Judy Elam was born May 8, 1947, in Modesto, California, the daughter of Don and Lenora Padgett. Judy loved school and rumor has it, she was quite the social butterfly! She graduated from Sonora High School in 1965 and attended Modesto Junior College.

On May 11, 1970, she married Ken Elam, now married for 52 years! Their daughter Lisa was born in 1976. Family is an important part of Judy’s life. 

In the early 80’s, they moved to the country and discovered their love for horses and cattle. According to their daughter, Lisa, “from that time on, it was about Gymkhanas and Cattle Penning on weekends.”  The mid 80’s found them living in LaGrange on a local ranch until an opportunity to move to Hawaii came up and they took it. When that chapter of their life closed, they returned to LaGrange and the western lifestyle they loved. Judy worked but spent every spare moment helping Ken on the ranch and at local brandings. In the 90’s they welcomed two granddaughters, Tami and Katelyn. By the early 2000’s, they were spending summers ranching in Sprague River Oregon and winters in California. They now have two great grandsons, Angel and James. Their most recent move brought them back to a ranch between Sonora and Oakdale, CA. They spend most of their time helping their vast network of friends with cattle drives and brandings.

 Judy lives and exemplifies the western lifestyle. At 76, she works almost daily, side by side with her husband Ken, working cattle, and is much-sought-after-help at cattle drives and brandings. Judy loves roping calves but is also quick to offer help pushing cattle down the chute or administer shots. Although she may have the shortest legs in the crowd, she is usually found on one of the biggest horses. Judy approaches work and life with a “What can I do, how can I help” attitude and, like always, accompanied with her beautiful smile.

Judy supports the cattle industry, local events, roping, and cattle penning events and is always quick to support a fundraiser for someone in need or to pass on information on a lost or found pet. She is very active in her local Mid Valley Cowbelles unit, helping support the beef cattle industry and her heritage through information booths, educational demonstrations in classrooms, and fairs and social media. Judy was the first Cowbelle of the Year for the Mid Valley Cowbelles. 

Judy Padgett Elam lives a life of honest, hard work that she truly loves. Congratulations to Judy for receiving the Betty Kunesh Legacy Award.

Norma Hapgood is not, make that NOT, a good little woman who likes to putter around the house.

Even at age 97, Hapgood is probably outside working in her garden, feeding cattle or helping out riding horseback. But some things have never come naturally. Riding and being outside is something that’s come naturally, something that started early.

“I always rode with my dad. I didn’t like inside stuff,” she explains with obvious pride. For more than 91 years — “I don’t know where that time went” — she’s lived in Modoc County’s Surprise Valley. Her parents, Roy and Vida Hanks, had a ranch outside Fort Bidwell.

“I am not a cook,” she emphasizes. “ ‘Bout the first breakfast I cooked was after Hilyard passed away,” she said, referring to her husband, who died in 1995. “No, no, being indoors, that’s not me. I avoided the house.”

“We had a little starve-out place,” she said of the family ranch, where they ran cattle and had milk cows. The fourth of seven children, she helped with all the chores, including milking cows and selling the cream — “I’ll tell you what. I know how to milk a cow” — and thrived spending time horseback. “I’m sure I rode more than a million miles. I’ve spent many an hour horseback and I’ve loved every minute of it. I always had a saddle horse. I didn’t always have a saddle,” she quips.

During good weather she and her sisters and brothers rode horseback to school. “That was the fun thing in my life, my horses. I’ve had some good horses. They were tough, tough horses.”

Life got tougher when Hapgood was 12 and her mother died. “Life changed after that I’ll tell you.”

Still, she enjoyed her growing-up years. Hapgood was part of the Fort Bidwell baseball town team, one that included boys and girls, and later played catcher for her fast ball pitching daughter Jeanne. Baseball is still a favored pastime. She watches San Francisco Giants games on television and admits to sometimes falling asleep. She is a loyal fan but, living so far from San Francisco, she has never attended a game.

More than baseball, Hapgood likes dancing. She found a dance partner after graduating in 1942 from Surprise Valley High School in Cedarville, the valley’s largest town. While working at the grocery store, she met Hilyard Hapgood, who made periodic town visits from his family ranch at Calcutta, 40 miles away on the present-day Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada. She doesn’t remember the details, “but I’m sure it was at dances” where their romance blossomed. “Hilyard, he could dance,” she tells with a schoolgirl grin. They were married in 1944 and lived at Calcutta.

“We rode every place,” she said, recalling cattle drives and the winter they gathered 40 head of pinto horses for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, drove them from the Sheldon to Cedarville then, a day later, over the Warner Mountains to Alturas. “The snow was so deep it was at my stirrups. Talk about cold. We had icicles on our horses’ noses.”

Winters were spent at different places until 1949, when the Hapgoods bought the house that’s still her home and added neighboring ranches. During their peak years, she estimates the family owned about 2,000 acres, ran about 500 head of cattle and raised hay on 500 acres. Her “work-alcoholic” daughter and son-in-law, Bonnie and Joe Erquiaga, have taken over management of the ranch. Her grandson, Jeff, a veterinarian in Colorado, provides the family with Red Angus bulls for breeding. “We’re really proud of our cows,” said Hapgood, who’s also proud of her family. “Everybody knows how to work and everybody can do each other’s jobs.”

She’s been hobbled by two hip replacements and two shoulder surgeries — “I can’t throw a rope,” she moans — but still takes on chores. “I get up at 5 o’clock and get to work.” Asked if she still rides horseback she answers, “Oh heavens, yes,” although she confesses to needing help getting a horse saddled and steps on a bale of hay to climb aboard.

Hapgood, who wears a perpetual smile and is firecracker sparkly, has no complaints.

“Nobody had a better life than me. There’s no part of ranching and my life I don’t like. Made us a living. We worked hard. We were up early and worked late. Think of the fun times we had,” Hapgood reminisces. “I’ve really liked every day of it. I’d like to go back and do it again.”

ENTRY DEADLINE

Materials must be submitted by November 10th, 2022.  

ELIGIBILITY

Nominees should be any Western woman who embodies the cowgirl spirit and is making an impact in the western lifestyle. Nominee must be a resident of the United States or Canada.

SELECTION CRITERIA

The nominee should demonstrate the following attributes:

1. 1. Visionary and pioneer spirit
   2. Leadership, commitment and dedication to preserve and perpetuate the Western lifestyle and cowgirl spirit.
   3. High moral and ethical standards in all facets of her life and work.
   4. Generosity and mentorship

JUDGING

The Art of the Cowgirl staff will review the nominations and select the winner. The winner will be notified by November 20th to allow for travel arrangements to Art of the Cowgirl, January 18-22nd, in Queen Creek, AZ. 

PRESENTATION/AWARD

The award will be presented at Horseshoe Park and Equestrian Centre during Art of the Cowgirl. The winner will receive a buckle and special presentation.

For more information, contact info@artofthecowgirl.com