Helping A Family In Need

An eastern Oklahoma bullfighter is calling on rodeo lovers to help a Skiatook family in need. They're hosting a bull-riding event in Oologah Saturday night to benefit a 2-year-old boy who's had

Thursday, August 17th 2006, 10:00 am

By: News On 6

An eastern Oklahoma bullfighter is calling on rodeo lovers to help a Skiatook family in need. They're hosting a bull-riding event in Oologah Saturday night to benefit a 2-year-old boy who's had to deal with a lot in the past year.

News on 6 reporter Ashli Sims says the Young's seemed to have suffered more tragedy than one family should have to take.

"Ravyn was 25 and was walking through the house and passed away with a brain aneurysm, that they didn't know anything about. Richard was diagnosed with Hodgkinâ€™s disease, which is a rare cancer in the lymph nodes. And their house caught fire two and a half weeks ago now." Marshall Perkins met the Young's through rodeo and now he's turning to the rodeo community to help them in their time of need.

"They were friends of ours and so if something happened to me I'd sure hope someone would help me out with my little girl." Perkins wrote a story about the Young family that caught a Missouri bull-rider's eye. James Johnson: "You know this little boy lost him mom at such a young age. And he didnâ€™t really have time to know her. And I think back about my little girls and I couldn't stand not having anything to do with them. So it just really hit me."

Johnson decided he had to do something. He teamed up with Perkins to put on Hooking for Help an auction and bull riding event to benefit the Young's 2-year-old son Gunnar. They hope to sell items like this autographed X Game Poster, St Louis Cardinals basket, and official professional bull riders association gear to raise money for a college fund.

And the winner of the bull-riding event will walk away with this buckle and the knowledge they helped out a little cowboy, who's already suffered so much in his young life. Now these fast friends are asking Green Country for their support. Marshall Perkins: â€œput yourself in that situation. And if you would want help and you can find it in your heart to help out, do it."

Marshall Perkins says the bull-riding event will feature some national names. It starts Saturday night at 7 PM at Oologah's Roundup Club.