Cowboy hats, boots, and jeans were the preferred attire at this week’s New Mexico Department of Agriculture Rounders Award ceremony. This style of dress was perfectly appropriate for a celebration of those who “live, promote, and articulate the western way of life.” The Rounders Award was created in 1990 by former New Mexico Secretary of Agriculture Frank DuBois and the name comes from the title of a Max Evans novel. Max himself was the first recipient of the award and his widow, Pat, also a Rounders Award recipient, was in attendance at the ceremony October 26, 2021, at the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces.
Before this week’s ceremony, 27 writers, artists, musicians, humorists, and other supporters of the western way of life had been awarded the title of Rounder. Some years, only one award is given, such as 1993 when cowboy humorist Baxter Black joined the fold. No awards was given in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, four new Rounders were presented a plaque: cowboy cartoonist Etienne “A-10” Etcheverry, New York Times best-selling author Anne Hillerman, rancher, musician, and actor Archie West, and prolific western writer Stephen Zimmer. New Mexico Secretary of Agriculture Jeff Witte presented the awards. Secretary Witte noted the venue was ideal as Max Evans was one of those who strongly supported the creation of the museum, which shares the story of agriculture in the state.
After the new Rounders were acknowledged, new and past recipients in attendance gathered for a photo, bringing together a wide spectrum of New Mexicans who share the western way of life with the world. Learn more about the 2021 recipients.
Previous Rounders Award recipients
1990
Max Evans, author
1991
Marc Simmons Cerrillos, historian
1992
Michael Martin Murphey, country western singer
1993
Baxter Black, cowboy humorist
1996
Pablita Velarde, artist
1997
Elmer Kelton, western writer
1999
Chuck Stock, publisher
2000
Howard Bryan, author
Alvin Davis, author
Grem Lee, western illustrator
2002
Denny Gentry, team roping entrepreneur
2021
Forrest Fenn, art collector/writer
Slim Randles, columnist/author
2013
Johnny D. Boggs, author
Donn Bullis, historian/author
2014
Pat Evans, editor/artist
Reynaldo “Sonny” Rivera, sculptor
2015
Gary Morton, cowboy painter
2016
Ollie Reed Jr., western reporter
Rod Taylor, musician
2017
Jim Harris, author/editor
Curtis Fort, artist
Rosemary Wilkie, saddle maker
2018
Robert “Shoofly” Schufelt, artist
Irvin Trujillo, weaver
2019
Dino Cornay, artist
R.W. Hampton, musician
2021
Etienne “A-10” Etcheverry
Anne Hillerman
Archie West
Stephen Zimmer
Written and photography by Cheryl Fallstead
This article was posted by Cheryl Fallstead
