RIVERS
BANNER January 23, 2015
ersary v i n Celebrating our 106th An
Gazette-Reporter Serving the Rivers, Rapid City and Oak River areas for 105 years
Volume 107, Issue 28
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Lady Luck smiles on local lady By Sheila Runions Banner Staff fter spending three days in Las Vegas for gymnastic competition, 13-year-old Amber Pomeroy came back to her hometown of Rivers on Monday, Jan. 19. Besides returning with her luggage, she also brought home an assortment of medals. Although she travelled with Brandon Eagles provincial team (10 members and three coaches), she competed as an individual, based on age and skill level, at the 2015 Lady Luck Invitational which was held Jan. 17. She participated in five events and placed well in each category: fifth in vault with a score of 8.725, third on balance beam with 8.825, second on bars at 9.4, first on floor events (9.475) and a first-place in the all-around competition with a final tally of 36.425 points. Amber competed against 13 girls and each time, she was the
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only Canadian; all other teams entered were American. After culmination of individual scores of each Eagles athlete, the team was awarded fourth place at the competition. Last month Amber and a team of 20 gymnasts from Brandon Eagles travelled to Fargo, ND to compete in their American Gold Crystal Classic. At that event, Amber won second in bars, third on floor and fourth in vaulting, balance beam and the all-around event. At Fargo, her provincial team (which also includes Rivers’ Sera Gilbert*) won first in the team competition. Amber trains 10 hours each week and is now working on perfecting moves for competition in Winnipeg next month and in Regina in March. Amber has been a member of Brandon Eagles Gymnastics Club since 2009 and joined the regional team in 2011. Last March she
met all necessary qualifications to represent Westman at the 2014 Power Smart Manitoba Winter Games where she won four medals — a gold, two silvers and one bronze. Two months later (May 2014) she joined the provincial team and travelled to Canmore, Alta. for a competition. * Sera, aged nine, claimed third place in vault, bars, floor and all-around at her secondever competition, Excel Silver (a different title for the younger age). She has been learning gymnastics for three years and travels to Brandon three days a week to practise there. Nine-year-old Taylor Bridgeman of Rivers is a member of Brandon Eagles Regional Team, but she did not compete at Fargo or Vegas; only provincial teams competed there. Taylor trains two days a week and will participate in meets in Manitoba.
Community mourning the loss of a true friend By Darrell Nesbitt Like a cowboy riding off into the sunset on a movie screen, the memories – oh so golden – of a man deeply enriched by the lifestyle of ranching, rodeo and riding with his family at home
and on the road, will be forever etched in the minds of countless friends. “The outpouring of sympathy has been amazing,” says daughter Lacey, as she spoke
Photo submitted
Terry Marshall shown reaching for a bronc rein at a 2005 rodeo.
of the death of her father Terry Marshall of Rapid City. “He definitely touched thousands of lives. It’s really kept us going, knowing how many people cared about him as much as we did.” At the age of 64, Terry died at home on Wednesday, Jan. 7, and while a definitive cause has yet to be determined, it appears to be the result of a heart attack. Rodeo nurtures the close family ties that make life rich. And for that, he was blessed to be able to rodeo with his three daughters – Kelly-Jo of Melville, Sask., Lacey of Strathclair and Jerri-Lynn of Brandon. Through various rodeo associations, including the Heartland Rodeo Association (HRA) which formed in 1995 to give families an avenue to compete and bond within the province of Manitoba, a ranch family from a small prairie town became fully
Photo submitted
Amber Pomeroy strikes a pose during a routine on the balance beam.
involved. Through involvement they lived the Cowboy’s Prayer: Heavenly Father, we pause, mindful of the many blessings You have bestowed upon us. We ask that You be with us at this rodeo and we pray that You will guide us in the arena of life. We don’t ask for special favours. We don’t ask to draw around a chute-fightin’ horse or to never break a barrier, nor do we ask for all daylight runs or not to draw a steer that won’t lay. Help us Lord, to live our lives in such a
manner that when we make that last inevitable ride to the country up there, where the grass grows lush, green and stirrup high, and the water runs cool, clear and deep, that You, as our last judge, will tell us that our entry fees are paid. It can be said that belt buckles are the trophies of the rodeo world and they tell their own stories. For many of us, including myself, Terry is remembered from a pickup man’s standpoint. continued on page 2