Wilson receives prestigious award

Times Reporter         

 

Each year at the Strathmore Stampede a presentation is made announcing the recipient of the Keith Schneider Award of Excellence. 

This year no one was more surprised at the announcement than the actual recipient Judi Wilson.

Wilson has been working in the rodeo industry for many years, volunteering her time with the Canadian Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame until recently, and with the Strathmore Stampede. 

Wilson had been busy for the past couple of months preparing things for the recipient of the award this year, thinking it was someone else receiving it. Part of the presentation was going to be a 12-minute video, and at the halfway mark Gwen Schneider, Keith’s widow, Pascal Del Guercio, a director of the Strathmore and District Agricultural Society, the person and their family would go into the infield.  

Wilson said Del Guercio grabbed hold of her arm and told her to come into the infield. The announcer Bob Tallman was talking but she wasn’t paying too much attention because she was focused on the task at hand, hoping things would run smoothly with the video, while trying to figure out where the recipient is.  

Wilson was getting a little frustrated, normally she doesn’t go into the infield, but she said Del Guercio told her that Gwen Schneider, Keith’s widow, wanted a couple of the directors out there. 

“So rather than fight with him, I go,” said Wilson.  

As she is entering the infield she is running a checklist through her head, still not really paying attention to what’s being said. She keeps looking at the screen and no video is starting and when Del Guercio tells her to relax, she tells him that Bob Tallman needs to stop talking so that the video can get started. 

“Finally Pascal goes, ‘Judi would you listen, who is he talking about?’ So I’m listening, and all of a sudden it hits me, he’s talking about me, and I just started sobbing,” said Wilson.

“It was so unexpected, it just blew me away.” 

There were 76 people who went out to the infield as a show of support for Wilson. The whistles and cheers from the grandstand awed Wilson, who doesn’t do it for the recognition, “I do it because I have a passion to do it.”

Gwen Schneider said a few words about Wilson during the presentation. 

“Judi is a lady that inspires me to do better. I have always said that the energizer bunny was created after watching Judi. I was given the opportunity to be her sidekick one year at Heritage Days, all I can say is sit down, hold on and be ready to work. When she is involved in something, you never have to question if it is done, because she just won’t quit until it is finished,” said Schneider. 

“I met Judi while Keith was still Mayor. Keith had mentioned to Judi that he liked saskatoon berries. Each year Judi would make Keith saskatoon berry tarts and bring them to him here. He loved her for that. Many times I was too late to get any but as soon as I caught on to this gift she brought and saw that she had been around I would run up immediately to at least get one. I, too, quickly became friends with this amazing person.

“There are always people that go above and beyond for communities, or groups, or rodeos … the list goes on. Trust me when I say that Keith would have been so excited to present this award himself, but today I am privileged and honoured to present the Keith Schneider Award of Excellence to Judi Wilson.”

Keith Schneider had been mayor of Strathmore for many years, and was always a strong supporter, volunteer and ambassador of the rodeo, promoting it everywhere he went. Schneider lost his battle to cancer in 2011. 

“Basically the Keith Schneider award is given to a recipient that we believe has put in a lot of effort in the community, and a lot of it with the Ag Society and the Strathmore Stampede,” said Pascal Del Guercio a director of the Strathmore and District Agricultural Society.

“When the unfortunate situation happened with Keith we wanted to carry on his energy and his ambition and his support and we have tried to basically find a person who is similar in their personality and work habits and so on that Keith was.” 

Shortly after the award was initiated Del Guercio himself was one of the recipients and he was blindsided by his committee, so he knows exactly how Judi felt.  

“It’s the most important award we give away and to be honoured with it is huge, a huge recognition to the people who receive it.”