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Pendleton Round-Up Foundation Awards Over $25,000 in Scholarships

Pendleton, OR. The annual rodeo is in full swing and students are celebrating their victories, too. Sixteen were selected to receive scholarships in amounts from $1,500 to $2,000. The Round-Up Foundation is focused on charitable and educational purposes to “provide for the perpetuation of the memory of the Old West and of the pioneers and to preserve the customs and manner of life of the Indian tribes in and near Umatilla County, Oregon.”

Scholarship recipients are involved with either the Round-Up or Happy Canyon pageant and wild west show.

Some scholarships winners helped local charities at the annual event, some sold programs for a youth group, carried a flag in parade, picked up trash with their 4-H Club, participated in performances, or volunteered in other capacities.

The Pendleton Round-Up has been held during the second full week of September since 1910; the rodeo brings roughly 50,000 people to the city every year.

Educational scholarships were just one of the causes supported by the foundation. Breast Cancer awareness was another.

The Round-Up was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization in 1910, as the “Northwestern Frontier Exhibition Association.” The rodeo was primarily a creation of local ranchers led by Herman Rosenberg. This video highlights the excitement of the multi-day event:

The Pendleton Round-Up is a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado, inducted the Pendleton Round-Up in 2008.

The 2019 Pendleton Round-Up will be held September 11th – 14th.

Here’s a list of the top three scholrship recipents who received $2,000 in memory of Donald Deacon Hawkins:

Kaitlynd Ellis, Hermiston

Adrienne Olson, Athena

Morgan Orem, Heppner

From the Pendleton Round-Up:

The beautiful city of Pendleton, Oregon has hosted the Pendleton Round-Up since 1910. Below you will find some information to help make your stay in our town more enjoyable. Please make it a point to visit our Hall of Fame Museum located in the same building as our retail store. The Hall of Fame contains the entire 100 year plus history of the “World Famous Pendleton Round-Up.” Welcome to Pendleton and Let ‘er Buck!

Elisa Klein

I’ve been a professional journalist and writer since 1987, (and long-time reporter for KOIN-TV.) As a nationally published reporter, with a Master’s Degree in Journalism, I love to report positive news and information. Journalism has also connected me with another non-profit where I served as a leader; the Northwest’s biggest writer’s organization: The Willamette Writers.