I hope this finds you and your herds both happy and healthy! We are fresh off our state convention and let me tell you, it sure was nice to see everyone in person again. This convention brought us back to the Embassy Suites in Norman, OK where we enjoyed educational sessions, fellowship and friendships with our fellow CattleWomen and Cattlemen.

OCW was excited to welcome the Fancy Lady Cowgirl herself, Courtenay DeHoff, as an educational session speaker graciously sponsored by the Oklahoma National Stockyards. CattleWomen also heard from OCCW alumna, Lettie McKinney, a producer and entrepreneur. Thank you to Stockman-Oklahoma Livestock Marketing for sponsoring her education session. These women provided helpful tools and knowledge for CattleWomen to grow in their passions and productions!

We are nothing without our devoted and passionate members, two words that I believe accurately represent our 2022 CattleWoman of the Year, Robin Richards! Robin is an OCW Director At-Large and a past Washington County CattleWomen President. She always has a smile on her face and is so welcoming to every CattleWoman in the room. We also honored our 2022 Honorary CattleWoman of the Year and former first gentlemen of OCW, Chuck Coffey! Chuck has a been a long-time supporter of OCW and we are incredibly thankful for all of his support he has given us. I hope you will join me in congratulating them both on their achievements!

This year, OCW gave out a special Lifetime Achievement Award to a woman that has truly given her all to CattleWomen. No matter what she is battling, she always ensures those around her feel like their best self. She contributes her time, devotion and love to everyone she meets and I am honored to announce the 2022 OCW Lifetime Achievement Award recipient is Glenna Fisher. If you’ve seen our Ways and Means booth at convention and admired the handmade quilts, pillows, and various other items, those were graciously made and donated in full by Glenna!

OCW proudly offers multiple scholarships for all ages. In the past year we lost a dearly beloved CattleWoman, Nancy Buckminster, and proudly established a scholarship in her memory. The first recipient of this $1,000 scholarship is Riley Luginbill of Orlando, OK. The J.B. and Betty Smith Memorial Scholarships were presented to two recipients: Landry Freeman of Marlow, OK and Sophie Varner of Bristow, OK in the total of $1,000 each. Charlcie Gatewood of Stillwater, OK was awarded the Oklahoma CattleWomen scholarship in the amount of $1,500 for her continuing education. Please join us in sending congratulations to our scholarship winners!

Each of these awards and scholarships were presented at our Annual OCW Awards Luncheon where BEEF is always on the menu! I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the Oklahoma Farm Bureau for sponsoring this year’s luncheon. We are incredibly thankful to all of our sponsors for helping us host such a great convention!

Convention marks a new year and a new team for OCW! While our executive officers and some of our District Directors are starting their second term, we have some wonderful new faces joining us. I can’t wait to see what we accomplish together for the beef industry in the coming months. Please feel free to contact myself or any of our OCW leaders with any questions. You can find a directory for all OCW Officers, Directors and Representatives on our website at okcattlewomen.org. If you are interested in joining an OCW committee, please contact us at ocw@okcattlewomen.org.

Until next time, I wish you all the beef and blessings!