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Home > Archive > Jul 5, 2007

Former St. George Resident Wins Iowa Rodeo Title
By Stephen Vincent
Kristi Branham, who spent most of her youth living in St. George, recently won the goat-tying competition at the Iowa High School Rodeo Association finals.
The Branham family was heavily involved in building the rodeo scene in St. George. Branham's father, Bud, a member of the Lion's Club, sat on the board of the Dixie Roundup Rodeo and chaired that committee one year.
Her older sisters, Tina and Jessie, were both on the Roundup Royalty one year, with Tina serving as queen, and Jessie as a princess. It was the only year that two siblings served in the royalty, said Dorothy Huntington, Branham's grandmother.
Additionally, the Branhams helped build the 4-H program in Washington County and were named 4-H Family of the Year
Five years ago, Bud's job with Moore Business Forms transferred him to Iowa, and his wife, Ellen, and two of his kids, Jason and Kristi, moved to Iowa with him.
“Moore came along and had them scoot off to Iowa, and it left a big void in our lives,” Huntington said.
Because of the Branhams' involvement with the Lions Club and the rodeo, they are well remembered in the St. George community, Huntington said.
The IHRSA Wrangler goat-tying competition began with more than 1,000 competitors, Huntington said. The field was then whittled to the top four competitors from each Iowa High School who qualified for the state finals in Ft. Madison, Iowa, June 15-17. Branham, a junior, emerged the champion.
She received a state championship belt buckle, free jeans from Wrangler, and a state championship patch, also provided by Wrangler, that she can sew onto her jacket.
The family is doing in Iowa what they did in St. George, helping build the 4-H program and competing in local rodeos. Last year, Jason Branham competed in the IHRSA bull-riding event.
“They're just continuing in Iowa what they began in St. George,” Huntington said.

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