2024 grand marshal
Brad & Helen Denson
Hello friends and neighbors of Pine Valley and the Hells Canyon Jr Rodeo!
We are pleased to tell you a little bit about this year’s Grand Marshalls, Brad and Helen Denson
They moved to Halfway in 2018, and prior to the move, they had been active in managing the Dry Creek Ranch since 2016 when Brad's father, Dale, was diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer. Both Helen and Brad and family were year around visitors to Halfway spending most of their time at Dry Creek. Brad first came to Halfway in 1979 and Helen immediately fell in love with the area after their marriage in 1994.
Now settled in Halfway, Brad loves being on the Pine Eagle School Board and Helen is active baking for the Pine Market with the proceeds going to Spartan Athletics.
Brand & Helen have four children. Their oldest is Dr. Alex Snider, a beef cattle researcher at the Clay Center USDA facility in Nebraska. Dale, a horticultural student at Clackamas Community College. Walter, who is studying social work at Boise State University, and James, who will be a senior at Pine Eagle next year. James is active in FFA, sports, and is working this summer with the Pine Eagle Building Trades Program. They both try not to miss any of James sporting events. Despite the long drives, they have enjoyed getting to know the various communities and schools in NE Oregon in their travels. They have experienced a number of white-knuckle drives during wrestling season over the passes to Culver and Burns for meets.
Overall, they say they "keep busy with our cattle, grass, horses, rocks, and broken equipment. Our rallying cry is “nothing easy on Dry Creek".
We are honored to be chosen as Grand Marshalls, and believe in both the Junior Rodeo and the Labor Day Fair & Rodeo."