GIVING IT HER ALL

Phillipsburg, Kan. - July 28, 2025 - When Jayden Minkler is at the Phillipsburg Rodeo, she's all in.

The 21-year-old Phillipsburg woman has volunteered since age eight, starting with fetching bottles of water and pop to customers, then graduating to running the popcorn machine, and now to taking orders at the concessions stand and coordinating ushers.

Three years ago, she decided to resurrect the ushers program for the rodeo. Kansas Biggest Rodeo hadn't had ushers for several years, and Minkler thought they were needed.

She organized nine young women each night, stationed around the grandstands, to help people find their seats.

She coordinates their shirts, ironing them if needed, and gives procedures for them to follow.

Minkler believes having ushers at the rodeo is important.

"When we have new people come to the rodeo, they should be greeted with a friendly face. It's a great way to introduce them to your hometown rodeo."

She meets with the ushers before the first night of rodeo, laying out a few ground rules.

"I don't want them sitting there, chatting amongst themselves," she said. "I want them to give everyone a smile and make sure they know it's a welcoming environment."

Minkler has an autoimmune deficiency that caused her kidneys to fail.

Two years ago, a match was found for her, a teacher in Phillipsburg. The kidney transplant was scheduled for August.

Minkler had an opinion on that. "I thought, it better not be the week of rodeo." She wanted to be able to work the rodeo. She was able to; the transplant took place in late August.

At the time, she was going to Hays three times a week for dialysis. She remembers hurrying home from the hospital, changing clothes, and going to the rodeo.

"Everyone was expecting me to not show up, and they said, Jayden, take it easy." She worked, but it was from a chair in the concessions stand. "I found a comfortable chair and was able to take orders and do a little bit of running errands."

She's continuing the family tradition started by her grandparents, Gerald and Peggy Minkler.

Her dad, Clayton Minkler, has missed one night of the Phillipsburg rodeo in his 46 years. He remembers, as a young kid, handing bolts to his dad Gerald as the committee bolted seats together for the grandstands. Like the other volunteers at the rodeo, he's done a variety of things: carried flags in the grand entry as a 4H member, painted grandstands, set up the dance floor, and, with his family in the concessions stand, wrapped burgers. Now he's cooking burgers.

Jayden plans on continuing with the Phillipsburg rodeo for years.

She'll be a senior at Ft. Hays (Kansas) State University this fall and will continue her education to get a Master's Degree in Speech Language Pathology.

Someday, she'd like to own a Phillipsburg Rodeo share and be on the board.

She's already told her summer job boss she can't work the week of rodeo, because she'll be volunteering there.

"The rodeo is a big part of our community, and I think it brings a lot of people in. I've always loved growing up in a small town.

"It's a big part of our town. It's a week I always look forward to."

This year's Kansas Biggest Rodeo is July 31-August 2. Shows start at 8 pm nightly.

Tickets range in price from $13-$22 and are available online at KansasBiggestRodeo.com and at Garrett Insurance in Phillipsburg (685 Third Street) or by calling 785.543.2448.

For more information, visit the website.