“What’s Past is Prologue…”

By way of introduction, on Tuesday September 9, 2014 you will need to

Please submit a copy (digital or photocopy – not original) of a photograph featuring yourself at any time in your life. Along with this photo

(that you can scan and send via email to – be sure to note a subject)

Due on Thursday September 11, 2014 you need to:

Provide the back story to the photograph:

·  The who

·  What

·  Where

·  When

·  Why

·  and any other pertinent details or anecdotes related to the photo

Connect to one of those threads of the American experience, eg. the house in the background where my grandparents live was purchased in 1948 using the GI Bill’s mortgage benefits of my paternal grandfather’s or Aunt Sally, second from the right, played high school basketball for her school as one of the first girls’ teams developed after Title IX.

**You may not be able to make these connections yourself, so ask questions of your parents and family. These interviews are primary and secondary sources and therefore must be cited please use the proper MLA citation format. Follow MLA format for now (See Mr. Cichon’s site for information regarding proper format)

Absolutely: grammar, punctuation, spelling, composition and overall attention to detail and accuracy count. And yes, provide MLA citations, including information you received from interview sources.

You should be able to develop a cohesive story 1 – 2 pages, size 12 font, double spaced Times New Roman NOT including your photo and citations page.

You will be presenting these brief biographies to class on September 15, 2014… including meJ

Model:

That is me, on my mom’s horse Missy as we barrel race in Athens, Pennsylvania rodeo in 1974.

My parents grew up children in 1940s and ‘50s in Rochester NY they married in 1963. I was born in 1964 at a tumultuous time of civil unrest and the beginning of “busing” to integrate the schools of Rochester. So they made the decision to leave the city and take up a “country” life moving to the small town of Honeoye just before I entered Kindergarten in 1969. They rented a duplex on a horse farm and the hired hand & local farrier, Jack Minteer introduced them to rodeo. My dad had had a few experiences with horses in his youth but nothing like this. Soon every summer included taking off on a Friday to some place in NY or surrounding states to attend an all weekend event. My dad started off bulldogging (steer wrestling) and after his shoulders were dislocated a few times moved to calf roping and later after his knees gave out to team roping. My mom was a barrel racer, and later a “timer”… whistling the 8 second signal as well as timing the barrel races, bulldogging, calf roping, teamroping and goat tying. Eventually she was the Secretary of the Empire State Rodeo Association.

Of course we three kids had to get in the game as well, I started barrel racing and my brother became a bull rider, and later a “rodeo clown”/bullfighter & steer wrestler (a national champion at that) my sister began barrel racing very early.

Rodeo’s early history can be found in the late 1700s and throughout the 1800s as informal competitions among cowboys of the West after a long trail drive to find out who amongst them were the best horsemen, ropers, and drovers. By the twentieth century the women who shared these ranch experiences decided to introduce a competition of their own, barrel racing, a demonstration of horsemanship as well as the athleticism of the horse.

Spending a good amount of time among these cowboys of the east and reflecting on their behavior and values I can see that the experience shaped me considerably. The men and women I remember best and admire most embodied a set of values that has guided me. They were generous to a fault, willing to give their time to teach kids how to perfect their events, or dance at a Saturday hoedown. They were fiercely competitive but never interested in tearing down their strongest opponents – they were usually best friend, sometimes even partners in other events. They were proud Americans not afraid to wave the flag nor were they afraid to hold others accountable for respectful behavior. * (that is a whole other story) They were all hard workers many owning their own farm, or business others working more than one job in order to pay for the sport they loved so much. There was a **“Cowboy Code” that many of them lived by, a sort of chivalry that definitely came out of the West a long time ago when business was done on a handshake, when it didn’t matter your gender or race or religion as long as you got the job done – people were judged by what they did not who their parents were. As a group I would categorize them as tough, resilient, capable and fun.

**(Gene Autry’s Code: http://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_cowboycode.html)

By the late 1970s gas prices made it hard to go every weekend in the summer and my brother and I began to have other interests as well school sports, jobs etc. My dad continued to go to the occasionally jackpot to team rope but it was more an exercise or a reason to socialize with the folks they came to regard as extended family. My folks are now in their 70s and haven’t competed in a decade but we can all reminisce about the time spent on horseback and in the company of people who truly personify the American Spirit. My brother married into a professional rodeo family, his father in law is a rodeo announcer, his wife a barrel racer and now his daughter is following in their footsteps. Continuing an American past time.

Citations:

Gene Autry's Cowboy Code. Gene Autry Entertainment, 2014. Web. 1 Sept. 2014.
<http://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/geneautry_cowboycode.html>

Bidwell, Jean A., Personal Interview. 30 August 2014

Bonus Material – not required for the assignment … just to help complete the storyJ

My brother was the 1995 APRA – steer wrestling champ & the 1998 IPRA Northeast regional steer wrestling champ

Ken (Dad) Bidwell, circa 1973 My favorite Cowboy Ward Quin (niece) Bidwell Barrel

Mitchell – kindest yet toughest racer

man I have ever known. He calls

“The schoolmarm” and has known

since I was 5. He lives in Auburn, NY

Dick Barrett – rodeo clown from Sauquoit NY with his grandson

Dusty Barrett who attended Sauquoit and is now a professional rodeo clown, barrel man & trick rider.

Grading Rubrics:

Written

Excellent 92-100 / Satisfactory 85-91 / Adequate
76-84 / Unacceptable 75 or less
Appropriate photo choice, includes student and can be clearly connected to the American Experience
Fully developed narrative; strong connections to the American Experience with significant detail
Correct use of citation
Use of proper conventions (grammar etc.)

Presentation:

Criteria / Excellent
92-100 / Satisfactory
85-91 / Adequate
76-84 / Unacceptable 75 or less
Holds attention of entire
audience with the use of
direct eye contact
seldom reads from notes
avoids “ums, kind ofs, you knows”
Speaks with fluctuation in
volume and inflection to
maintain audience interest
and emphasize key points
Maintains a good volume
Demonstrates strong
enthusiasm about topic
during entire presentation;
Presentation is well organized with a beginning, middle, and end. There is a strong organizing theme, with clear main ideas and transitions

Refusal to present verbally will result in a “0”

Adapted from S. Pingel, Skaneateles, 2014