Monthly Archives: October 2020

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – ProRodeo Hall of Fame announcer Bob Tallman has been named the 2020 Legend of ProRodeo.

Tallman will be honored at the Wrangler Gold Buckle Gala on Nov. 30 at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth.

“I’ve been the host of the Legend of ProRodeo event three or four times, and I asked (ProRodeo Hall of Fame director) Kent Sturman, ‘Is there somebody older than me who might not be in good health that is more deserving?’” Tallman said. “I have been so over awarded in 50 years, and in one week I got the call to work the (2020 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo), then I passed my real estate test and then I got a call from Kent Sturman. It was a Triple Crown week.

“I’m going to give the credit to the selection committees. I’m going to give the credit to the Lord. As long as I can be humble enough to accept by those who chose this and I can be an example for others who will receive it (Legend of ProRodeo) in the future and that I can walk the walk and talk the talk and set the example in receiving it for the younger people coming up in the world, I accept it.”

During a career that has spanned more than five decades, Tallman has announced more than 15,000 rodeo performances in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Tallman’s gravel-laced baritone and story-telling prowess are legendary in ProRodeo. In 2020, Tallman will work his record 26th NFR at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, Dec. 3-12. Tallman was named the 2019 PRCA Announcer of the Year for the 10th time and was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2004.

“When you think of legends in professional rodeo, Bob Tallman has to come to mind,” Sturman said. “He is one of the best rodeo announcers of all time. He is a wealth of information and stories. He has seen it all in our sport and has worked tirelessly to inform the fans, give back to our industry and help to make the sport better than when he started. He was an obvious choice for the 2020 Legend of ProRodeo.”

Born Oct. 25, 1947, in Winnemucca, Nev., Tallman tried his hand as a rodeo competitor, but he quickly discovered his forte was behind a microphone, as evidenced by his first PRCA Announcer of the Year Award in 1982.

Tallman’s career began in Fallon, Nev., when he told a rodeo producer he thought he could do a better job than the announcer was doing. The producer told him to give it a try. Tallman earned $100 for that first job and has never looked back.

“This (Legend of ProRodeo honor) was never on my radar,” Tallman said. “Any time you try in life to set yourself up for things like this, God doesn’t like that. It’s co-mingling the truth and honesty with something that’s going to bite you. I didn’t have a clue about this award. I want to give everyone else within the vicinity of that reception hope that they would be able to be standing in that same spotlight.

“The toughest part of accepting an award this prestigious is to walk away from there gracefully and let people want to walk in your path with them.”

Tallman is the 15th man to be honored as a Legend of ProRodeo, following Jake Barnes, Jim Shoulders, Clem McSpadden, Harry Vold, Larry Mahan, Shawn Davis, Dean Oliver, Donnie Gay, Benny Binion, Mel Potter, Neal Gay, Michael Gaughan, Keith Martin and Cotton Rosser.

The Wrangler Gold Buckle Gala will include a reception at 6 p.m. (CT), followed by a 7 p.m. dinner with live auction and program. Entertainment will be provided by musical artist Paul Bogart.

The International Sports Heritage Association (ISHA) is pleased to announce its 2020 ISHY Award winners. The winners were honored on Oct. 21 during ISHA’s virtual Members Meeting.

The ISHY Awards program was established to provide recognition for excellence in publications and exhibits by all member sports museums, halls of fame or sports heritage organizations, regardless of size or budget, based upon a competition evaluated by ISHA members.

2020 ISHY Award Winners

Category: Non-Book Publication
Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame – Halifax Sport Heritage Walking Tour Booklet

Category: Marketing Materials – print materials
Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum – Newsletter Ad
Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame – Gold Club Package 2020

Category: Marketing Materials – video/audio shorts
World of Little League® Museum – The Story of 1955 Cannon Street YMCA Little League

Category: Marketing Materials – Social Media Account of the Year
Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame – Facebook @PackersHOF

Category: Educational Programming
The Sports Museum – Stand Strong

Category: HOF Inductions and/or Annual Event Materials
Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame – 2019 Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame

Category: Induction Program
Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame & Museum – 2019 Hall of Fame Induction Weekend

Category: New Exhibit
The Museum at the International Tennis Hall of Fame – Smash Hit: The Evolution of the
Tennis Racquet

ISHA would like to thank Sparta Pewter for their continued support of the awards and
donating the ISHY’s which are presented to each winner.

–

About International Sports Heritage Association
Established in 1971, the International Sports Heritage Association (ISHA) is a non-profit
membership organization dedicated to educating, promoting, and supporting organizations,
institutions, and individuals engaged in the celebration of sports heritage. ISHA offers a wide
variety of services and networking opportunities for sports museums, halls of fame, and other
related sports heritage organizations, enabling members to draw upon industry resources for
information on administration, induction ceremonies, development, exhibition design, collections
management, education programming, public relations, marketing, and merchandising. ISHA
has nearly 140 members from around the globe, including Australia, Canada, England, New
Zealand, Switzerland, Sri Lanka and the United States.

Thanks to the ISHA Special Projects Grant, the ProRodeo Hall of Fame’s project to rehouse the Hafley Shelton Collection has been successfully completed.

The Hall removed and discarded old boxes and created archival housing for over 600 items. The new housings provide extended room for items, foam or cotton supports, and light and dust protection. During the creation of the housings, detailed condition reports and new photographs were taken of each item. The reports were then scanned and attached to the database files. A total of 2,073 photographs were added to the online database for these items. This collection is now the spotlighted feature on the Hall’s online database.

The project took three months longer to complete than expected. The largest contributor to the delay was a six-week shut-down of the Hall of Fame due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The cost for the project came in at $1,727.99. This was under the proposed amount in the original budget by $44.30.   The pictures attached show one of the costume jackets worn by Mrs. Hafley during her high-school horse performances.

Before the jacket was tightly packed into a box that was too small. This created stress on the silk from folding. The cream jacket was shipped across the country in the box that it was found stored in. Now it and a red jacket have their own boxes where they can lay flat and are not crowded or folded. This has reduced stress on the fabric and will help preserve these jackets for the future.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Gordon W. Mitchell School’s (East Bridgewater, Mass.)Tori Cameron has been named the Patriots Hall of Fame presented by Raytheon Technologies Massachusetts STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) Teacher of the Year. She was honored today by Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito in a virtual STEM session and her school will receive $5,000 to be used for STEM education. Cameron will also serve for one year on the governor’s STEM Council.

“I am thrilled and humbled to receive this incredible honor,” Cameron said. “I want to thank the Kraft family and Raytheon Technologies for their support of STEM programs and for teachers overall. I also would like to congratulate the other finalists and nominees for this prestigious award.”

Cameron teaches grades 3-6 and her classroom is called the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math) Lab, where she works to expose her students to real-life projects and different career paths. She runs the Girls Who STEAM Club, the ESports Club, the Media Club, the Gardening Club, and hosts a Family STEAM Night. She also runs weeks of summer programs, including a Creating Camp, Green Screen Video Making, Cozy STEAM and STEAM for Littles (kindergarteners).

Cameron hosts a podcast called STEAM Up the Classroom, teaches STEAM graduate classes at Fitchburg State University and volunteers (via Skype) as the program director and professor of STEAM for the Metropolitan University of Somalia in Africa. She also published her first book, Awesome Brain Games for Kids: STEAM Puzzles and Facts for Curious Minds.

“My students inspire me and motivate me to be better at my job,” Cameron stressed. “They fuel my fire to want to bring more to the school and do more for their education. My goal is to motivate my students to want to learn and be open to new ideas. I do this by trying to connect with each of my 650 students. I love my job and I want every student to feel just as excited as I do to come to my classroom ready to learn and eager to try new things.

“Teaching is something I am so passionate about, something for which I advocate and something that positively changes lives,” Cameron continued. “My passion for STEM bleeds into so many aspects of my life and I strive to help every student learn skills they will need to be competitive in today’s world. Throughout their four years at Gordon W. Mitchell School, students will complete countless projects that introduce them to new topics and ideas so they are exposed to different career paths.”

Cameron was a finalist for the Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year award in 2019.

Moriah Illsley, The Hall’s Education Coordinator, congratulated Cameron for being named the Patriots Hall of Fame presented by Raytheon Technologies Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the Year.

“Tori is such a passionate, dedicated teacher and now author,” Illsley said. “That passion is on display at her school and even beyond those walls. Her enthusiasm is contagious and she is fostering a love of STEM in her young students. There are so many amazing STEM teachers in our state, but we are thrilled to name Tori as the 2020 Massachusetts STEM Teacher of the year. On behalf of the selection committee, I want to congratulate her for this award.”

Cameron was chosen from a group of five finalists. The other four teachers’ schools will each receive $1,000 for STEM education courtesy of Raytheon Technologies.

Those teachers are:

  • Kelly Bower – Codman Academy Charter Public School (Dorchester)
  • Jim Gorman – Nipmuc Regional High School (Upton)
  • Shannon Morey – Abbott Lawrence Academy (Lawrence)
  • Kathy Wilson – Gates Middle School (Scituate)

Hall Executive Director Bryan Morry thanked fellow selection committee members Allison Little and Keith Connors from the Department of Higher Education, Alexis Lian from the Executive Office of Education, Meto Raha from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Illsley for their work in selecting this year’s STEM Teacher of the Year.

“Each of these individuals has shown a tremendous commitment to honoring excellence in STEM education and recognizing and supporting some of the best educators in the state,” Morry said. “They commit a great deal of time and energy to this process, and we could not complete it without their efforts.”

ABOUT THE STEM TEACHER OF THE YEAR PROGRAM

The Patriots Hall of Fame launched the STEM Teacher of the Year program in October of 2012 when Robert Kraft announced the initiative at the Massachusetts STEM Summit, held that year at Gillette Stadium. Cameron is the eighth recipient of the award. Kelly Powers from the Advanced Math & Science Academy Charter School was the inaugural winner in 2013. Other past winners include Doug Scott from Natick High School in 2014, Kerry Murphy from Oliver Ames High School in 2015, David Mangus from Brockton High School in 2016, Kathleen Malone from Derby Academy in Hingham in 2017, Erin Cronin from Revere High School in 2018, and Amanda Hough from Mashpee Middle-High School in 2019. The STEM Teacher of the Year award is part of the Patriots Hall of Fame’s education program, which offers students in grades 4-12 standards-based educational modules in a fun, entertaining setting. The Hall typically hosts more than 20,000 school field trip visitors annually.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS HALL OF FAME PRESENTED BY RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES

Through a dazzling array of interactive multimedia exhibits and artifacts, The Patriots Hall of Fame showcases the tradition of the New England Patriots, explores the history of football in New England and promotes math and science education for thousands of schoolchildren each year. The Hall’s signature exhibit is the Super Bowl Experience. Visitors to the interactive exhibit can re-live each of the team’s Super Bowl championships, and view the Vince Lombardi Trophies and Super Bowl championship rings. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.PatriotsHallofFame.com, visit “The Patriots Hall of Fame” on Facebook or follow @TheHall on Twitter and Patriotshall on Instagram.

–www.PatriotsHallofFame.com–

 

We typically hold an ISHA Members Meeting during the Annual Conference.  Because the 50th ISHA Annual Conference has been rescheduled to 2021, we will conduct the 2020 Members Meeting virtually, via WebEx.

The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, October 21, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. ET.  We invite you to join us to hear reports from ISHA Committee Chairs on their activities over the past year, as well as future initiatives.  The annual Board elections will be conducted, and the ISHY Awards will be presented.

If you wish to participate in the ISHA Members Meeting, please RSVP to me at [email protected] with your name, institution, and email address.  You’ll receive an email with a link to the meeting a few days in advance.  Meeting documents, including an agenda, minutes from the 2019 meeting, and financial reports, will be emailed to the ISHA Listserv prior to the meeting.

We regret not being able to gather in person this year, but hope you’ll join us on October 21 and meet with your colleagues virtually.

The Baseball Heritage Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, was selected as the International Sports Heritage Association member recipient of a $2,000 Special Project Grant made available through the organization’s Founders Fund.

The funds are to be used by the Museum to purchase supplies for its “Cabinets of Curiosity to Curated Exhibits” project. Another $1,820 is pledged by the museum to pay for salaries.
The Baseball Heritage Museum needs interpretive copy for its artifacts, Julia DiBaggio, grant coordinator for the Museum, wrote in its application.

The project will address the absence of interpretation by researching, writing, creating, and installing artifact labels and interpretive copy that focuses on the museum’s extensive Negro League, Industrial League and Hispanic and Latin American League collections. Culminating with signage, the project will establish a deliberate narrative highlighting the cultural and societal struggles faced by the various leagues.

The project will propel the Museum from a state which borders on cabinet of curiosity to an institution that delivers a powerful and timely narrative of cultural struggles within baseball’s past that echoes throughout history, DiBaggio explained. Museum Director and  Curator Ricardo Rodriguez will head the research team with assistance from Programing Director  Regan Starks.

There were a total of six applications for the Special Project Grant, Janice L. Ogurcak, Grant Committee chair, announced. Applicants who did not receive funding this year, may apply in the next round. All of the applicants have important projects, she said. The applications are reviewed by the Grant Committee and its top selection is presented to the ISHA Board of Directors for approval.

Money for the Founders Fund typically is raised through a Silent Auction, Reverse Raffle, donations, and other fund-raising ventures held at the annual conference and throughout the year. The Covid-19 Pandemic interrupted most of those plans.

Instead, the Founders Fund Committee plans to host an online auction (details to be announced soon) to buoy its coffers. Anyone wishing to donate a package or item for the auction should contact Janice L. Ogurcak, chair of the Founders Fund Committee, at [email protected]. Last year’s Special Projects Grant was awarded to the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame to rehouse the Museum’s oldest collection of rodeo and Wild West Show artifacts: the Hafley-Shelton Collection.