About the Awards
Scholarships
- One of the priorities of the Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame has always been to identify and help deserving students at New Mexico Junior College complete their education. Over the years, many students have benefited from the financial support they received from the Hall of Fame’s scholarship program.
Outstanding Rancher and Working Cowboy Award
- The Board of Directors also recognize those who are “actively preserving the fast-fading cowboy way of life.” The Outstanding Rancher Award is presented to an individual or couple whose occupation is ranching, and is recognized as a business person(s) with ethics, integrity, and honor. The Working Cowboy Award is bestowed upon an individual who is a wage-earning cowboy who exemplifies ability, dependability, and character.
Silver Concho Award
- For men, women, or animals not eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame, but who deserve to be remembered for their service throughout Lea County, the Board of Directors of the Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame instituted a special recognition award known as the Silver Concho Award.
Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame Induction
- Induction into the Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame is commemorated with the presentation of the Cowboy Hall of Fame Inductee Award. This award is given annually to no more than four men and/or women who have roots in Lea County and who have distinguished themselves in the rodeo world or have contributed to the area’s ranching industry. In addition to the individuals selected by the membership, the Board of Directors may choose no more than one person per year who meets special criteria.
NMJC Scholarship Recipients
- The Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame board is pleased to sponsor academic scholarships for the 2019/2020 school year for the following students:
o Colter Figg – Kenny Smith Memorial Scholarship
o Madison Rice – Wayne Smith Memorial Scholarship
o Grady Ross Kirkes – J.E. Teague Memorial Scholarship
o Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame Scholarships
§ Colton Able
§ Cheyenne Gonzales
§ Justin Long
§ Zerrick Ponder
§ Hunter Salter
§ Mackenzie Watkins
§ Colette Wilson
Mike Wilson – 2019 Working Cowboy
Born in 1969 to Larry and Margie Wilson, Mike grew up in Roswell, New Mexico. He started his first paying job at ten years old working alongside his dad at the local sale barn. At 16 he went to work for LC “Buck” Pounds riding and training horses. Mike attended Goddard High School and after finishing school was employed by The Broken Heart Ranch in Wilcox, Arizona as a horse trainer. He has been blessed to work for some good outfits with great horses including Indian Bluff Ranch and Scharbauer Cattle Company. In 1990 he married his wife Stacie and in May of 1991 they planted roots at the headquarters of the Turkey Track Ranch owned by Bogle Ltd. Mike has worked for Bogle Ltd for 28 years. He was first hired as a colt starter and ranch hand and spent many years showing and promoting Bogle’s remuda. After 13 years at the Turkey Track Ranch, Mike, Stacie, and their two children Garret and Colette moved to Lea County where he has been the foreman at Bogle’s historic 4-Lakes Ranch for the past 15 years. The 4-Lakes ranch is home to Bogle’s mare herd and also runs approximately 450 mother cows and depending on the rain 1000-1500 yearlings.
Garth Coombes – 2019 Outstanding Rancher
Garth Coombes was born in Lovington, New Mexico on May 6, 1966 to Malcolm and Harriet Coombes. They lived northwest of town near the Anderson Ranch. Garth and his folks moved to Elida, New Mexico when Garth was a year old. Malcolm was transferred to Elida and worked in the oilfield on the Bob Crosby Ranch south of Kenna. Garth's parents had several ranches leased from south of Kenna to Milensand. Garth grew up working with his Daddy and helping friends and neighbors. Garth had the pleasure of being exposed to many great and talented ranchers, cattlemen, and cowboys. These people were his role models, mentors, and heroes. Garth and his dad started a trucking company in 1980. Garth worked, drove trucks and went to school in Elida until he finally graduated in 1984. In 1988 he moved to Hobbs where he would have more opportunities. In 2008 he bought his first ranch at Crossroads NM, which included the Tips Barnes place, the Duncan Gaynor place, and the Lovejoy place. In 2015 he also purchased the Underwood place. Garth is living his dream of ranching, hauling cattle, helping his neighbors and enjoying his family.
Dr. Darrell Beauchamp is the Executive Director of the Museum of Western Art in Kerrville, TX. Prior to assuming the position in Texas in April, Beauchamp was, for seven years, the Executive Director of the Western Heritage Museum and Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame in Hobbs.
Darrell grew up in central Texas, with five brothers. Upon graduation from high school, he attended Temple Junior College and East Texas State University where he met his future wife, Jan. He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from East Texas State University and an earned doctorate from Texas A&M University - Commerce. During his career he has served as a photo-journalist, a graphic designer, a University professor (University of Central Arkansas), a Librarian (Navarro College) and a Museum Director.
Dr. Beauchamp served as the Executive Director of the Western Heritage Museum and Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame on the campus of New Mexico Junior College from 2012-2019. During this time, he fostered a tight relationship between the Museum and the Hall of Fame, allowing both entities to work toward a common goal. He switched the roles of the South and North Gallery providing extra space needed to bring in quality exhibits, including: “Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition,” “Bigger than T-Rex,” “Bugs Outside the Box,” and “Selected works of Andy Warhol.” He increased visitor attendance through creating a Staked Plains Roundup event for the public, bringing in Bonnie Moran’s North Pole Village at Christmas, and much more. His tenure saw many improvements to the building and grounds, and unprecedented growth to the Museum and Hall of Fame.
In his spare time, Darrell is an avid fly fisherman, camper, and photography enthusiast. He is an Eagle Scout and was a Boy Scout leader and Scoutmaster for fifteen years. He and his wife, Jan, are the parents of three grown children, Cody, Casey, and Emily all of whom live in Central Texas.
2019 Cowboy Hall of Fame Inductee
Albert “Suckerod” Ozborn
Albert Ozborn was born on March 4, 1935. He left home at 15 to work on the historic Matador Ranch near Lubbock, TX. He also worked on the historic Pitchfork Ranch, also near Lubbock, as straw boss at age 17. He moved to Lea County in 1964, where he began working for the Charlie Martin Ranch, founded by W. S. “Colonel” Williams. At 29 years old, Albert worked as a foreman for the Martin Ranch and retained that position for 53 years. In 2000, Albert purchased and operated the Breaks Ranch on the edge of the Caprock. While ranching, Albert earned the nickname “Suckerod” due to his thin physique.
Albert considered working cattle to be both his job and his hobby. He is recorded as saying, “Some people like to go fishing; I like to work cattle. There ain’t nothing more pleasant than to go down and saddle a horse and work cattle.” Albert also built bits, spurs, belts, chaps, bull whips, bull ropes, trailers, and made boots for his family.
Albert was a successful team roper and known for being left handed and using a short rope. He was on the cover of the Quarter Horse Journal in 1958 and in the Saturday Evening Post in 1959 where he was featured roping cattle on the Pitchfork Ranch.
Albert believed there was no better life, than living and working on a ranch. He was awarded as Working Cowboy at the Western Heritage Museum and Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2004. Albert passed away on January 3, 2017. His wife, Marion, and son, Jim, are also deceased, but he is survived by son, Phillip and wife Troy Lee; grandchildren, Zach, Makayla, Chad, and Crystal; and great-grandson, Zane.
2019 Cowboy Hall of Fame Inductee
J.E. Teague
Born to Hattie and “Cowboy” Teague, J.E. Teague’s family has an established history in Lea County. His grandparents homesteaded 160 acres at the corner of Stiles and Knowles Rd, northwest of Knowles, NM, and he lived on the southwest corner of the original land until his death.
“Cowboy” was a roper and had roped in Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth, TX, but J.E. didn’t start roping until he was out of high school. J.E. went to South Plains Junior College on a rodeo scholarship and rodeoed as much as possible to keep up with the very competitive rodeo scene in southeastern New Mexico. J.E. was the leader in points for Rodeo Cowboy Association Rookie of the Year when he was drafted into the US Army. He couldn’t rodeo while stationed in Georgia, but when he transferred to Washington state, he eventually was able to find time to rodeo on the weekends if he could find somewhere to board his horse, “Ole Woody”. Finding an empty barn with stalls and a big yard, he took a chance and asked the family about boarding his horse. The Crate family welcomed J.E. with open arms. becoming his home away from home. By the time J.E. got back into roping he’d lost his standing for Rookie of the Year.
J.E. left roping for a few years and started cutting. He did well as a weekender in the non-pro class in New Mexico and Texas, and went to the NCHA finals in Fort Worth, TX several times. Roping associations began to form, creating numbered classification systems, and J.E. was again able to successfully compete on the weekends. J.E. continued to compete right up until the weekend before he passed away at age 81. He was #13 in the Ultimate Calf Roping Series. He once said “I rope against other old guys AND against their grandsons and granddaughters.”
J.E. was a proud member of the Board of Directors for the Lea County Cowboy Hall of Fame and the New Mexico Junior College Athletic Booster Club. He was often found at the NMJC rodeo practice arena where he would work with college students on honing their skills as ropers.
J.E. is survived by wife, Virginia; sister, Janice; and step daughters, Mandy Duncan Sayre with husband Chad and daughter Sadie, and Katie Duncan Summers with husband C.J. and daughter Kenzie.
