FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Ezabela Herber
June 19th, 2023 Shattuck FFA Reporter
(580) 938-0346
HIGGINS HOG ROAST PRESENTS LOCAL SCHOLARSHIPS
By Ezabela Herber
HIGGINS,TEXAS- On June 3rd, the annual Higgins Hog Roast was held in Higgins, Texas. This nonprofit organization was first founded in 2009 by the inspiration of Phil Detrixhe and Trevor Pool. What once was a fun get together for friends and family to hunt wild hogs and have a barbecue, soon turned into a community tradition which later transformed into a benefit to honor the memory of two very special people. Joshua Habekott was the first to be honored at the Higgins Hog Roast. Josh passed away at the age of 21 in an auto accident. The following year, Jeremy Parker passed away from his long fought battle with leukemia. That year, the committee of the hog roast set donation buckets out and donated all profits to Jeremy’s family to help with medical and traveling expenses incurred during his battle with cancer. As the event grew, portions of the proceeds raised at the event went to the Joshua Habekott Scholarship fund , a scholarship that was previously established and was awarded to an area senior. The remaining portion went to CaringBridge, in memory of Jeremy Parker, a website that allows people to receive updates from loved ones in the hospital who are battling illnesses.
Over time, this donation-only event has grown exponentially. As a result of its growth, it now boasts a day filled with activities including a community meal of mouth watering barbecue, live bands and other sources of entertainment, and a highly competitive cornhole tournament. All of this has vastly increased not only in attendance but also in the sponsorship of this amazing benefit. The dedication and hard work of the Higgins Hog Roast committee, and their sponsors, has allowed the Higgins Hog Roast to fund multiple scholarships. The Higgins Hog Roast Scholarship is awarded to a graduating
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senior from high schools in Canadian and Follett, Texas along with Arnett and Shattuck, Oklahoma. This year’s Shattuck High School senior recipients were Ellery Woods, Camryn Bullard, Drew Taylor, and Miguel Gomez. We would like to congratulate those recipients!
Not only does the Higgins Hog Roast sponsor multiple scholarships, they also donate to many other organizations throughout the year. As FFA and school Ag programs are very important to the Higgins Hog Roast organization, they are proud to be able to continue to donate their time to the Lipscomb County Stock show which supports the schools of Booker, Darrouzett, and Follett,
Texas. The Higgins Hog Roast not only provides the concession stand at the county stock show, they also donate free meals for each student exhibitor to eat throughout the weekend. The Higgins Hog Roast committee feels very strongly towards donating towards many other student organizations such as little league teams, BETA clubs, Student Council projects, and several other school organizations. Shattuck Schools is proud to say that our very own LeAnna Thompson, the STEM and Yearbook teacher, plays a huge role in making sure this event runs smoothly. However, she gives much of the credit to the committee and those who show up to help with the event year after year. She says that the success of the Higgins Hog Roast can be greatly attributed to the passion put into it.
The planning of the Higgins Hog Roast starts several months prior to the event. They haul wood to burn in the bar-b-que pit, design event merchandise, book entertainment, sell sponsorships, and hold an annual coyote hunt to help raise money. This year several of the committee members helped paint the city park in Higgins and cleaned flower beds in preparation for the annual event.
Other than awarding ten additional scholarships the night of the event, one other very special moment occurred during the headlining performance by The Great Divide.
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Committee members paid tribute to an area man that lost his life months earlier in an oilfield accident. The Great Divide was his favorite band, and members presented his young daughter with an autographed guitar during the event. A moment that will forever be remembered.
We would like to congratulate Mrs.Thompson and the Hog Roast Committee on yet another successful year. It takes months to prepare for the event, but the work did not end immediately after the event on Saturday night; the following morning, five Shattuck FFA members traveled to Higgins to assist in the cleanup of the event alongside members of the Follett FFA chapter. We are proud of Alex Lopez, Bryan Holt, Sydney Melton, Sadey Schoenhals, and Cindy Lara from Shattuck for taking the time to give back to this amazing organization.
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