STOCK SHOW PREMIERE PAGE 22 • Wednesday, January 29, 2014 RAPID CITY JOURNAL
Rodeo Royalty Queens, princesses and ambassadors all represent and promote the Best of the West
Miss Black Hills Stock Show contestant KAIRA DEMPSEY is the 23-year-old daughter of Steven and Shelley Dempsey of Brookings.
She graduated from South Dakota State University with a bachelor’s degree in construction management with a business minor. She works as a project manager in the sports department at Daktronics Inc.
Miss Black Hills Stock Show 2013 GINA JESPERSEN is the 23-year-old daughter of Don and Joni Jespersen and twin sister of Taylor Dane Jespersen. She is Miss Black Hills Stock Show 2013.
She is the fifth generation on her family’s ranch and farming operation. Hard work and integrity, a passion for rodeo and dedication to a dream carried her to the 58th Miss Rodeo Nebraska 2014 crown. She has showed horses competitively in 4-H and at the AQHA national level and was a four-year western member of the South Dakota State University NCAA Division I Equestrian team, where she was voted team captain. She also was a member of the student athletic advisory committee and received a four-year SDSU athletic letter. She graduated from Black Hills State University in December 2013 with a bachelor of arts degree in elementary education. Her ambition is to aid in the growth and success of children by instilling a sense of self-worth, morality and selfconfidence. Her motto is “Ride with No Regrets” and she said, “Life is unpredictable, one may never know the trials and triumphs that lay ahead on their journey, but if individuals embrace their true passions and live life for all of the glorious wonder it provides each and every day, they will truly Ride with No Regrets!”
She spends time assisting the Specialized Training And Riding Skills program for challenged riders, participating in the Brookings Riding Club fun days and working with her own horses. She said she hopes to start barrel racing competitively in the future.
Miss Black Hills Stock Show contestant CHEYENNE MCMILLIN is the daughter of Dennis and Marie McMillin of Hermosa.
Involved in 4-H from age 8 to 18, she was active in the horse and pony, veterinary science, photography and first aid sections. She graduated from Custer High School and is a member of the Hayward volunteer fire department, where her father chief. She hopes to continue her education and earn degrees in business and equine science. She enjoys being outdoors, taking her nieces for horse rides, going shooting with her brothers, hiking, swimming, canoeing and jogging.
Miss Black Hills Stock Show contestant SHAMEE MERKEL is the 23-year-old daughter of Ross and Amanda Merkel and Kim Merkel of in Ellendale, ND.
She attends Northern State University and plans to graduate in 2014 with a degree in biology and continue her education with a degree in nursing, also from Northern State University.
Miss Black Hills Stock Show contestant NICOLE BOOMSMA is the 24-year-old daughter of Patti and Kenny Boomsma of Stickney. She is the sister of Matthew, Justin and Kardell Boomsma.
After high school, she pursued a career in cosmetology at Black Hills Beauty College in Sioux Falls and currently works as a cosmetologist at Prestige Salon and Spa in Mitchell. She was the 2008 Miss Corn Palace Stampede Rodeo Queen, 2010 Miss Rodeo Aberdeen and 2013 Miss Faith Stock Show and Rodeo Queen. Off the arena grounds, she enjoys helping out the local Make-a-Wish Foundation and Big Brother, Big Sister Foundation. She is an active member of Ethan Trail Riders.
Miss Black Hills Stock Show contestant KENDRA PETERSON is the 22-year-old daughter of Ronald and Myla Peterson of Sisseton.
In high school, she was a student manager for both girls basketball and track and competed in volleyball and rodeo. She was also a member and officer of the Sisseton FFA chapter and the Country Kids 4-H Club. She excelled in pole bending, which in her senior year, she qualified for state high school finals. She attended the University of Minnesota Crookston and graduated in December with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a minor in agricultural business.