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After much thoughtful deliberation and consideration among planners and partners of the annual Minot Y’s Men’s Rodeo, the Y’s Men’s Association Rodeo Committee has determined to cancel this year’s rodeo scheduled for October 9-11. We chose to cancel the event to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 within our region – at a time when the pandemic has surged in North Dakota.

While the question about whether to hold the rodeo was not taken lightly, ultimately, we did what we must do as healthcare organizations. Our decision was guided by the collective mission of YMCA and Trinity Health: to protect the health and wellness of the community we serve. Our organizations have the responsibility to avoid creating settings where spreading the virus can occur. Even with our best efforts, we are not confident we could effectively mitigate the risks faced by participants and visitors at this event.

The environment in our region is more dangerous today than it was when planning just a few months and weeks ago, and it is not likely to improve enough in upcoming days. Ward County increased from four active cases on July 1 to nearly 240 active cases today. Under North Dakota’s color-coded guidance system, Ward County is listed as Yellow, or Moderate Risk, a signal to “avoid large gatherings.”

Minot Family YMCA and Trinity Health regret the circumstances we’ve all been facing this year, which have altered life and health in so many ways. We sincerely appreciate the community’s understanding of this decision and cooperation in following common public health strategies to reverse the trend of COVID-19 cases: social distance, good hand hygiene, and face coverings when adequate social distance is not likely.

We look forward to new possibilities for gathering and celebrating our rodeo in the future.

Paul Kramer, YMCA Board President
Roger Mazurek, YMCA Executive Director
Randy Schwan, Trinity Health Vice President, Mission Integration