August 23, 1949
Stephen (Steve) Crouse was born in Alliance, NE on August 23, 1949 to Patrick and Mary Course. Steve routinely jokes that he was a product of the Blizzard of ’49. Steve joined his two older siblings, a brother, Doug and sister, Sandy, who grew up together in a sod house in the choppy Nebraska Sandhills west of Alliance. Steve was destined to be a cowboy, living his life on the ranch from day one.
Steve graduated from Alliance High School in 1967 and enrolled in McCook College on a football scholarship. Steve transferred to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he was a member of the UNL Rodeo Team until transferring to Casper where he finished his college career, after which he returned to the ranch in Alliance. In July 1970, Steve was drafted into the United States Army. After basic training in Fort Lewis and Advanced Individual Training as a medic in Fort Sam Houston, he was stationed in Erlangen, Germany for thirteen months.
While in Germany, Steve was instrumental in putting on Army-sponsored rodeos, working with Alan Jacob, who formed the European Rodeo Association. Steve and fellow GI’s traveled to many cities across Germany, where they coordinated, promoted and competed in rodeos with the goal of introducing western culture to Europeans and supporting the Army Morale Fund. Steve was ultimately crowned the 1971 European Rodeo Association Champion Steer Wrestler. If you can get Steve to talk about that time in his life, mostly what he will tell you is that he still wishes he could have found a way to ship the little gray bulldogging horse he rode back to Nebraska.
Steve was Honorably Discharged from the Army in 1972 with the rank of Specialist E-5, but not before receiving a National Defense Service Medal as an M16 Sharpshooter. He returned to the family ranch in Alliance, where he worked closely with his brother and continued to rodeo. In 1976, he met Paula Dodge (circumstance of their meeting intentionally omitted…) who he married on February 24, 1977.
Steve and Paula welcomed their first child, Jarrod, in September 1978. Fortunately, someone was able to reach Steve on a CB radio to let him know that it was time to leave the rodeo and head to the hospital, where Paula had requested his attendance. They welcomed a daughter, Crystal in May 1981, who was courteous enough to not interfere with any rodeos. In 1984, Steve and Paula traded their ranch in Alliance for another southwest of Valentine, where the operated until 1989, when they traded for their current ranch, the “Walking C Ranch’ north of Springview, Nebraska.
Steve believed strongly that success in the business of ranching required diversification and a wife with a good job. Steve had both. In addition to developing and raising a cow-calf herd built around Charolais-cross calves, Steve dedicated half of his grazing capacity to taking in cattle for other producers, while Paula spent a career in the state judicial system. In the early 1990’s, Steve had the opportunity to return to competition, team roping with family and friends in the local roping club, area jackpots and regional USTRC events, where he was known to say that roping with his kid was simultaneously the most fun and most stressful thing he ever did in competition. Steve won numerous saddles and buckles, as well as the #7 roping at the 1997 USTRC Nebraska Championship; however, he would say one of his greatest team roping wins came with partner Lee Whitlock at the Triangle Ranch in 1974, against several NFR qualifiers and Hall of Famers, including Dick and JD Yates and Jerry Buckles.
Steve and Paula retired from the active operation of their ranch in 2015 and leased it to a young neighboring family. Part of the transition involved maintaining the Crouse cow herd, which their son Jarrod and wife Janelle continue to operate today.
Steve’s greatest days have always been on the back of a good horse, in the middle of a cow herd, with a loyal dog by his side. Steve would not consider himself a teacher, but he has taught lessons that will last generations. Lessons like understanding that true cowboys are measured by how they treat people and the animals in their care, as well as the decisions they make when no one is watching. Steve loves kids and has introduced countless young girls and boys to horses, cattle and western life and finally welcomed his first grandchild, Liam Crouse in April 2021. God willing Liam will grow up to be half the cowboy his grandpa is.