Raymond Stampede to bid adieu to original site after 121 years

Earlier in the year, the Government of Alberta announced the construction of a new high school in Raymond, which warranted the choosing of a ‘shovel ready site’ complete with sewer and water infrastructure.

Raymond council looked for months to find a suitable location, but in the end, it was determined that the 20-acre parcel south of the Victoria Park Sportsplex would be the most ideal for the new school.

As a result, the rodeo grounds were forced to find a new home for 2024.

Robert Heggie, President of the Raymond Stampede Association, indicated that it’s sad to see the original location go, but they’re making room for progress in the future.

Heggie explained, “It’s a great location for a school, but you know, we stood our ground for as long as we could, but we lost out because we didn’t own the land.”

He continued, “There’s going to be a lot of memories going through peoples’ minds when they’re down there this year, but we’re going to move on, we got a new location; we’re trying to keep it all positive.”

The new location was donated by Robert’s family, Ron and Joanne Heggie.

The Heggie family approached the town council with a donation of 14 acres of land on the northeast side of town to build a new rodeo ground.

While concepts to move the original 70-year-old grandstand to the new location were discussed, engineers advised that it could not be moved without significant damage, meaning that a new structure will be built.

Development on the donated land remains in the preparatory stages, so there are no estimates on how much a new grandstand could cost, but Heggie indicated they’ve already applied for a few facility enhancement grants and a GoFundMe will be set up following the final stampede.

Although still in infancy, Heggie said that the support in Raymond has been tremendous.

Heggie shared, “The town is really getting behind it, I got a list a mile long of people looking to volunteer their services to do whatever needs to be done.”

“Back when they built that grandstand and rodeo ground between 1902 and 1903, it was all a community effort,” he added. “Most of that would have been donated, I’m sure, and so I’ve said this before, but it gives us the chance to be the pioneers for this time and make sure that this happens.”

During this year’s rodeo, running from Thursday, June 29 to Saturday, July 1, there will be multiple opportunities to donate towards the future of the Raymond Stampede, including a 50/50 raffle that’s already live.

Poster for the 121st Raymond Stampede taking place from June 29 to July 1, 2023. (Photo: Raymond Stampede Facebook)

Before the Raymond Stampede bids adieu to the long-standing location, the public will have a chance to sit in the grandstand one final time to watch pro rodeo events, wild pony races and some of the best cowboys and cowgirls in the world take one last ride on the in-field.

For more information, go to the Raymond Stampede Facebook page to check out times for this weekend’s event along with updates on construction for the new location.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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by Sarah Jones

Raymond Stampede to bid adieu to original site after 121 years

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