Chicks n' Chaps sends out personal message

PLAINS – The group known as Cowgirls Kickin’ Cancer hit the fairgrounds with their biggest fundraiser of the year, the Chick n’ Chaps event, bringing the impact of cancer closer to home than ever.

This year the group decided on a theme – “One of our own,” after several members in their group were affected by cancer.

According to chairwoman Rae Herman, one of their members lost the battle to cancer. Dana Baxter was commemorated at the event, while other members of the group spoke about their experiences with the disease.

Herman said everyone has had some kind of experience with cancer and for her it was personal. Her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer and in order to take care of her, Herman had to close down a store she owned in Hot Springs.

“For me this is as personal as it gets,” Herman said. “We are all touched by (cancer) and we all know someone who has been touched by cancer.”

This year participation for the event was up with 62 participants – a good sign for the fundraising that was taking place.

The event kicked off with registration at 3:30, followed by a welcome from Kevin Hill. The ladies participating received a behind the scenes tour of the rodeo chutes, learning the science of putting on an event of a large caliber. Lori Franzen, co-owner of Powder River Rodeo, provided the tour and educated the ladies on the sorting process.

This year was the 29th year Powder River Rodeo put on the rodeo in Plains.

Once the tour was complete, the ladies had an opportunity to learn how to rope, ride a bull and barrel race with stick horses. The event provided plenty of laughs before the day took a serious turn. Survivors took to the stage to share their story, bringing the main goal of the event into focus.

Roberta Smith and Christy Sheehan talked about the struggles they faced while fighting the disease. Smith completed her fight against cancer, while Sheehan is in the midst of the battle. Both offered advice to the crowd.

“If I could give anyone advice about this, I would say check yourself regularly,” Sheehan said. “If you’re diagnosed, think positive and stay active. Keep your head up and smile even when you don’t think you can. It will be hard at first and you’ll want to run away and hide but you can get through it.”

Traci Salmi spoke about what she dealt with when her mother was diagnosed with cancer, bringing a different side of the disease to the forefront.

The Chicks n’ Chaps event is the biggest fundraiser of the year for Cowgirls Kickin’ Cancer and 100 percent of the proceeds go towards helping locals fight the disease financially.

The proceeds are split 50/50 between Clark Fork Valley Hospital and Cancer Network of Sanders County. CFVH provides free mammograms for those who cannot afford them, as well as opportunities to get breast biopsies, among other services, while CNSC provides those in need with a $700 annual gift towards expenses.