Arena Tracks: Courage Comes in Many Forms

As we head into the Fourth of July weekend and reflect on the bravery and sacrifice shown by those that fought for our country on many different battlefields, I am reminded of one of the bravest acts I have ever witnessed.  It wasn’t someone who dodged a bullet or reached down to save a cowboy in a pinch at a rodeo over Cowboy Christmas; it was the simple act of a 14 year old girl singing the National Anthem in Ft. Pierre, South Dakota.

I have known the Reints family of Vienna, South Dakota, for the majority of my life.  I met Dick Reints, then a 20-something father and horse enthusiast, when he agreed to be my partner in a rescue race.  I didn’t know him from Adam, and at eight years old wasn’t exactly a sure-bet of a partner, but my dad conned him into the role.  Dick, a future Heartland Saddle honoree, was all in and our families formed a fast and solid friendship that has lasted a couple more generations.  Dick’s daughter, Susan Van Liere, has a similar heart and calling to serve young South Dakota cowhands at the State 4H Rodeo and as the Pierre High School Rodeo advisor.  Megan Van Liere, Susan’s daughter and Dick’s grand-daughter, apparently inherited the service gene as well.  This is Megan’s story.

Let me be super clear: Megan Van Liere is adorable. Laid back in her personality, she has a spark in her that you just feel.  She might be a quiet kid, but her mind is always working and she’s got her mother’s kindness and quick wit.  Megan Van Liere just flat draws people in.  Of course, at 14 Megan had the same insecurities that we all did. However, when faced with the opportunity to shrink away or be brave, Megan squared her shoulders, looked fear in the eye and did the only thing she could do: give it her all.

In early August of 2016, Megan’s friend Lily Paxton, kinda-sorta wanted to enter the Central South Dakota Regional 4H Rodeo Junior Queen Contest.  Kinda.  Maybe.  Lily was nervous about the competition and being an “I got your back” type of friend, Megan said she’d enter too.  A few years older, Megan would be in the Senior Queen Contest, but no worries.  They would complete all the rounds together.  It would be FUN.

As the morning of the first day of competition dawned, Megan saddled up her barrel horse, Scrappy, aka Jets Last Flit, and prepared for the horsemanship portion of the event.  While she eventually learned that barrel horses don’t always make the best reining horses, Megan won the horsemanship handily.  Turns out, she won ALL of the portions of the Senior Queen Contest in a landslide as she was the only contestant.  I never asked Megan about the moment when it occurred to her that she was now obligated to compete in the STATE 4H Rodeo Queen Contest.  It could have slowly dawned on her, or maybe she figured it out as she was the only TALL contestant in the arena.  Either way, she loaded up her white shirts and went back to Ft. Pierre a couple weeks later to compete in the State Competition.

Megan would go on to have many successful entrances into the arenas on the Stanley County Fairgrounds.  In 2020 she and Scrappy, a son of Jets Last Payday out of a daughter of Dr. Nick Bar, were the State 4H Rodeo Barrel Racing Reserve Champions and were honored as the Delores Melvin Top Hand recipient.  The duo placed fourth in the barrels in 2018 and twice placed in the top six in the Pole Bending.  Megan and Scrappy were an outstanding team winning numerous all around and event buckles together.  Scrappy was, well, scrappy, and so was Megan.  They just didn’t fully fit the queen contest mold, though Scrappy did love flying around the arena even if he was confused as to WHY he was doing so.

As a newbie to the queening world, Megan was a step behind on a few crucial points.  She didn’t realize she’d need to sign up to sell raffle tickets or, more importantly, that all Queen Contestants were required to deliver the 4H pledge or (gulp) sing the National Anthem at the opening of a performance.  Again, sweet, naive Megan wandered into the office to sign up to do her due diligence as a queen contestant and the only blank left waiting for her name was next to the words: National Anthem.  I can’t imagine the shock or the panic.

I happened to be in Ft. Pierre that day and when they announced Megan’s name I said to Lonny, “I didn’t know she sang.”  Turns out she didn’t. But in the single most courageous three minutes I have ever witnessed, Megan Van Liere gave it her all.  She sang loudly and confidently and I thought she was miraculous.  Her grandfather, Dick Reints, hat in hand, had tears running down his face at the sheer beauty of his granddaughter’s voice.  Later he told Susan, “That was just beautiful.”  However, when it was over, Megan’s younger brother Shawn ran wide-eyed to his mother and said, “Mom! Did you hear Megan sing the National Anthem? It was AWFUL.”  Nothing like a little brother to dim a sister’s moment in the spotlight.  

Megan Van Liere didn’t win the State 4H Rodeo Queen Contest that year, and she never entered another, but she did gain a few things from the experience.  The Monday after the State 4H Finals was Megan’s first day of her Freshman year of high school.  After school she called her mom and wondered aloud if Oahe Vet was hiring.  Susan didn’t know, so Megan drove over to their office, asked for a job and was hired on the spot.  Susan commented, “Would she have had the guts to do that had she not just gone completely out of her comfort zone and sang in front of 2000 people?”  We can never know, but it certainly didn’t hurt the confidence of that 14 year old girl.

Since those days almost nine years ago, Megan has graduated from high school and moved south where she trains barrel horses and competes in aged barrel racing events as well as rodeos.  It’s a scary step to load a pickup and trailer and go chase your dream 1000 miles from home, but when you can belt out a National Anthem at a state event with pretty much all of South Dakota’s youth rodeo contestants listening, then walk down the steps of the crow’s nest with your head held high, there’s not much else that can scare you.