Tabiona Celebration: Grand Marshall Nina Gines - July 2010

The location, scenery, and faces of the Tabiona 4^th of July Celebration may have changed over the past 80 years, but the true rodeo spirit of old West Americana lives on and thrives in this mountain community thanks to longtime residents like 4^th of July Grand Marshall Nina Gines.
    Nina Sizemore Gines was born April 3, 1928 to some of the original settlers of Tabiona. She has lived in Tabiona her entire life, was married to Ferron Gines in 1950 and has raised three children in Tabiona; Tex, Levaughn, and Irene. She's now got 17 grand children, 35 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grand children to pass down her love of her hometown to.
Nina has always enjoyed a good rodeo and has volunteered countless hours to the Tabiona Rodeo and 4^th of July Celebration as rodeo secretary, made hundreds of pounds of sloppy joes, and even lent the use of her property for 40+ years for the rodeo. Ferron was a fan of rodeo as well and would probably be sitting in the front seat of his red and white Chevy pickup waiting for the cook shack to open so he could have a rodeo burger if here were here today. Ferron passed away in 1996, but while he was here, he loved to keep time for all the rodeo events and practices they attended just to make sure the official timer keepers were correct.
    Nina remembers good times, "We really used to have fun on the 4^th of July. We'd gather up the cows and horses from the fields and that was our bucking stock. Uncle Tob had a horse that he rode all the time and used to plow the fields. On rodeo day that horse became a bucker. Nobody ever made the 8 second ride on that horse and Uncle Tob finally sold him to a rodeo stock company. I also remember Grandpa and Grandma Gines would bring ice from the ice house and we'd make homemade ice cream. Everybody pitched in and brought food and we had a great time. Everyone dressed up in their best clothes for the parade too, and everybody walked and marched in the parade. Now days everybody rides."
Many of the old elements of the Tabiona rodeo have changed. There are no more horse races, they don't do the same kinds of programs they used to and the rodeo has become a bit more refined, but there is still a lot of fun to enjoy in Tabiona and you can bet that Nina Gines will be right there in the middle of it all, enjoying every second of the excitement.