Dateline: January 2, 2003

Auker to perform at National Cowboy Poetry Gathering

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

Oscar Auker of Clarendon will perform during the 19th annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering being held January 25 through February 1, 2002, in Elko, Nevada.

Poets and musicians, ages 11 to 87, from fifteen western states will be featured on six stages during the Gathering.  Each year thousands of fans travel to this small Nevada cow town in the dead of winter to celebrate ranching and cowboy culture.

Auker is an 11-year-old cowboy living with his family on the JA Ranch near Clarendon.  Oscar has been reciting poetry for as long as his mother can remember.  In June of 2002, he performed for the first time at the Cal Farley Boys Ranch Youth Gathering.

Oscar performs his own poems, classic cowboy poems, and his personal favorites from cowboy poets Red Steagall and Larry McWhorter.  Like most cowboys, Oscar prefers to be on horseback chasing cows, but he also enjoys reading and helping around the ranch with chores.

For more information about the Gathering, call 1-888-880-5885.  An Internet cybercast of the NCPG’s key speakers and performers begins January 29 and concludes February 1, 2002.  Log on to www.westernfolklife.org for an in-depth look at the Gathering schedule or to hear audio clips from past events.