Gila County Cattle Growers Rancher and Wrangler of the Year

2024 Rancher of the Year

James Rasmussen

James B Rasmussen (Jim) grew up raising cattle on the family farm in Lower Buckeye. Jim’s grandfather had the 2-Bar brand, dated to 1906, which Jim still holds today.

In 1946 the family bought the ranch out of Showlow. They moved up north in the summer taking cows, horses, turkeys, kids and friends where it was a lot cooler. In 1957 they bought the ranch near Why, AZ, south of Ajo, where they ran cattle and horses.

After graduating high school in 1959, Jim moved to Palo Alto, CA to study Electrical Engineering at Stanford University. In the summers he returned to Ajo to work at the mine, help his dad on the ranch, and haul cattle for his dad and Fred Greer, another rancher at Why. Upon his graduation in 1963, Jim hired on with a mining company in Ely, NV. It was here he met and married his first wife in 1966. He was also able to continue pursuing his first love, ranching, by helping his new father-in-law run cattle on his ranch outside of Ely while also traveling back and forth to Arizona to help his parents.  Sadly, in 1987 Jim lost his wife to cancer.

Shortly after, Jim and his young daughter moved to Round Mountain, NV.  While working as an Electrical Engineer at the Echo Bay Gold Mine, Jim met a lovely lady, Marilynn. They married in 1990. In 1992 they decided to move back to Arizona to be closer to Jim’s parents. He came to Globe to work for Magma Copper.

After moving to Globe, Jim and Marilynn met Rose and Larry Huff, Gila County Ranchers, who invited them to the rancher’s dinner. This launched their interest in becoming involved with the Gila County Cattle Growers Association. Jim was taking on more of the ranching responsibilities for his dad. About 1995, dad turned the ranches, the cattle, and the horses over to Jim.

In 2002 Jim became treasurer for GCCGA and served until 2006, supporting the GCCGA Annual Spring auction for years - bringing quality cattle from his other ranches to Globe.  In 2016 he was encouraged to serve again.  Jim stepped up and served diligently in all offices becoming President in 2022.

Even though he had other jobs, his love of ranching and horses started when he was a kid growing up in Ajo. And his dedication to the ranching community continues on.

Congratulations to our Rancher of the Year 2024, Jim Rasmussen, and a big THANK YOU for your years of support and service to the Gila County Cattle Growers Association and the ranching industry. 


2024 Wrangler of the Year

Rick Lehman

Rick Lehman grew up on a farm in Iowa milking cows and raising pigs and beef cattle. His dad was an auctioneer and part owner in a sale barn. When his dad was out sick, Rick, at the age of 10-years, sold his first farm at auction.

In 1984 He moved to Arizona. In 1998 he began working for Marana Stockyards sorting cattle and selling butcher cows. 28 years later you can still find Rick selling at Marana Stockyards & Livestock Market.

He has been married to his wife Karen for 25 years. They have 17-year-old twins, Jake and Kallie who are seniors in high school. They keep him on his toes and fulfill his life. For the past 10 years, when he’s not on the auction block you can find him coaching flag football teams.

Fully devoted to youth and the cattle industry, Rick has been an integral part of Gila County livestock auctions and fundraisers. Not only at the Gila County Cattle Growers’ Association Annual Spring Auctions, but also at our Gila County Fair Junior Livestock Auctions.

For the past 10 years, Rick has also volunteered his time, talent and enthusiasm to support our GCCGA Annual Salute to Ranching Dinner-Dance and Auction. Rick is well liked, highly respected, great at audience engagement, while garnering as much as he can for our cause.

With gratitude, it is our honor to award Rick Lehman the Gila County Cattle Growers’ Association Wrangler of the Year 2024.


Mike

Hemovich

2020 Rancher of the Year

Mike Hemovich, brings many unique attributes to our ranching community. Leadership, conservation principles, big-picture thinking, teamwork, hands-on work ethic, flexibility, and a life-long learner – to name a few.



After attending college Mike spent 30 years as an Army officer, serving in many places in the US, Europe, and Southeast Asia. While serving as Military Attaché to Greece, he and his wife Diana began a long-lasting love of sailing and sailed to many ports throughout the Mediterranean. After retiring, he and Diana settled in Tucson, but spent most summers on the Chesapeake Bay where they were able to continue their love of sailing. Knowing that retirement would eventually lead them to settle full time in Arizona, (Mike was born in Globe and his father was raised in Miami) Mike and Diana spent years looking for a cattle

ranch. The Bar X Ranch became available, so they gave up on sailing (for now) and started a new career in cattle ranching. 


With the help of ranching neighbors, cattle organizations, the Forest Service, U of A, Society for Range Management (SRM), Arizona Game and Fish and excellent cowboys who worked for us, they were able to learn and grow into the world of cattle. Mike has worked hard to improve the ranch, doubling the size in grazing area and by four-fold in permit numbers. His efforts have not gone unnoticed. The Bar X ranch has received numerous awards for the conservation work conducted on the ranch including Wildlife Habitat Stewards of the Year for Arizona (2018), nomination for National Conservation Ranch of the Year (2015).  After 15 years, Mike continues to learn and improve the Bar X.


For many years, Mike has been a staunch supporter of the ranching industry and an advocate for our Gila County ranchers in meeting the many challenges we face. He became President of the AZ Section SRM, a member of the Board of Directors of Arizona State Cattle Growers, and an active member of Gia County Cattle Growers’ Association. In 2009, Mike was elected to the Board of Directors of Directors of the GCCGA. When Mike became president in 2018, he took over during perilous times in Gila County. Ranching had once again been crippled by severe drought conditions. Fires ravaged the already devastated land, destroying many ranches. Then came the Coronavirus. 


Undaunted by these challenges, Mike worked with USFS, Arizona Game & Fish and wildlife organizations to obtain assistance for ranchers to rebuild and sustain ranching operations throughout Gila County. These efforts have also been noticed. In the words of GCCGA ranchers, “He (Mike) took over at a really hard time with fires etc. He did a great job. Tonto NRCD needed a Gila County rancher to help oversee the monitoring of ranches in Gila County. We asked Mike to do that, and he has done a great job and he put in a lot of time & effort.”


“Mike has led and been a part of the GCCGA officers for 8 years and the BOD (Board of Directors) for a long time. Always willing to help out and sound out for our rights as allotment owners on federal lands.”


Thank you, Mike for your many years of leadership and support of the GCCGA and the ranching industry.


Dave

Womack

2020 Wrangler of the Year

Dave Womack has been instrumental in the process and development of water and conservation projects on many allotments across the Tonto National Forest. These projects, associated with water distribution, allows ranchers to distribute cattle to areas that previously did not have a water source. His knowledge of the conservation program and range allows for a greater understanding of what the rancher needs. Dave goes beyond what the agency expects of him.


After obtaining a Bachelors Degree in Wildlife Management and a Masters Degree in Range Management from the University of Arizona, Dave has served 22 years with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Arizona including field offices in Tucson, Springerville, and San Carlos. He is currently NRCS Range Management Specialist in the Tucson Area Office. Born in Globe, AZ and raised in Mammoth, AZ, Dave is the father of 2 adult children.


In his own words, “I have been blessed to be able to work with ranchers in Gila County and central Arizona on conservation projects to improve grazing management or restore grasslands with brush management and have been more blessed than I deserve providing service to agricultural producers in the region where was born and where I was raised.”


Gila County Cattle Growers Association thanks you, Dave, for going the extra mile for our ranchers.


Dave

Womack

2020 Wrangler of the Year

Dave Womack has been instrumental in the process and development of water and conservation projects on many allotments across the Tonto National Forest. These projects, associated with water distribution, allows ranchers to distribute cattle to areas that previously did not have a water source. His knowledge of the conservation program and range allows for a greater understanding of what the rancher needs. Dave goes beyond what the agency expects of him.


After obtaining a Bachelors Degree in Wildlife Management and a Masters Degree in Range Management from the University of Arizona, Dave has served 22 years with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Arizona including field offices in Tucson, Springerville, and San Carlos. He is currently NRCS Range Management Specialist in the Tucson Area Office. Born in Globe, AZ and raised in Mammoth, AZ, Dave is the father of 2 adult children.


In his own words, “I have been blessed to be able to work with ranchers in Gila County and central Arizona on conservation projects to improve grazing management or restore grasslands with brush management and have been more blessed than I deserve providing service to agricultural producers in the region where was born and where I was raised.”


Gila County Cattle Growers Association thanks you, Dave, for going the extra mile for our ranchers.


Share by: