Cheyene Durheim

Cheyene Durheim – Texas
Nomination & Photography by Angie Read Photography
Issue 61 of Inspiring Teens Magazine
​

​Nomination: Cheyene has an inspiring work ethic. Cheyene used to spend between 15-30 hours a week in a dance studio perfecting her love of tap dancing. More recently Cheyene has become involved with FFA, and started her own cattle operation 3 years ago. If she isn’t at her barn working her 3 heifers, 3 bulls and steer seven days a week twice a day, you will find her at school making sure she has the grades to meet the high standards she sets for herself. In what little free time she does have, she’s working at the baseball fields to fund her cattle operation. Cheyene does an amazing job juggling her busy life!

Photography by Angie Read Photography

​Tell us about your show cattle.
My cattle are my pride and joy, they are my best friends. Someone once told me if you have a day, talk to your cattle, if you have a secret, you must tell someone tell your cattle, they won’t ever tell anyone what you say. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be my bull Joker.  Joker is a very picky bull when it comes people being around him and touching him a lot like me. Every morning I go out into the pasture to feed him, and he always gives me loving and kisses. This bull has been my best friend through his show career, and his personality and mine are a lot alike. 

What does it entail on your end to get one of your show cattle ready for show? 
Positive attitude and effort are what I have to have daily. Cattle are a lot like people, they can sense when you are having bad day and in a bad mood, they know when you are happy, and they respond accordingly.  On a daily basis I get up at 5am before school and head to the barn to feed all 10 of my show cattle and the 3 pasture cows we have. I must clean their pens every morning, fill water buckets, and fill feeders with feed and hay. After school I get to do it all over again, with the addition of walking each one of them, then washing them and blow drying and working their hair, so it stays in show ready condition every day. On show days I get up usually about 4 am wash every one of them, get their feed pans ready so that while they are eating, I can get their hair show ready. Usually, it takes me about 5 hours to have all my cattle ready to go into the show ring and show. After each show, they get washed and blown out again before they get tied out for the night. Most weekends we show we have 2 shows, one on Saturday and again on Sunday.

What is it like the day of the show? Walk us through a typical show.
A typical show day for me requires an early morning arrival to the show barn to start washing animals. I then will allow them to eat there morning feed while blow drying their hair and making sure everything is clean. I will allow one bucket of water the morning of a show, and as much as they would like before they go show. Gluing and fitting the cattle is the best part of all of this since I get to play and get their hair ready for show. Blowing them out a few more times after working on the hair always adds to the finishing touch. Show halters are ready to be put on and its show time!

Photography by Angie Read Photography

​What has been a favorite accomplishment showing cattle?
My favorite accomplishment while showing cattle has been winning with my bull, Joker. He started off bad and just didn’t want to work with me while showing him. I worked countless hours with him and made sure he was better prepared each show he went to. All this leading up to winning Reserve Grand Champion at one of the largest livestock shows in the world The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. I also won the Grand Champion Bull at State Fair of Texas this year. 
 
What has been a favorite memory showing cattle?
This may sound strange, but my best memories are the times I get to spend with my parents. My parents get up every morning with me and drive me to the barn, help me get all my chores done so that I can get home and get ready for school or my job. The amount of time I have spent in the truck with my dad, making countless memories. The songs that he and I sing, the dancing he and I do while driving, the conversations we have about life, the naps I take while he drives and takes pictures of me sleeping, are memories I will have for life. Not every kid gets the opportunity to spend the amount of time I do with my parents, doing what I love.   
 
What influence does showing cattle and agriculture have on your life?
Showing cattle has changed my future. From the time I was started dancing at 7, I couldn’t imagine my life without being involved in dance. I wanted nothing more than to be a Rockette, tap dancing on Broadway. When I was picking my classes for my freshman year of high school I needed an elective, and my dad who was in FFA as kid encouraged me to take freshman ag class. That class and my teachers changed my life, I wanted to start raising show animals, while still dancing. At the end of my freshman year, I decided I wanted to try showing cattle, and the rest is history. From one heifer to another, to now 12 in my barn! While I still have a love for dance, my passion for working with cattle has changed my future. I now plan on going to Texas Tech University and getting a degree in Animal Science with focus on production, with hopes of working for a cattle breeding operation. Showing cattle have shown me what I want to spend my rest of life doing. 

​How did you find and why did you choose Angie Read Photography for your photographer? 
I found Angie Read Photography through several friends of mine that were on your Power Team last year. Her photos have always caught my eye and when Angie reached out to me, I was extremely excited and took the opportunity to be on her Power Team this year.

What was your experience like? What did you love most about it?
My experience with Angie has been amazing and continues to be every photoshoot we have. She is so fun and makes everything the best it could possibly be. The thing I love most about it, is Angie is so open to doing everything when it comes to pictures. She helps in every way she can to make everything look amazing.

Image taken at home

What do you do for work in the baseball fields? 
The work I do at the baseball fields is manage the concession stands and clean around the park. It’s not as much fun as working in the cattle barn with my cattle, but I have to have a job to pay for my passion. My parents help me with my cattle costs, but my dad says there is no free rides in life, and while this isn’t the easiest job, it helps pay for feed for my animals and help pay for show entries and vet fees.

Why is getting good grades important to you?
Getting good grades is very important to me because I wanted to prove my school that, just because I’m not at school every time and have the best attendance, that I am still getting an education outside of the school. I have learned so many life lessons and improved my work ethic from just being in a cattle barn working hard and putting in all that I got. This is also helps me get into my dream college, Texas Tech University, and after 5 days of submitting my application, I was accepted and received a scholarship. My parents told me when I started showing cattle, grades come first, cattle come second. If I don’t have the grades my parents expect, and the grades I expect for myself, then my cattle suffer.

What are you most looking forward to during your senior year?
I am looking forward to all the fun senior activities and events that we will have. I also look forward to making as many memories as possible with my best friends before I leave for college next year and start a new chapter in my life. 

What legacy do you hope to leave behind?
When I think about the kind of legacy I want to leave behind, it’s a little intimidating. I feel like legacies are for people like my grandparents or people I read about in history books. People who have big dreams and want to do big things. Although if I’m being, I want to do big things and have big dreams. Over the past few years, I’ve discovered a passion for cattle and the International Brangus Breeders Association. It all started freshman year when I joined the FFA chapter at my high school. I’ve always been around farms and livestock, but I fell in love with Red Brangus after I started working with them. I’ve taken on a leadership role within the association, and I’m amazed at the difference I’m making. I’ve been so blessed to have these opportunities. I hope that one day I will be able to influence a young person to take a leap of faith and reach for their passions. I hope to be an encouragement to others around me in the future. 

Where would we find you if you had nothing to do and all day to do it?

You could find me in the barn working on my animals I could spend countless hours in the barn with my animals just working, playing, washing, walking and many more things with them. 
What advice would you give to someone who wants to be where you are today?

It’s all about attitude and effort. The attitude you give will reflect on any actions that may happen, and the effort put in will allow you to push and do bigger and better things.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years/what are your plans?

I hope to have graduated from Texas Tech University, with a degree in Animal Science and working my dream job of cattle operations in a breeding and genetic program. 

3 Things on your bucket list
I would like to go skydiving with my father, win Grand Champion at Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and International Brangus Breeders show, and be invited to show Red Brangus in a foreign countries stock show.

Who do you find inspiring?
Dr. Wilkes, President of the International Brangus Breeders Association. His passion for the breed and most importantly his love for the junior that show in this breed is truly inspiring. To quote Dr. Wilkes “The juniors are this breeds future.”


Look for Cheyene in issue 61 of Inspiring Teens Magazine!

click here for more information on issue 61

click here to nominate an inspiring teen