The Jefferson County Rodeo missed Charlie Parsons Saturday and Sunday, but only in body.

Parsons' spirit and love for rodeo will live on in the Boulder Rodeo grounds as long as horses and bulls buck and men try to ride them in front of cheering crowds.

"He was a fixture here," said Anika McCauley, a family friend a rodeo volunteer. "Charlie and his wife Mavis. They always sat in the center grandstands and made the most noise. It didn't take long for anyone to find them."

Charlie Parsons died Wednesday at the age of 68 while four-wheeling with friends. A memorial service is set for 11 a.m. today on the family ranch south of Boulder.

Parsons lived and died, family and friends recall, as a rodeo rider, even though he hadn't competed in decades. He rode in bareback events as a young man until a wrist injury sidelined him and he found his true calling at any rodeo nn as a fan, a passionate fan.

Parsons worked as a heavy equipment operator by trade, but raised and trained horses and mules on his Boulder ranch while raising a family of three daughters and one son with his wife. As with any ranch, rodeo just fits into the natural order of life, and the Parsons took to it one generation at a time.

Ryan Parsons, Charlie Parsons' grandson, won the bull riding event at this weekend's rodeo.

Charlie Parsons easily would have made the most noise for his grandson's 79-point ride, but he also would have loved to sit in the packed grandstands nn a strong showing of civic pride. Town events are built by the people who organize and support them and the Parsons played their role in Boulder.

"They were such great people to have involved in anything," said McCauley, a Boulder resident. "They're the kind of family every community needs to get people excited about their community."

Charlie Parsons played his role as a rodeo volunteer year-round.

"Pretty much his whole life involved being a cowboy," son Rory Parsons said. "He loved being around horses."

And Charlie Parsons loved to talk.

"He was a great storyteller," said Dan Sturdevant of Clancy, a friend and one-time coworker. "He touched a lot of people with all those stories."

"He was the kind of guy who could make friends anywhere," Rory Parsons said. "He could walk into any restaurant and in five minutes have friends there."

The stories and energy for rodeo overshadowed the ornery, old-school cowboy in him.

"He did things his way," Rory Parsons said. "He rodeod until he broke his wrist, but he never went to see a doctor.

"He was a helluva good horse doctor, and he used those skills on himself. He thought it worked."

The Charlie Parsons way, friends say, began to wane after Mavis Parsons died two years ago.

"He loved her so much, and you could see he missed her," McCauley said. "He started acting like a cowboy competing without regard for his personal safety. Doctors had him on an oxygen mask, but he wouldn't wear it, things like that."

Wednesday, he met up again with his wife.

As a fitting tribute to the Parsons, both Charlie and Mavis, memorial donations are being sent to the Boulder Rodeo to help fund the construction of new grandstands so that the spirit of rodeo will continue and touch other families like it did theirs. Memorials can be sent to Boulder Rodeo, 188 Dry Creek Road, Boulder, MT 59623.

Sports Editor Cliff Pfenning:

447-4070 or cliff.pfenning@helenair.com