Native Youth 

This is a brand new page added to Indian Rodeo News.  Our goal here is to recognize all Indian children and teenagers who ride horses, rodeo, ranch, and kids who participate in taking pictures at events.

Each month starting with December 2002 we will try to feature a Indian Youth who is active in riding horses, rodeo, ranching, and photography.   


Do you know a Native Indian Youth who has worked hard to achieve their goals and accomplishments?  Would you like to be featured as a Native Youth role model?  Any Native youth ages 18 and under can be featured.  

Indian Rodeo News asks for you to send in your story about yourself, who inspired you to ride, rodeo, ranch, etc.     We welcome as many pictures you have to share with our readers.  Email your questions and or story to 
Gina@indianrodeonews.com 

To Read about the featured Native Youth from the previous months click on their names below to check out their stories and pictures.

December 2002: Nicole Tsosie
January 2003:  Kayonnie Badonie
February 2003: Whitney O'Rourke
March 2003: Charles Gottfriedson
April 2003:  Jenna Johnson, Liana Tom 

This Month of May we are recognizing  Devyn Dennison




Devyn Laine Dennison




Devyn Laine Dennison was born August 21, 1988 at Rehobeth Christian Hospital in Gallup, New Mexico. She is ¾ Navajo Indian and ¼ Scottish decent. Her clans are Biliganna – Scottish born for the Zia clan. Her maternal grandfather is of the Towering House clan and her paternal grandfather is Tangle clan. 

Devyn is the daughter of Karl and Debbie Dennison and granddaughter of the late Dean C. Jackson, and Stephanie Jackson. Her paternal grandparents are Eugene and Annie Holyan-Dennison of Tohatchi, NM.

If you know anything about rodeo, understanding how Devyn became the Indian World Champion Breakaway Roper at the young age of 14, isn’t too surprising. Rodeo, especially roping and barrel racing, and all it entails has been in Devyn’s family for generations. Rodeo on the Navajo Nation is one of, if not the most, popular sport. Navajo people excel in rodeo because livestock, cattle, horses and sheep are central and very important to their culture and have been for generations. So naturally, Devyn’s grandparents and great grandparents planted the seed for her successes in rodeo and in life in general. Devyn’s parents help to nurture those seeds so that the success she and her siblings experience today will carry them to be successful into their adult lives.

More specifically, Devyn’s grandmother, Annie was a competitor in her days of horse racing which really was the foundation of rodeo as we know it today on Navajo land. Devyn’s grandfather, Dr. Dean C. Jackson was one of the founders of the oldest Indian rodeo associations, the All Indian Rodeo Cowboys Association (AIRCA) and served on the Indian National Finals Rodeo Commission from its inception until the time of his death in 1992.

Within Devyn Dennison’s family, being a World Champion is the expectation. Her grandfather Dean often told his girls, Devyn’s mother and sisters who all barrel race, “if you’re going to do something, do it right and do it well.” That explains why many, many championships and INFR qualifications were earned between her mother, Debbie, her aunties Carole and Charlene. Carole also at the young age of 11, won her first of 3 Indian World Champion Barrel Racing titles. Charlene captured her title in 1983 at the age of 14.



Devyn’s father Karl won the 1978 All Around Indian World Championship at the Salt Palace at the young age of 19 and has since qualified to 19 INFR’s. Her uncles Wally and Wayne Dennison have garnered the Team Roping titles while Wally is one of the few who has won the Calf Roping, Steer wrestling, Team roping, and All Around World Champion titles.

Devyn’s aunt Carole is married to Ed Holyan the 2001 All Around World Champion Cowboy who has also won numerous championships and World titles as well. So as expected, Devyn, her older brother Kyle and younger sister Kassidy are all champions of today and of the future. For that is the expectation and it’s most definitely in “their blood.”






Words from Devyn about her accomplishments

Ever since I can remember, I was either riding a horse or swinging a rope. My name is Devyn Dennison. I am a forth generation cowgirl and my family has been in the business of rodeo and raising cattle for a long time. I am the daughter of Karl and Deborah Dennison. My maternal grandparents are the late Dean C. Jackson and my grandmother Stephanie Jackson now lives in Casa Grande, Arizona. My paternal grandparents are Eugene and Annie Dennison of Tohatchi New Mexico. I am one-quarter Scottish, and three-quarters Navajo Indian. My first clan is Scottish - McPherson and I was born for the Tolgi (Zia) clan. My grandfather’s (shi-cheii’) clan is Kinyannie (Towering House) and my paternal grandfather’s clan is Tanazinni, (Tangle). 

I am 14 years old and am currently attending Window Rock High School as a freshman. I grow up in Tsaile Arizona, but moved to Tohatchi, New Mexico a few years ago. That is where I call “home.” I am still living there, but also have a home in Window Rock, Arizona. That is where my mother is employed as the Superintendent of Window Rock Unified School District. My father still works in Tsaile and commutes from Window Rock each day. He is employed with Dine’ College as a rodeo coach, and is also the gymnasium manager. 

My career in rodeo started early when I was about the age of 4 or maybe even younger. Ever since I can remember I wanted to have great success in rodeo and I’ve always wanted to do well in school too. Even though my grandpa Dean passed away when I was only 4 years old, I remember him speaking about the importance of education and that the sport of rodeo was a way to help you with learning to be successful in the classroom and in life. With this teaching, my grandpa has been the greatest influence on me, along with the rest of my family.


Kassie and Faith pictured above

 I have one older brother Kyle who is in college and a younger sister, Kassidy who is a forth grader at Window Rock Elementary School. I’m fortunate to remember so much about my grandpa and try to share this with Kassie and my baby cousin Faith Holyan who are too little to remember him. 

The first buckle I won was when I was five years old. It was at the annual Lions Club Junior Rodeo at Red Rock State Park in Gallup, NM. I won my first buckle barrel racing in the 6 and under age group on my old paint horse that was so automatic. His name was “Bounce.” He was my aunt, Charlene Jackson’s, horse first; she won the World Championship Indian Barrel Racing title at the age of 14 on him. He was awesome. I joined the Indian Junior Rodeo Association (IJRA) for the first time when I was 11 or 12 years old. I then moved up to the Indian Professional Rodeos by joining the Navajo Nation Rodeo Cowboys Association (NNRCA) last year for the first time. 




My biggest success so far is winning the 2002 Indian National Finals Rodeo (INFR) World Champion Breakaway Roping title this past October in San Jancito, California. My breakaway horse Little Doc is far more experienced with national competitions than I. Little Doc is 17 years old and has been to the INFR many years in calf roping and breakaway with my dad Karl and my aunt Carole. I qualified for the Indian National Finals Rodeo by winning the regional finals average with the Navajo Nation Rodeo Cowboys Association (NNRCA) in September. Overall, I ended the NNRCA season standings in 4th place. I also captured the “Rookie of the Year” title in the Breakaway Roping for 2002 with the NNRCA. 
For the 2003 season, I have already rejoined the NNRCA and my season is off to a good start. I am also competing with the New Mexico High School Rodeo Association and am currently splitting 6th in the breakaway roping standings with high hopes to qualify for the National High School Rodeo Finals to be held in Farmington, NM. 



Breakaway is not the only event that I participate in. Like my mom and aunties, I’m a barrel racer too. I also enter all of the other fun events like poles, goat tying, and recently I started team roping. My dad and I are planning on going to some USTRC team ropings this spring and summer. That will be fun!
Like Little Doc and Bounce, I’ve been fortunate to have a lot of good horses to help me learn to be a winner. My very first horse that I could really call mine was a palomino pony I called “Shorty Pie.” He was like a pair of training wheels on a bike. I remember staying on him all day long. He knew the barrel pattern very well and was a great breakaway pony if the calves didn’t run too fast. I remember having horse races with my mom out in the flatlands near our home in Tohatchi. Know that I recall, my mom must have let me win because she was always on a big horse. That’s probably where I got my competitive edge to win! I outgrew Shorty Pie and moved up to an older and bigger horse I barrel raced on for a few years. He is a beautiful buckskin I call Sugar Thane. Sugar Thane reminds me of that beautiful buckskin horse on the movie “Dances with Wolves. He too could be a “movie star,” because he’s so smart and is also an all around horse. He’ll be my team roping horse this spring and summer! 


Last year my parents bought a younger horse named Cutie B Smooth. This horse is only 5 and I started using her this season in high school rodeo in barrels. I still have Cutie and Sugar Thane, but I also recently got another barrel horse named Miss Piggy. While Little Doc’s the king of breakaway, I’m also training on some colts that I raised from baby foals and am hopeful that they are just as awesome. Both colts are out of my dad’s old calf horse so they are brother and sister. Suzie Q, and Palo are their names. They are really coming along well and just need the courage to go out and compete on them!


Aunt Carole cheering Devyn on as she rides her victory run
at INFR 2002

As for advice to anyone on rodeo, all I can say is you have to love it! It’s so much fun but requires so much work and the responsibilities are tremendous. I guess that’s what my grandpa Dean meant by saying rodeo can teach you a lot about winning and losing and how to be successful in life. The sport of rodeo really does help me in school. The values and the skills you learn from rodeo can take you a long way in life. Like anything else, rodeo has to be done right. So my second advise would be stay away from alcohol and drugs, especially if you’re going to rodeo. They really don’t mix! I see there is a lot of good talent out there, but too many youth get caught up with that stuff that they lose sight of their dreams and the cycle of abuse sets in. Third would be that practice really does make perfect, or as near perfect as can be. You have to love rodeo and love what you do to actually succeed in it. You have to mean business and be able to give it all you got even if it hurts. Like that saying goes, “if you fall off, get back up, and get back on.” I still get told that a lot and I know it means being determined to be the best. And finally, the forth piece of advice would be to be humble about your successes in rodeo and in life. Everything is a blessing from above, including life itself. Remember, “Dreams can come true.” I’m still living my dreams and as long as I keep trying the joy and fun of it all will last awhile. Happy rodeo trails! 

Devyn Laine Dennison
2002 INFR World Champion Indian Breakaway Roper