COWGIRL Empowered: Siri Stevens

With more than 30 years of experience in the print industry, Siri Stevens’ passion is human interest stories and taking photographs.  She grew up in the Air Force, married a rancher, wrote about it, and now over 30 years later she serves as the Publisher of Rodeo News—the publication pioneer for quality information and coverage dedicated to all things rodeo.  

Rodeo has changed immensely over the years, and Siri has consistently been in the middle of the action capturing it all.  She is amazed at the progressive hastiness of the sport – athletes used to camp out at rodeos for a while, but now they’re off in a hurry to get to the next one.  The amount of money, talent, and opportunity are also major changes to the sport that she has witnessed over her storied career.  

Three aspects of rodeo make Siri the most passionate about the sport are, “The commonality of knowing and serving God, the importance of family, and the persistence of physical and equine talent.”  She is also incredibly proud that Rodeo News’ website hosts 24,000 stories about rodeo people spanning the past 20 years, with an online reach of more than half a million people.  While she has seen and written about everything the rodeo world has to offer, the most memorable moment in her career is becoming a mother.

To any young cowgirl looking to pursue a career in the industry, Siri advises, “Two pounds of persistence is worth ten pounds of talent—find what lights your fire and go after it.  The best way to learn anything is to teach something.  Remember your roots and respect those that paved the way.”