I am Morgan Davis, Founder of Maverick Kookers. My relationship with The Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo began in the late 1960s when I became a Lifetime Member.
I was Vice-Chairman of the At Large Committee for Johnny Doyle, John Ashcraft, David Pagel and Guy Christian for approximately 10 years.
During this time, I was also a Committeeman on the Ag Mechanic Committee and the Committeeman’s Appreciation Barbecue Dinner.
I was the first person to buy a sky box in support of the HLSR, which happened to be the Chevron sky box located over the Chutes. For 3 years I sponsored the Calf Scramble when Jack Dietz was Chairman, at which time I also made several purchases through the HLSR of chickens, hogs and steers from Committeeman Don Parks.
Chairman Jack Dietz sent me to Kerrville when Ace Reid, the Nationally Syndicated Cartoonist and Creator of “Cowpokes”, had declined to draw four cartoons for the HLSR Calf Scramble office. I gladly went to Kerrville, my hometown and also the city were Ace Reid resided at the time, and was able to acquire not only four, but six cartoons for the Calf Scramble.
In 1974, James Lockhart and Constable Bill Bailey insisted that I join the Cookoff for the HLSR so I gladly said yes. In the beginning, we tried several unofficial names like Kountry Kikker Kookers and Cow Daddy’s. It was finally decided that we settle on the name “Maverick Kookers” in 1980.
Some original Mavericks in 1986. Times sure have changed!
Many years have passed and the Maverick Kookers have remained at the forefront of this nationally recognized event.
Our team has appeared during Channel 2 News broadcasts to promote the Annual World’s Championship Barbecue Contest, under direction of Channel 2 Advertising Director Sarah Greer. Maverick Kookers explained the Barbecue competition and what goes into competing for the title of Grand Champion on live television.
The Mavericks are active members of the Houston community as we continue to sponsor various benefits. Our most recent involvement was for Ashlynn Dunn. Ashlynn suffers from Optic Nerve Atrophy as a result of Shaken Baby Syndrome. We sponsored two benefits to help Ashlynn in her journey to China where they are performing stem cell transplants from the cord blood of healthy babies for children such as Ashlynn. We were thankful for a successful benefit and excited that Ashlynn was able to make her trip with the support of The Mavericks. You can read more about Ashlynn’s story at www.vision4ashlynn.com
We’re proud of how far we have come and excited about where we are going.
As we gear up for the 2024 Cook-off, we celebrate our 50th year and look forward to meeting new friends!
Recent Comments