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School for the Blind headed to Haskell for Western Heritage Day Sept 28

Thursday, September 22, 2022

MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Oklahoma School for the Blind students are headed to Haskell for their 14th Western Heritage Day. After a two-year break, the event will be 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, September 28, at Silver Spur Western Lodge.

“Western Heritage Day is fun!” Miracle Jones, an OSB Transition student from Spiro. “I like the stagecoach rides best.”

Ryan Horton, a sixth-grader from Tulsa said “I am looking forward to the bungee jump.”

Silver Spur Western Lodge owners Roy and Rose Anna Webb annually donate their rodeo arena facilities, stagecoach and hay wagon to ensure that students enjoy an authentic cowboy experience with educational impact.

Students also enjoy fishing, rock-climbing wall, bungee jump station and mechanical bull rides in a safe and controlled environment.

Sharon Breeding, an Oklahoma Quarter Horse Association leader, coordinated her organization’s Western Heritage Day sponsorship, including lunch, for many years.

This year, Breeding turned the role of chair over to Jake Walker, Oklahoma Quarter Horse Association executive committee member and agricultural equine instructor and rodeo coach at Connors State College in Warner.

Walker annually brings 65 student volunteers who join Oklahoma Youth Quarter Horse Association members and Haskell Future Farmers of America to be matched as one-on-one friends for the day with each OSB student.

Juree Rezner from EnerWest Trading Co., L.C. in Duncan donated t-shirts to celebrate Western Heritage Day.

Donna Janssen will coordinate other horses for pony rides. 

Connors State College will supply lariat ropes, calf roping dummies and petting zoo animals, who will be confined by panels set up by Haskell FFA.

Todd Colburn will coordinate the bait and poles for students who want to fish in the pond at Silver Spur Western Lodge.

Steve White of Love’s Bottling in Muskogee donated bottled water for the event.

“We are so excited to go back to Silver Spur Ranch and participate in Western Heritage Day after a couple of years when we weren’t able to go,” OSB Superintendent Rita Echelle said. “This event would not be possible without generous support from Silver Spur Western Lodge, Oklahoma Quarter Horse Association, Connors State College equine program and Haskell FFA.”

“Students have an incredible time and gain knowledge from this experience that they will carry with them for a lifetime,” Echelle added. “We are grateful for our sponsors and supporters’ interest in our students and their collaboration to make this a day our students will never forget.”

OSB is a division of Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services.

The Oklahoma School for the Blind is fully accredited and provides students with specialized educational programs in coordination with their state-mandated education requirements. In 2020-21, 90 students lived at the school during the week or commuted from home. OSB also provides thousands of free direct outreach services each year for students who attend other public schools, their families and educators.

For more information, call 918-781-8200 or 877-229-7136 toll free, or visit http://osb.k12.ok.us/index.html.

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Dee Willis, now an Oklahoma School for the Blind graduate, rides a mechanical bull during the 2019 Western Heritage Day at the Silver Spur Western Lodge in Haskell.

For more information

Jody Harlan, DRS Communications Director

Cell: 405-203-1318 

Last Modified on Sep 22, 2022