2023 Induction Ceremony

Schedule

Thu Mar 02 2023 at 06:00 pm

Location

Billy Bob's Texas | Fort Worth, TX

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The Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame Announces 2023 Honorees
Fort Worth Stockyards (November 10, 2022)
The Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame has announced the 2023 Hall of Fame inductees: Boots O’Neal, Cleo Hearn, San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo, and The Texas Rangers. Our Spirit of Texas Award Recipient is Moe Bandy.
The induction ceremony for these accomplished nominees is one of the premier western events in Fort Worth and will be held at Billy Bob’s Texas on Texas Independence Day, Thursday, March 2, 2023, at 6 p.m. Presented by Norris Foundation & Bobby and JJ Norris, the event includes cocktails, a silent and live auction and cowboy cuisine prior to the 7 p.m. Induction Ceremony.
Tickets to the event are $200 per person or $2,000 for a table of eight. Sponsorships are also available at multiple levels. Proceeds benefit the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame 501(c)(3), its ongoing education programs, and Western lifestyle preservation efforts.
For sponsorship and ticket information, please visit our website tchof.com/induction, call 817-626-7131 or email [email protected] with “Induction Ceremony” in the subject line.
Learn more about our 2023 Inductees:
The Texas Ranger Division of the Department of Public Safety
For 200 years, the Texas Rangers have been a part of the history and mythology of the Old West. The Rangers have both changed history, and changed with history, but one thing will not change: their bedrock commitment to doing their duty to the highest professional standards and upholding the universal principles of justice. Today’s Texas Rangers reflect the diversity, professionalism, and integrity you would hope to find in one of the world’s oldest – and finest – law enforcement organizations.
Cleo Hearn
Cleo Hearn is the Founder of the Cowboys of Color Rodeo Tour, and has been a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association since 1959. When Cleo started in the rodeo business as a black man he was not allowed to compete in the regular rodeos because of discrimination. He persevered until the audience, and the other cowboys forced the rodeo producers to let him compete because his calf roping times were better than the rest of the competitors. He was the first African American to win a major Stock Show tie-down calf roping event, the 1970 National Western in Denver, Colorado.
The Cowboys of Color Rodeo Tour is the living dream of Cleo and is the largest multicultural rodeo in the world. He produced his first Black Rodeo for 10,000 kids in Harlem, New York, in 1971 with 100 other Black Cowboys from Texas and Oklahoma. He began producing rodeos in Dallas in 1985 as a fundraiser for the African American Museum Dallas. The rodeo was designed "to educate while it entertains". The Cowboys of Color Rodeo Tour brings diverse cultures together to celebrate our collective Western heritage.
Among his many awards, Cleo received his Star on the Texas Trail of Fame in the Stockyards in Fort Worth, Texas, in 2005 for his lifetime commitment to rodeo and the cowboy way of life. Cleo also was the 2016 Recipient of the Lane Frost Award, was inducted into the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame in Dallas, Texas, in 2021, and was inducted into the National Cowboy Museum and Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in 2022 for his long legacy of promoting the Western and Rodeo Cowboy lifestyle. Cleo has also been in numerous commercials for Ford, Pepsi, Levi, Philip Morris, and appeared in hundreds of television and radio shows and print articles over the years. Cleo has also spoken to children, youth and adults all over the country, sharing the Rodeo Cowboy Western Lifestyle and Legacy.
Boots O’Neal
Boots O’Neal started breaking horses for small ranches in 1947. He has spent more than 75 years in the saddle working for some of the largest ranches in West Texas and was initiated into cowboying when he went to work as a young boy for the RO Ranch.
After spending time in the United States Army, Boots went to work as a Field Inspector for the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raiser’s Association. However, the lure of the cowboy life beckoned him back to the Waggoner Ranch in Vernon, Texas. He stayed there for almost 20 years and was eventually promoted to foreman of cattle operations.
The Four Sixes Ranch currently employs boots at Guthrie, Texas. He has been involved in all phases of their cattle work for more than 30 years. He also holds a Texas Peace Officer’s Commission and in the past, has assisted with the security of the ranch.
Boots received the “All Around Cowboy” award at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma, in an all-state ranch rodeo in 1985, the “Working Ranch Cowboy” award during the Texas Cowboy Reunion held in Stamford, Texas in 2004, the “Trailblazer” award during the Texas Ranch Roundup held in Wichita Falls, Texas in 2005, the “Point Man” award from the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center in Waurika, Oklahoma in 2010, and the “Chester A. Reynolds” award at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 2013.
For three-quarters of a century, Boots has looked over the backs of many herds of cattle, and he has experienced and observed more changes in the way of how cattle are worked and handled than almost any other person in the business. Boots says that a lot of the change has been for the better, but every now and then it’s good to sit down and reminisce about the old days when a bunch of boys, horses, and cattle gathered around the wagon.

San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo
"A volunteer organization that emphasizes agriculture and education to develop the youth of Texas"
The San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo has grown to be one of the largest, most prestigious single events in the city of San Antonio & the state of Texas. The San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo has a vast history and will be celebrating over 74 years in 2023.
The Rodeo uses a tournament-style format of 19 PRCA rodeo performances where contestants compete back-to-back in each Bracket. With a total payout of over $1.6 million, the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo is one of the highest in the United States.
The success of the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo is attributed to over 6,000 volunteers who give countless hours to the organization. With community, donor, sponsor, and volunteer support, the organization has committed more than $243 million since its inception. Through scholarships, grants, endowments, junior livestock auctions, calf scramble program and show premiums the event impacts over 19,000 youth in Texas annually.
Executive Director & CEO Cody Davenport said, “We are thrilled to help future generations of Texas youth achieve their educational goals. The Rodeo staff and our over 6,000 volunteers work diligently to generate as much funds for the youth of Texas as it is at the core of our organization and mission”. Mr. Davenport continues to state, “It is just an amazing event with the support of San Antonio, Bexar County and the State of Texas and all those that attend should feel a sense of pride that they are making a positive impact on our future.”
More than 12,500 Texas college students have benefitted from a San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo Scholarship. Approximately 1,500 active scholars attend Texas colleges and universities today. The funds are raised through annual fundraising events as well as the annual Stock Show & Rodeo and are awarded in the form of scholarships, grants, endowments, junior livestock auctions, calf scramble program and show premiums.
Moe Bandy
Country music legend Moe Bandy has come a long way from his bull-riding days in Texas. Not to mention his years as a sheet metal worker by day and playing Honky Tonks at night in and around his hometown of San Antonio, Texas. In the mid-seventies when the country pop Kenny Rogers, John Denver and the outlaw sound of Waylon and Willie was at the rage, along came the traditionalist Moe Bandy.
The Texas singer with twin fiddles and steel guitar in the band kept Texas-style Honky Tonk music alive, but it wasn’t easy. In 1972 Moe met record producer Ray Baker on a hunting trip and convinced him to listen to some demo tapes he had made. Baker agreed to produce Moe if he was willing to pay for a recording session. Moe agreed and out of that session came Moe’s first hit song “I just Started Hatin Cheatin’ Songs Today”.
Some of his noteworthy accomplishments include 10 # 1 Hits, 40 Top Ten Hits, 66 Chart Hits, 5 Gold Albums, ACM Song of The Year, ACM most Promising Male Vocalist of the Year, American Video of the year, ACM and CMA Duet of the Year.
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Where is it happening?

Billy Bob's Texas, 2520 Rodeo Plz,Fort Worth,TX,United States

Event Location & Nearby Stays:

Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame

Host or Publisher Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame

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