Foster's. Thanks everyone who helped us raise money for this cause.