On Saturday, November 4th, the Dust Bowl Days saga continues with “A TRIBUTE TO THE FARMER” as the Dust Bowl Days Farm & Ranch Festival Co. hosts its 2nd Annual Hall of Fame Tribute Dinner. Through the Hall of Fame Tribute Series, we recognize and honor the people who put their roots down and worked through hard and challenging times to build a life and a community for their families. They were ranchers, they were farmers, cowboys and cattlemen. They were people of faith, civic leaders, oil men and business owners. They all had the same love of the land and a vision of a better life. The Dust Bowl Days Tribute Series isn’t meant to showcase a terrible time in our history, but rather to celebrate all of those who came before us and survived those times and passed their love for the land on to each generation that followed. This series will slowly tell the story of western Oklahoma and the proud people who live here and call it home. It is this way of life and living we honor and celebrate.
The Tribute Dinner will be held Saturday, November 4, 2023 in the Sayre High School Cafeteria. The event starts at 6 pm with fellowship & entertainment provided by Jessie Osborn of Elk City. The Silent Auction items will be available to bid on at this time and throughout the evening. A steak dinner follows, provided by Brandi Christian and her crew from the BRANBAR DINER in Sayre. Following dinner, the program will feature two Tribute videos and the Hall of Fame Induction ceremony. This year there will be a Live Auction after the program with Monte Tucker auctioning off some great items. The Planning Team has worked hard to ensure that the evening will be not only meaningful, but lots of fun too!
This year’s Inductees into the Dust Bowl Days Hall of Fame are two generational farming families. The Jack & Sherry Damron Family Farm from the Delhi community and the Tucker Family Farm from the Sunny Point community. As we celebrate these remarkable families, we also pay tribute to the values they uphold and the lasting impact they’ve had on the farming industry. Their dedication to farming and their love for the land serve as a reminder of the importance of preserving our agricultural heritage. We honor the Jack & Sherry Damron Family Farm and the Tucker Family Farm for their invaluable contributions to the farming community, as they continue to sow the seeds of tradition and stewardship for future generations.”
(DAMRON FAMILY) picture Jack & Sherry Damron began their life together in 1983. Jack had spent the prior six years harvesting wheat and eating a lot of bologna sandwiches. His lucky day came when he met Sherry Osmus, a farm girl and teacher from Okeene, OK. The Damrons were blessed with three amazing children, Sara, JD and Jake. Jack would spend the winters working in the oilfield to subsidize their land purchases. Their summers were spent harvesting wheat from Oklahoma to North Dakota. Raising three kids on the harvest run and managing the harvest crew was quite a challenge. A challenge they managed well.
In the fall, Jack would go to Kansas and South Dakota to harvest corn and sunflowers while Sherry was teaching, and the three kids were attending Sayre Public Schools. When not in school, Sherry and the kids were taking care of the farm while Jack was gone. Today, they farm cotton, wheat and raise cattle. Sherry retired after 27 years of teaching at Sayre Schools and is a vital part of their farming operation. All three of their children are involved with their own farm & cattle operations, but come wheat and cotton harvests, they all three come home to help. Harvest time is a really busy time, but it’s also a very rewarding time for the whole family to be together, kids and grandkids alike!
The Damrons believe that being diversified is important to their farm. They have faith that one of the three - cattle, wheat and cotton, will turn a profit for them. There have been good years and not-sogood years. They have experienced heartbreaks and joys, but their faith has been their foundation. It takes a lot of faith to put seeds in the ground and wait several months to reap the harvest. Throughout their farming struggles and successes, the Damrons have learned their family farm is more than a business. It is a lifestyle and legacy worth preserving for their children and grandchildren.
(TUCKER FAMILY) picture Smith Thomas Tucker and Annie Mae Tucker came to the Sunny Point Community in 1912. They rented farmland until 1917 when they purchased 160acres. Smithwas a farmer with his heart and his hands. He loved the land. He bred mules, cattle, and hogs. The farm produced cotton, wheat, and hay. Smith farmed the land with mules. They raised a family of nine children. Earl Colbern Tucker was a baby in 1917 when Smith and Annie Mae moved into the two-story house on the land that was officially deeded in 1922. Earl and his bride Melba LaVerne bought the farm in 1945. Smith moved to Sayre where he continued to be “a farmer” by raising rabbits and selling eggs.
Earl and LaVerne farmed wheat, cotton, hay, and maize. Earl purchased a Farmall M tractor in 1947. That tractor has everything a man could possibly want on a tractor. LaVerne had the privilege of driving the John Deere “B.” They expanded the farm by purchasing land adjoining the original home place. They raised three children. Tommy, Earlene, and Danny. Tommy and wife Nelda returned from OSU to join the farming operation in 1972.
Tommy and Nelda farmed with Earl and LaVerne. They purchased land close to the home place and along with their children, Lisa and Monte produced wheat, cotton, registered Hampshire swine and cattle. Monte and Danielle joined the operation in 2002, who along with their sons Mason and Reed continued to operate the partnership farm. The cattle herd was expanded. Today quality beef is produced on the farm.
The Tucker Family Farm was honored by being named an Oklahoma Centennial Farm in 2022. The operation of the farm is carried on by the third, fourth and fifth generations.
The family includes La-Verne, her children Tommy and Nelda, and Danny, Son-inlaw HenryRose. Grandchildren: Lisa and Greg Bowman, Monte and Danielle Tucker, Junita and Wesley Powers, Justin Rose, and Shane Tucker. Great grandchildren: Tyler Carey, Cooper and Kory Bowman, Rayanne Bowman, Mason Tucker, Reed Tucker, Grant Powers, Guthrie Powers, Kaylyn Rose, Kaycee Rose, Brystol Rose, Danny Shane Tucker, Dane Tucker, and Dante Tucker and Great- great grandchild, Brynlee Carey We invite all of the community to come out for this exceptional opportunity to gather, share a meal and celebrate the Love of the Land! This event is a fundraiser for the Dust Bowl Days Farm & Ranch Festival Co. and all proceeds benefit the work of the organization. Cost for this event is $100/person. Reservations can be made online at www.dustbowldays.com, on the Dust Bowl Days Farm & Ranch Festival Facebook page or by mailing a check to Dust Bowl Days Tribute Dinner, P.O. Box 645 Sayre, OK 73662. Seating is limited and the deadline for purchasing tickets is noon on Friday, November 3, 2023. Contact Kay Allen at (580) 729-0469 for more information.
