Ex-Cowgirls Annual Summer Brunch on Saturday

The Ex-Cowgirls’ Annual Summer Brunch will take place June 3 at the Olsen House on 1204 Vogel at 9:30 a.m. The event is open to all alumnae of HSU’s Cowgirls spirit organization. The brunch will give attendees the opportunity to share memories and reflect back on their days as Cowgirls.

The Cowgirl organization was created by Miss Willie Rae McDonald in 1925 after she developed an interest in forming a pep squad that could perform at school functions. The program quickly became a big hit with the female students of Hardin-Simmons, and it grew to be an elite performing group. The Cowgirls performed at athletic events as a cheering squad and did short routines during the halftimes of the football games. For 49 years, the group served as positive and talented representatives of Hardin-Simmons University.

Even though the program ended in 1974, the Ex-Cowgirls still come together at a gathering each year to have a formal business meeting, a reading of the Ex-Cowgirls who lost their lives in the previous year, and to hear from the President of the University.

The group also perform their famed “Cowgirl Stomp” at freshman orientation each year to continue the Cowgirl spirit.

For Barbara Morris, who serves as second-year president of the organization, joining her fellow retired Cowgirls each year to connect and perform for the school is a rewarding and honoring experience.

“I was and am still honored to be a Cowgirl. The opportunities and friendships I have gained from this have lasted a lifetime,” Morris said.

Morris welcomes and encourages all former Cowgirls to join together at the brunch to remember and honor the Hardin-Simmons University Cowgirl spirit organization.