LAKE WACCAMAW — The 2018 State Farm Rodeo at the Boys and Girls Homes Farm and Benton/BTS Exhibition Center will feature — between competition performances — two – time Professional Cowboy Association Rodeo Clown of the Year Jake Wilcox and his bull Hank.
“We are excited to have a performer of Jake’s caliber coming in as part of this rodeo event,” said B&GH President Gary Faircloth. “We wanted to bring a quality rodeo back to the area and the entertainment aspect is an important part of the rodeo experience!”
Wilcox is a native of Winterville, Ga., who started as a rodeo clown while attending the University of Georgia. Even after receiving his degree in agriculture business, Wilcox has continued to perform in about 40 rodeos a year across the country.
“My acts are primarily to make people laugh,” Wilcox said in UGA’s Magazine. “It’s my job to keep the crowd entertained during lulls in the rodeo.”
“My favorite part of the job is just the fact that I get to do something that’s fun, get people laughing and smiling,” he continued.
Working with Thomas Litton Rodeo, this event is a Southern Rodeo Association sanctioned event. This means it will include top riders participating in bull riding, calf roping, saddle bronc riding, team roping, barrel racing, steer wrestling, breakaway roping and bareback riding.
“We want this to be an evening of entertainment for the entire family,” said Equine Manager and Events Coordinator Amanda Thompson. “We want the experience to be one that our audience will not forget.”
The rodeo will be held at 8 p.m. on August 17 and 18. Gates will open at 6 p.m. for the event sponsored by State Farm agent David Ward. Admission is $12 each night with children 6 and under admitted for free. All proceeds benefit the children of Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina.
For more information, contact Amanda Thompson at 910 -640-9852.
Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina, Inc., has been helping children since 1954. Since then, more than 7,500 children have benefitted from the services of the not-for-profit, 501(c)3 agency. Its mission is to provide a comprehensive array of services for children and youth who have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect or other family dysfunction. B&GH offers adoption, family and therapeutic foster care, as well as residential care on the campus at Lake Waccamaw. The campus features a SACS – accredited public charter school with a middle and high school curriculum, vocational education, recreation facilities, farm, chapel and cottage life. As many as 260 vulnerable children are cared for through the residential and community-based services provided by B&GH at any given time. B&GH is nationally accredited by the Council on Accreditation. To learn more, visit www.boysandgirlshomes.org .