The newly named Citizen of the West is an equine enthusiast, entrepreneur and philanthropic leader.
DENVER — The National Western Stock Show announced Sharon Magness Blake as the 2025 Citizen of the West on Monday.
Selected by a committee of community leaders, the annual award recognizes those who embody Western pioneers’ spirit and determination and perpetuate their agricultural heritage and ideals.
Magness Blake is an equine enthusiast, entrepreneur and philanthropic leader. She is a trustee for the National Western Stock Show and serves on the Honoring the Legacy Capital Campaign Committee.
Magness Blake’s love and knowledge of Arabian horses helped grow Magness Racing Ventures to 900 animals sold worldwide at its peak. Its most famous product was Thunder, who has served as the Denver Broncos mascot since 1993. The Broncos’ live mascot tradition continues today with Thunder IV.
Magness Blake is the president of The Thunder Foundation and her business ventures include a partnership in the Denver caterer the Epicurean Group.
She served on the boards of the University of Colorado Hospital Foundation, the Garth Brooks Teammates for Kids Foundation, Volunteers of America, the Denver Art Museum, the University of Denver, the National Cable Television Center and Museum, Wings Over the Rockies, and the Denver Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
The widow of cable pioneer Bob Magness, Magness Blake has been married to retired attorney and former Breckenridge mayor Ernie Blake since 2004, residing in Cherry Hills Village.
Magness Blake will be honored as the 46th Citizen of the West during the annual award dinner on Monday, Jan. 13.
Each year, proceeds from the Citizens of the West event support 100 scholarships in the National Western Scholarship Trust, which are awarded to students who attend colleges and universities in Colorado and Wyoming and major in agricultural science, rural medicine or veterinary medicine.
To purchase tickets for the Citizen of the West event, contact Erika Schroeder at 303-299-5560 or eschroeder@nationalwestern.com.
The 119th annual National Western Stock Show and Rodeo opens Saturday, Jan. 11, and continues through Sunday, Jan. 26.
A Colorado tradition since 1906, the part-rodeo, part-livestock show and part-fair brings hundreds of thousands of people to the National Western Complex each year for a celebration of our state’s agricultural heritage.
The National Western Stock Show will host 29 rodeo performances, including Colorado vs. the World rodeos, Mexican Rodeo Extravaganza, PBR Bull Riding and MLK Jr. African-American Heritage Rodeo. There is also a full schedule of horse shows, starting with the RAM Freestyle Reining show and family events, including the Xtreme Dog shows and Wild West shows.
The National Western has one of the world’s richest regular-season professional rodeos, one of the country’s largest horse shows and Colorado’s largest agricultural trade show. The Stock Show welcomes attendees from 48 states and 32 countries and will drive an estimated $120 million in economic impact to the Denver area, organizers said.
Hosting over 25 breeds of cattle, bison, yaks, and longhorns, the Cille and Ron Williams Yards and the HW Hutchison Family Stockyards Event Center are the epicenter for the 2025 Super Bowl of livestock shows.
Tickets to the National Western Stock Show and a full schedule of events can be found at NationalWestern.com.
9NEWS is a corporate partner of the National Western Stock Show.
National Western Stock Show and Rodeo
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