SPOONER — On Saturday, May 11, competition will be held for the 70th Spooner Rodeo queen and princess. Starting time will be 10 a.m., rain, shine or snow.
The horsemanship portion and crowning will be livestreamed from the Spooner Rodeo Facebook page. Crowning of the new queen and princess will take place at 2:15 p.m. Everyone is invited to the horsemanship portion in the arena to cheer on the girls.
Five candidates have entered the competition: Alexis LaPorte from Trego, Larissa Ekstrom from Rice Lake, Bree Copp from Stone Lake, Ariana Hendricks from Stone Lake and Savanna Siwicki from Spooner. The girls have provided bios to introduce themselves.
Ariana Hendricks
Hello, my name is Ariana Hendricks. I am 16 years old, from Stone Lake, where I live with my parents, Dan and Cheryl Hendricks, and my two older sisters. I am currently homeschooled and work part-time at my family’s business, Bar H Implement. Bar H has been in my family since around 1962! It was started by my great-great-grandparents. It is currently owned by my Great-Aunt Nancy, and was formerly co-owned by my Grandpa Roy.
When I am not busy with school or work, one of my favorite things to do in my free time is to socialize and participate in community events. One of my favorite community events is the barn and swing dancing events each month! Another one of my favorite things is flying and learning about piloting! A goal I am working toward currently as well is to become a pilot myself. I hope to be able to one day use piloting to better my community!
Another thing I love is to be involved with my church! I am also on the worship team at my church, Northern Lights Christian Center in Hayward, which has been a blast! My favorite instrument to play is the guitar. I am self-taught and have been playing for four years. Music is a passion of mine that I love sharing with others, as well, through lessons and get-together playing sessions! Helping and inspiring others is one of many reasons why I hope to be Rodeo queen.
Savanna Siwicki
Hello, my name is Savanna Siwicki and I am a contestant for the 2024 Heart of the North Rodeo queen!
I am 16 years old. I was born in Florida and lived most of my life in Illinois before moving up here to Spooner. I am proud to say I have lived here for five years. I am currently a junior at Spooner High School and work at Lakeview Bar and Grill in Shell Lake.
I am the granddaughter of Laura and Don Siwicki. I started taking lessons at the age of 5 years old. When I moved here, I was in search of a horse that could fulfill my hopes and dreams of owning and showing a horse. I ended up buying a mare. Her name is Carmie and I bought her from Jacque Avery. I never did end up showing her because I wasn’t ready; instead, I opted for doing 4-H to get me ready for showing.
It was a great experience and prepared and taught me a lot about horsemanship, riding and teamwork. Carmie is my first love and will always be a part of my life.
My second is Stella; I’ve had her for two years. We have amazing synergy together. We belong to the Northwest Wisconsin Equine Club, for which I was princess of 2023. We attended many parades, shows and clinics together. It made great strides in our relationship and accomplishments together. There is still much to be learned together and I can’t wait for those opportunities to arise and to be achieved together!
Bree Copp
Hi! My name is Bree Copp. I am 18 years old and 100% cowgirl! I haven’t missed a Rodeo yet since my family moved to the area in 2013.
I am the daughter of Heath and Rebecca Copp. I began riding horses when I was 5 years old but had to stop for a number of years until I got back into it in the spring of 2018. Since then, I’ve been working with horses every chance I could.
In December of 2020, I got my own horse, Ranger, and it was love at first sight. Ranger is a 16-year-old quarter horse gelding and handsome as they come, although I may be slightly biased. We have truly become a team and enjoy trail, gaming, liberty and tricks, a little bit of cow horse and recently have gotten into vaulting.
Last summer, Ranger carried me to queen of our local horse club, the Northwest Wisconsin Equine Club, and we had so much fun. I learned a lot about being a role model and representing our club. It really pushed me out of my comfort zone so that I could become a better rider and friend.
My passion is training horses and I currently intern at Ranch of Rescued Hope in Phillips. I hope to compete in mustang makeovers in the coming years and move out west in the fall to begin training horses on my own. At the moment, I also work a number of different part-time jobs besides my internship. I work at Peragon Enterprises in Shell Lake and nanny for a family with four little kids. I also have a couple horse owners who would like me to put some training on their horse this spring. I was homeschooled and graduated early at the age of 16. I have no immediate plans for further schooling, but I haven’t completely ruled it out for the future yet.
My favorite part of the Rodeo is the very beginning when we sing the National Anthem and the girls come riding out. Over the years, that has inspired me to keep riding and working toward my dreams. One of those dreams has been getting to ride as royalty and inspiring other young girls like me. Making connections in the horse world and getting involved is one of my biggest joys.
I love working hard and learning new things, and I am so excited for this opportunity to get to meet all the girls who are competing and gain some rodeo experience.
I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and cannot wait to see what He has in store for my future.
Larissa Ekstrom
Howdy! My name is Larissa Ekstrom and I am a current junior in high school. I have had the pleasure of riding since before I could remember. I come from a little small town outside of Rice Lake and am a third-generation equine athlete.
Horses have always been one of the most important parts of my life, even through the frustrations where you felt like giving up. When I first started riding horses, it started out with taking lessons at a small private barn just outside of Rice Lake. Over the next couple of years, my passion for horses kept on growing and that growth quickly turned into showing in larger events.
One of those events being NCRCHA (North Central Reined Cow Horse Association). I showed in Reining and Cowhorse for five years. Eventually, I had decided it was time for something more and chose rodeo. I started out jump riding people’s horses and being a loper for a little over six months. After I had learned the ins and outs of the rodeo world, I decided it was time to purchase my first horse by myself.
My family and I had chosen the horse that not many people wanted and he ended up to be an amazing barrel horse. He may not be the fastest one, but he sure does have a heart of gold. Through all of the frustration, my horse and I faced it all and it ended up being worth its weight in gold. With that being said, we have been competing as a team for almost three years and making many memories with my “Rodeo Family.”
My family and I have had the pleasure of meeting many people along the way and creating many memories with our friends. Outside of rodeo, I like to spend my free time with my family and friends while cheering on high school sports and supporting others.
While spending countless hours with my horses, I plan to attend a two-year program in Montana where I can rodeo and further my education in animal science.
Alexis LaPorte
Hi, rodeo fans! My name is Alexis LaPorte, and I am 19 years old. I am the daughter of Chris LaPorte and Kylie Bullion, and I had the privilege of growing up in Trego. I just recently graduated from Spooner High School in 2023, and I am now a first-year student at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where I am majoring in crop science — go, Falcons!
Attending River Falls was a no-brainer after learning about the pride they take in their ag-based programs. As a little girl, I was beyond excited to grow up just enough to be a part of our 4-H Horse Project. I am so thankful for all I have learned during my time showing my horses. I grew up so much as a rider and as a person, and I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without the opportunities 4-H has given me.
While I was growing more and more each year through 4-H, I was also given the opportunity to join the Spooner FFA Chapter, and I’m so glad that I did. After being as active as I could during my freshman and sophomore years, I decided to pursue officer positions during my junior and senior years. Not only was I able to learn and grow as a member of the Spooner FFA Chapter, but I was privileged with the experience of being chosen as vice president during my junior year before being chosen president during my senior year!
During my involvement within both 4-H and FFA, I am so grateful to have gained many vital skills, including leadership, time management, public speaking and the importance of responsibility for myself, others and animals. While gaining experience with these skills came in a variety of ways, I want to thank one horse specifically. I was able to show my quarter horse Ally throughout most of my time in 4-H. She taught me more than I thought possible, and she will forever be one of the most important horses in my life.
I’m saddened to say that during this past fall, we had to make the decision to put her to sleep due to her declining health. While Ally can never be replaced, I have been able to continue my horse journey with a young-grade quarter horse gelding, Chance. I am so happy that I have the opportunity to work with him, which has resulted in both of us gaining more experience. Even though Chance is my horse, I plan to use a family horse this year named Jack, who has a very special place in my heart. He is a 24-year-old registered Morgan who has joined our family after my mom’s friend passed away. Doing this with him will create an important memory that I will never forget.
Speaking of important memories, my mom, both of my aunts, as well as my cousin, have all held titles as Rodeo royalty — it’s a kind of tradition in our family! I have always wanted to try and continue that legacy, but the timing was never right for me to do so.
I’m thankful for my amazing support system, and I believe that now is the perfect time to continue that family legacy!
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