Southwestern Oklahoma and North Texas are well known for their tightly tied ties with the Western Trail and the persona of the Great American Cowboy. In order to bring recognition to this heritage, the tradition of family, and the great sport of rodeo, Altus will host Oklahoma High School Rodeo and Texas High School Rodeo, Reg. 1. The competitors will battle it out on March 31 and April 1 at the Great Plains Stampede Rodeo Arena, in the annual memorial event to honor two of their own, Aaron Custer and Ed Drury with Aaron and Ed’s Rumble on the Red Memorial Rodeo, Scholarship Drive, and Fundraiser. These two young men with hearts on fire for life, and a love for people that could not be overlooked by anyone who came in contact with them, left this life both at the age of 18. Aaron James Custer , son of Cody and Stacey Custer, of Elk City, and Benton Edgar Drury, son of Tim and Lisa Drury, of Olustee passed away in a car accident, on August 16 2011. Scheduled to start classes at Southwestern Oklahoma State University on August 17, both were proud to be a part of the Rodeo program there and were looking forward to their future. These young men met through Rodeo while in high school and quickly came to be friends, as they did with nearly everyone they met. Aaron and Ed had a great connection with everyone, from little kids to teenagers to middle aged people, as well the individuals well into their years, they were friends to everyone despite their age, background, or personality. Aaron and Ed’s Rumble on the Red Rodeo is a memorial event held to honor these two amazing young men. It is unique in the aspect that it ties the rich western heritage of this area to what these two loved to do most; gather together families, friends, as well as strangers, and rodeo. Some would call the rodeo a border battle between Oklahoma High School Rodeo and Texas High School Rodeo, and in a sense it is somewhat of a bragging rights type of event, but it is more than that. This event has the potential to be a catalyst for the development of lasting relationships that cross state lines. These friendships are the important lessons that Aaron and Ed left behind. In an attempt to promote the togetherness and fellowship that these two personified, we have developed a number of family activities to coincide with the rodeo itself. These events will get the whole family involved and include a trade show, Kiddy Rodeo, live auction, BBQ dinner, jackpot team roping, and a horse trailer drawing. The action will begin on Friday March30, with a team roping jackpot in honor of the two boys. Saturday morning rodeo activities will begin at 8 a.m. in the indoor expo center arena, and 11 a.m. in at the Great Plains Stampede Rodeo Arena. The trade show will open in the Exhibit Hall of the Jackson County Expo Center Indoor at 9 a.m. and close at 5:30 p.m. Kids can enjoy a Kiddy Rodeo at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, with sign up beginning at 12 p.m. (First 75 to sign up only) A BBQ Dinner and live auction will be held on Saturday evening at 5:30 p.m. Spectators can enjoy a free BBQ Dinner with purchase of admission. Saturday evening will be your last chance to get your ticket to win a Hughes Ranch trailer. Tickets for this drawing may be purchased from any member of the WOSC Rodeo Team or the Drury Family. The drawing for this trailer will be held on Saturday March 31, during the live auction. The auction will begin around approximately 6:00 pm with several items to be auctioned off including: Custom Commemorative Saddle, Custom Memorial belt Buckles by Tres Rios Silver, items from Priefert Livestock Equipment, Tin Haul Clothing Company, Ranch Hands and Housewives, and various other items from other local and area sponsors. Sunday morning will begin with church services being held at 8 a.m., with rodeo action beginning at 9 a.m. All of the money raised through this event will go to benefit youth organizations in both Oklahoma and Texas in the name of Aaron and Ed. Their way of giving to and caring for people will endure, and continue through the award of scholarship monies, as well as financial support for regional youth. The scholarship monies generated from this rodeo will be awarded to those seniors pursuing a college education. In establishing this event, we hope to build a strong foundation so that it has the ability to continually grow and benefit the Altus community, as well as the entire area here in Southwestern Oklahoma and North Texas. All the while honoring these two amazing young men. For more information on this event you can contact the RUMBLE on the Red, at rumbleonthered@gmail.com.