WPRA Announces 2024 Outstanding Committee Woman of the Year presented by Montana Silversmiths

By Ann Bleiker

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado – The backbone of any rodeo is no doubt the rodeo committee and their countless volunteers that donate their time and skills to put on a good show for the fans. While the contestants and animals are the stars, they would never shine if it were not for the work of a large supporting cast of volunteers that come together, working for a common goal of making the event a success.

In 1948, the Girls Rodeo Association, now Women’s Professional Rodeo Association was Built For Women By Women by 38 strong female leaders in the western industry. In honor of them and in partnership with Montana Silversmiths, one female committee member/volunteer that has gone above and beyond in their local community to make the rodeo a success and/or who has been a staple of the local rodeo for numerous years keeping the tradition alive is being honored with the WPRA Outstanding Committee Woman of the Year for 2024.

This year’s recipient is Rachel Ann Holzschuh representing the Mid-Western Rodeo in Manawa, Wisconsin.

Rachel Holzschuh (pronounced Hole-Shoe) has been a fixture at the Mid-Western Rodeo since the age of 4 where you could see her by her dad’s side. Now at the age of 33 she has stepped into the role of committee co-chair with her mother Annette Ziebell, following the sudden passing of her father, Peter Ziebell, in July of 2024.

“This is quite an honor,” stated a shocked Holzschuh. “I really think this is a cool award in the rodeo world and excited to have received this news today.”

The family was not involved in the rodeo world prior to moving to Manawa but Rachel’s dad joined the Manawa Lions Club. The Mid-Western Rodeo is a volunteer-driven fundraiser for the Manawa Lions Club.

“My family had nothing to do with rodeo when I was two, but my dad joined the Manawa Lions Club and my uncles were bull riders, so my dad got pulled in to the industry,” stated Holzschuh. “My uncle, Chuck, invited my dad out to rope and at the time he didn’t really want to have anything to do with horses as he was a bit afraid of them. He fell in love with the people and the horses and started roping. When I was six, we bought another horse for me to run barrels on and I guess you could say the rest is history.”

When she was just six, she rode in her first grand entry and at the age of 12 started to carry flags at several rodeos in the Great Lakes Circuit for Three Hills Rodeo Inc, J Bar J Ranch, Barnes Pro Rodeo, JS Rodeo, and Dakota Rodeo.

In the early years you could find her father on the tractor working the arena and clearing the grounds. Rachel was always right there by his side and once she was old enough you would see her on the tractor mowing the contestant and spectator parking areas. She never shied away from hard work and weeks before the rodeo you could find her raking out bucking chutes and roping boxes, pulling weeds, painting, filling stock tanks, setting out garbage barrels, hauling food for the hospitality, hanging arena signs, and was also the gopher for needed tools or drinks for the volunteers. 

In 2009 Rachel was crowned the Mid-Western Rodeo Queen and was even pictured in the ProRodeo Sports News in the Liberty Bell for one of their openings.

In 2024 the Mid-Western Rodeo had to cancel 3 of the 4 performances due to an Emergency Evacuation, called by Waupaca County Emergency Services after the nearby dam broke and they received 9 inches of rain in 3 hours. Rachel jumped in along with others to help get the contestants and livestock to safety. The 2024 rodeo was going to be Rachel’s first year truly shadowing her dad to ensure if anything ever happened that someone knew all the in’s and out’s of putting on the rodeo. She never imagined they would have to deal with flooding that resulted in the cancellation of the event nor that she would lose her father just two weeks after the rodeo. Peter Ziebell had served as the Chairman of the Mid-Western Rodeo since 2004 and now Rachel has stepped up to ensure his legacy is carried on working alongside her mother Annette as Co-Chairs for the 2025 Mid-Western Rodeo. 

The WPRA received over 35 nominations for this award and was excited to have received so many great stories of the many outstanding women out there. As an Association, we are excited to continue to grow this program and recognize an outstanding committee woman on an annual basis.

Rachel Holzschuh will be officially recognized during the WPRA Star Celebration with the Top 15 barrel racers on Thursday, December 5 at the South Point Hotel and Casino and will receive a custom made Montana Silversmiths buckle.

Past recipients:

2022 – Cindy Williams, Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo, Vernal, Utah

2023 – Tammie Hiatt, Jim Shoulder Living Legends Rodeo, Henryetta, Oklahoma