Alva Review-Courier -

The 86th Annual Freedom Rodeo and Old Cowhand Reunion presented by the Freedom Chamber of Commerce will be held on Aug. 17, 18 and 19. Grand entry will be at 8 p.m. nightly. Victor (Vic) Keith Burnham has been chosen as this year's Freedom Old Cowhand. He will be honored at a chuck wagon feed held on Saturday at noon on Main Street in Freedom.

Vic has been nominated several times to be the Old Cowhand and each time has turned it down because he felt he just was not old enough. Now that he is 80, he has decided it is time to graciously accept the title.

Victor was born April 28, 1943, to Keith and Nellie (Smith) Burnham, on the family farm northwest of Freedom. He has two younger siblings, Gene and Rose. Vic's family business has been farming, ranching, doing custom combine work, excavation work and conservation. His passion is his land's rich beauty and its conservation and he works hard at preserving the land that he calls home and sharing the rich history that is held within the hills and farms around his home.

Vic attended grade school at Centerview, just north and west of Freedom.

When Vic was nine years old, doctors found a tumor behind his throat. Many doctor appointments and treatments were had in the local area with little hope of removing the tumor. His mother, Nellie, searched until a specialist was found in Kansas City, Kansas. Local schools would have "Penny Drives for Vic" to help with travel expenses. After a few years, treatments began to deplete the family funds and took time away from the farm so Keith and Nellie packed up and they moved to Wichita, Kansas. For five years Vic's dad worked for Boeing because of the medical benefits so they could get Vic back in good health. Vic graduated from Campus High School in Wichita. Shortly thereafter, the family moved back to Freedom, picking right back up with farm life that Vic had missed for so long.

In 1962, Vic decided it was time to join the military. He joined the Army National Guard 45th Infantry Division and was trained as a surveyor. He did not serve in Vietnam and was honorably discharged in 1965.

As a young boy Vic learned to do his chores on the farm with his favorite chores working with animals and farming and his least favorite chore helping to clean the old cistern. He remembers a few cattle drives. Neighbors would get together on weekends to help each other gather, sort and work cattle. These work days always seemed to result in a small rodeo, of course the best part being the food.

At one point the Burnham family held 1,700 acres in Woods County. He has found many artifacts and relics in the hills and is always finding more. His collection now is a sight to see in his "Man Cave" in his home. He has pieced together dinosaur bones and pottery over the years. There are two dig sites, one on former Burnham land called the Olson Exposure and then the Burnham Dig Site. These sites were found while building a pond, unearthing bones of a long-horned bison, mammoth, dire wolf, giant tortoise and several other ancient animals along with prehistoric tools. The sites are featured in te Freedom Museum and the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History in Norman, Oklahoma.

Vic ran heavy equipment for several years building lakes, ponds, dams, terraces, roads and fence lines. Many of the ponds in the this area have Vic's touch on them. During excavation from time to time an unknown burial site would be discovered and Vic did everything possible to return the remains and artifacts back to their rightful tribe.

The Burnham family did custom cutting for many years. In the summer of 1968, while the harvest crew was in Nebraska, Vic first met Eva Wallace. After three dates and three states later, he proposed and they were married in Alberta, Canada. They made their home on the farm in Freedom, buying part of the family land from one of his aunts and an old house down the road. Together they raised three children, Rob, Kelly and Gina, and a niece, Laura. They also provided respite care for foster children for many years. They now have seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren and Vic is nothing short of a proud father, grandfather and great grandfather.

Vic is now retired, having sold the farming/ranching operation to his daughter and son-in-law. Still tinkering when he can, he spends time reminiscing, contemplating and enjoying the world one day at a time. Every afternoon he can usually be found with family and friends having a happy hour drink in the "Man Cave" or at the local saloon.