Each year when the Oakdale Saddle Club begins planning the rodeo, we are given the difficult task of choosing a Parade Grand Marshal. There are so many instrumental people in our community it is a very hard task. In 2020, we enlisted the help of the community by asking for nominations for our parade Grand Marshal. We chose to use one of those nominations, but when we cancelled in 2020, we were unable to honor the person that was chosen. In 2021, we were so uncertain about when we would have a rodeo, we were unable to honor that person again. But in 2022, the Oakdale Saddle Club is proud to announce Steve Medlen as our 70th Annual Oakdale Rodeo Parade Grand Marshal.

Steve Medlen was raised in Oakdale. He attended Oakdale Schools and graduated from OHS. Steve has always had a love for the Western way of life. He remembered getting ready to watch the rodeo as a child. He was also a good friend of Three-Time World Champion Cowboy, Harley May. He met him in the eighth grade when Harley purchased Steve’s parents’ home and remained friends with him for many years.

The Medlen family first came to Oakdale in 1952, when Steve’s uncle began working as a butcher in the local Piggs Market. The rest of his family eventually followed. Steve would later become a butcher himself, making him the third generation to work in the art of meat processing. Steve opened the House of Beef in 1979, at that time he was one of seven meat lockers in town. It started out as a meat locker and has grown to what it is today. The House of Beef has grown to a custom processing plant for livestock and wild game, a retail meat counter, a restaurant and a catering business. He now owns the lone meat locker in town.

Besides Steve being a great businessman, he has a big heart for Oakdale and its western heritage. He has been a part of the Chamber of Commerce and helps with Oakdale Rotary’s Testicle Festival, the Cowboy Museum’s Cowgirl Luncheon and Member’s Banquet and many other Ag related events. Steve also holds a monthly Merchant Meeting for Oakdale Businesses at his restaurant. He has been actively involved in the improvements to the downtown area. These improvements will be great for Oakdale’s economy helping to provide a destination for not only our community members to enjoy but also tourists. This is essential for the improvement of Oakdale overall.

The Oakdale Saddle Club is proud to honor Steve Medlen as our 2022 Oakdale Parade Grand Marshal for his commitment to our town and our western way of life.

This article was provided courtesy of the Oakdale Saddle Club.