
WyoGives
Thanks to your incredible generosity, we had a record-breaking event on July 10 with WyoGives, raising nearly $15,000 in a single day! A portion of that is eligible for boosting by a $1,000,000 incentive pool through the Hughes Charitable Foundation. We are eagerly waiting to hear what additional funds may be awarded.
As you know, contributions help us focus on key initiatives such as maintaining collections in our free museum, funding college scholarships, providing educational programs, and preserving millions of acres of ranchland.
Wyoming nonprofits raised over $4.5 million with WyoGives, thanks to the Wyoming Nonprofit Network, community partners, and more than seven thousand donors. It was a great moment to share with so many wonderful Wyoming causes.
Thank you for supporting the Dude Ranch Foundation!
Horse Safety/Risk Management

Trail Riding Safety
We are in our 21st year of this incredible horse safety program. Keeping guests, staff, and horses safe and healthy is always the most important objective. This year, eleven DRA member ranches hosted trainings with roughly a dozen additional area ranches participating.
We want to give a special shout-out to Will Ferguson from Eatons’ Ranch. Will has been an instructor for about seven years and ended up traveling over 2,000 miles this spring, conducting trainings at ranches in Wyoming and Montana. Thanks for all you do, Will!
Our Wrangler Training was established to train wranglers and guides in the skills needed to meet the minimum horse safety and risk management practices accepted by DRA ranches. This course helps provide the skills and knowledge needed to prevent potential accidents, offering both hands-on and classroom experience. Participants must already have a working knowledge of horsemanship skills. Click HERE to read more about our Horse Safety Program.
Thank you to NFP Insurance, Glencar Insurance, and the Outdoor Insurance Program for their support of the DRF Horse Safety Programs!
Scholarships

The DRF Scholarship Program
As you all know, the DRF is dedicated to nurturing the future leaders of the dude ranch industry. Through our scholarship program, we offer financial support and motivation to students aiming to pursue degrees that will sustain and promote our industry and our Western heritage.
For the 2024/2025 school year, we awarded $22,000 in scholarship money. Since its inception, the DRF has awarded over $477,000 to 279 students!
The only reason this program is successful is because of supporters like you!

Josie Meyring
Thank you for awarding me the Dude Ranch Foundation Scholarship. I will be pursuing a degree in agricultural communications to further my knowledge about agriculture and plan to use this degree to be a voice for the industry. I will be taking three horses with me to Cal Poly to participate on the collegiate rodeo team in breakaway, team roping, and barrel racing. I have made connections with my two roommates, who are also on the rodeo team. I know this fall will be challenging, yet I am very excited for this new adventure and experience. Thank you again for supporting me, I will represent your scholarship with pride.
Sincerely,
Josie Meyring
Visit Us!

The Dude Ranch Foundation and Western Museum
If you’re traveling through Cody, Wyoming, stop in and see us!
Step Back in Time: Explore the fascinating history of the Wild West with exhibits and artifacts that tell the captivating stories of dude ranches and their role in shaping Western culture.
Authentic Western Experience: Allow yourself to be transported to a time when dude ranches first found themselves as bustling hubs of activity where city-dwellers found the opportunity to break out their cowboy boots and try on a new way of life.
Engaging Exhibits: From cowboy gear and vintage photographs to original saddles and historical documents, our collection offers hands-on displays showcasing cowboy skills like roping and branding. Let us know if you have items from your own ranching history that you’d like to see preserved in our museum!
Captivating Tales: Learn about legendary dude ranch owners, rodeo stars, and influential figures who shaped the history of the American West.
Western Art and Culture: Enjoy Western artwork that celebrates the rugged beauty of the region. Discover how the cowboy way of life inspired artistic expressions that capture the spirit of the West.
Community Connection: Your visit supports the preservation of our Western heritage and contributes to the local community. Museums like ours play a crucial role in safeguarding history and promoting cultural understanding, ensuring future generations can appreciate the legacy of the American West.
Hope to see you in Cody this summer!
Please Give through Bing
There are many ways to support the Dude Ranch Foundation. And Giving with Bing is one way to support that rewards everyone! Find great search results and help create great results for the Dude Ranch Foundation! Give with Bing is a feature of Microsoft Rewards that enables you to support a cause you care about simply by searching on Bing. It starts by signing up for Microsoft Rewards, their loyalty program. After joining, points earned for Bing searches will be automatically donated to your selected cause. Once you register at Give.bing.com, your search activity on Bing, at no expense to you, provides funding for the Dude Ranch Foundation. Give with Bing is currently available in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Join now!