King of the Cowboys

King of the Cowboys

I opened a Birthday card from a friend and there on the cover was a photo of Roy Rogers! Just like in the movies, he had on his cowboy hat, western shirt and leather riding gloves. He was smiling and wishing me “Happy Trails until we meet again.”

If you grew up in the 50’s and 60’s you remember Roy Rogers and Dale Evans in the movies, on black and white TV, and appearing in person at special events. With his horse Trigger, Roy was always the good guy and he always caught the bad guys. Back then it was easy to tell who was who because Roy wore a white cowboy hat and the bad guys wore black ones.

Even though I never did, I remember you could join the Roy Rogers Riders Club. All you had to do was send in your name to Roy and he would send you a special RoyGram confirming your membership. This entitled you to special privileges so long as you adhered to the Roy Rogers Riders Rules; a strict code of cowboy conduct:

·      Be neat and clean

·      Be courteous and polite

·      Always obey your parents

·      Protect the weak and help them

·      Be brave but never take chances

·      Study hard and learn all you can

·      Be kind to animals and take care of them

·      Eat all your food and never waste any

·      Love God and go to Sunday School regularly

·      Always respect our flag and our country

Many years have come and gone. Our culture has changed. Yet there is something foundational in what Roy taught us. The Bible says, “Point your kids in the right direction; when they’re old they won’t be lost.”