The Butler County Sheriff’s Office picked up sponsorship of the Professional Cowboy Association’s rodeo in Greenville this year and Sheriff Kenny Harden said he was happy with how the event turned out this weekend.

“Lots of fun,” said Harden. “I think everybody had a good time. It was good to see a lot of kids there.”

The two-day event, held Friday and Saturday, attracted all ages. Children enjoyed the rock wall and bungee jump. Their parents lined the food tent for hot dogs, popcorn, and hamburgers, ably cooked and prepared by the Greenville Kiwanis Club. Cowboys and cowgirls in dusty jeans, shirts and boots, walked the fairgrounds, all eyeing the $14,520 in prize money up for grabs that evening.

The traditional “Grand Entry,” including the presentation of the American flag and a powerful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner by Greenville native Vicki Russell, preceded what everyone was there for: the competition. The dust never settled in the arena as contestants competed in everything from bull riding and barrel racing to calf roping and steer wrestling. Aside, of course, from a few brief interludes courtesy of rodeo clown Reggie Purvis.

Harden said he’d like to see the rodeo become an annual tradition in Butler County. Money raised from this year’s rodeo will be used to purchase equipment for deputies, he said.

“We didn’t make a lot of money but we did make some,” he said. “We’d like to do this again next year.”