Thirty children from Milam County’s 4-H program made the two-hour trip for the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo the second week of March, but were disappointed when at 1:30 p.m. officials announced the shutdown of the rodeo.
While the sheep and goat show continued for a few hours, the live auction was canceled, and Milam County Extension Agent Floyd Ingram was in Houston with 4-H’ers.
“I could tell they were hurt, but I told them sometimes these things happen in agriculture,” Ingram said. “Sometimes you have seasons that don’t turn out the way you want to, and you have to wait to produce your profit next season. Yes, we were all disappointed, but I just told the kids to keep working hard, so they can be ready for next year’s rodeo.”
According to newspaper reports, the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo was canceled due to COVID-19 precaution. After it was discovered a coronavirus patient attended the rodeo cook-off in February, a health emergency was declared citywide.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said the new presumptive positive case of COVID-19 was reported, and there was evidence of a community spread. This is what led officials to cancel the event altogether. Reports estimate that the cancellation cost the city and guests nearly $227 million in profits.
Ingram said there was no way to tell how much money the Milam County students missed out on, however, the most disappointing thing for him wasn’t the monetary compensation.
“These kids spent a lot of time breeding and caring for these animals to show them at this event,” Ingram said. “It’s a shame they didn’t get to finish what they started.”
Professional barrel racer and Rockdale native Kelly Tovar, who has competed in the Houston Rodeo in years past, said she had never seen anything like this happening.
“When I first heard about how different businesses were shutting down, I was a bit skeptical,”
Tovar said. “Seeing that this virus made the entire rodeo shut down really opened my eyes to how serious this entire thing is.”
“I feel like the United States is doing the right thing by telling people to remain in their homes,” Tovar said. “The season ends in October, so before I can worry about racing, we need to try and get this virus figured out.”
There were 78 COVID-19 cases in Houston, according to the Houston Chronicle on Monday. Turner told reporters there were currently no plans to reschedule.
“I tell folks let’s spread facts not fear,” Ingram said. “I feel like there is a lot of misinformation going on. I just tell people to protect themselves and abide by the rules, and when it comes to the rodeo, I feel like there wasn’t much they could do. So, I feel like they made the correct decision.”
For more information and updates on the COVID-19 virus please visit The Reporter website, www.rockdalereporter.com.
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