Would you do this for $26,230.29?

Recently, I had a continuing education in Las Vegas. It happen to be the week of the National Finals Rodeo. The strip was electric as always but with a "howdy" kind of environment.

The CE that was being put on was with the National Auctioneer Association. If you know many people in that trade, you'll realize that most of them are salt of the earth people who have chosen the unique business of auctioneer/marketing. Some of the best friends I have have come from my relationship with this trade organization.

Since we were in Vegas during the week of the NFR; we had to get tickets. We show up at the Thomas Mack stadium at 6:15 excited about the opening events at 6:45. If you've gone to a rodeo, you'll appreciate the excitement and anticipation of the cowboys and cowgirls participating in difficult and dangerous sport activities. While bareback and saddle bronc are two dangerous events, I would say that the world agrees that the bull riding is the most dangerous. Sitting in the stands, watching the best of the best, I realized the complexity of this sport. First, you're sitting on a 2000 lbs + animal, second your holding onto him with a skinny bull rope, third, you're graded on 8 seconds a pure power, and finally, once your off, either by your on choice or the bulls, usually he is ready to plow you over; so you better run like heck to the gates. That night it was amazing with on a few of the athletes not making the 8 seconds. In the end, Round 10, Trey Benton III rode Mortimer (Bull) for 8 seconds and won $26,230.77. Roscoe Jarboe came in second and cashed in $20,73077 while Tim Bingham made 3rd with $13,236.92
Thats big money, but Tuf Cooper from Weatherford, Texas won the All Round Championship yielding him $341,560.29

 I realized with money like that, this isn't any hobby. Its a way for someone to make a pot of money and most likely gain sponsorships for the pants you wear, the hat you're wearing  and I am  certain the list goes on.

While in Vegas, I had the opportunity to spend time with my close friends Dan Pate, of Pate Auctions, Curt Pate with Curt Pate Stockman, and his wife  Tammy Pate. These friends are pure Montanas and bring a southern boy into the world of livestock, rodeo and western lifestyle. They are all high on my friend list!

The question I'd ask you is "would you ride a bull for $26,230.29? My seat in the stands was very comfortable. I think you'll get my answer!

She substituted for the lady I never met.

Elizabeth, Bonnie Logan, Kyle

Meeting your wife at the youthful age of 17 has so many blessings. We practically raised each other. Just kids, we molded each other in so many ways. Early on in our dating, in fact, our second date, we both expressed our fondness for each other and desire to have God in the center of our new found relationship. It was a great date that August 1984 night, and our bond has done nothing but get stronger over these 33 years.

You may have read about my finding Elizabeth's birth mother. Its a great story, and one that shaped our lives and relationship in many ways. Going back to the "17" years; part of my desire to find Elizabeth's birth mother was the curiosity that God placed in my heart. I just had to piece the puzzle of her life together; that included the things I didn't know about her, and the things she didn't even know about her own story. Things like, in what hospital was she born. Where did she go as a foster child (the first 5 weeks of her life).

One of the facts I was never able to secure an answer for was the question, who exactly was the counselor that lovingly directed her birth mother during her time of crisis. Although I discovered every sibling and a large number of the birth family, I was never able to meet or talk to the counselor in this story of ours. Oh how I would have loved to say "thank you"!

I believe God knocks on your heart in many ways. In 2000, the knock came to me from a friend, Steve Robertson. He invited me to join a crisis pregnancy ministry. So, when I joined the board at Salem Pregnancy Care Center, I was introduced to Bonnie Logan. As of today, Bonnie has been the executive director at Salem for 31 years. This past July, Bonnie announced that after 31 years in the ministry, it was time to slow down and enter a new chapter in her life. I remember noticing her sincere interest in women in crisis pregnancies early on at our board meetings. Six years before joining the board, Elizabeth and I had gone through a miraculous time in our life. Seeing the blooming of a mother/daughter relationship was quite amazing. Even today, the emotions are still very raw; very spiritual. I realized early on that the counselors that assisted by wife's birth mother through a difficult time in her life were just like Bonnie Logan. When I would see her at church or at the board meetings, quietly, internally, when I would look at her, I would see the face of the counselor(s) at Hope Cottage in Dallas Texas. It was that piece of the puzzle I had been looking for. For this reason, and for the reason of her Godly demeanor, I grew to love Bonnie, like a family member.

She is now leaving Salem Pregnancy Care Center. But her lasting love, her presence will always be part of this center. The lives she has touched, the women she has counseled, the administrative duties she exercised all to foster a center that started small but is now medical offering free ultra-sounds. At her celebration party last night, as I toasted her with these sentiments, "Bonnie, I am confident that many of the crowns you will receive one day in heaven will be placed upon your head by the very children who were given the gift of life because of your tireless work and dedication to this ministry."

I am proud to be a friend to Bonnie Logan, her husband calls her a wonderful wife, her children call her blessed, and I call her an advocate for the unborn.

31 Years......what a legacy!