Having lived all my life on the farm homesteaded by my great-grandfather,
     Frank McRaynolds, in Cedar Township, four miles south of Sharon, I have
     grown accustomed to the hot summer winds, the red dirt, the sun-burned
     skin and freckles, and thehowling blizzards, digging through snow drifts
     to rescue half-frozen baby calves, breaking the ice so the animals can get
     a drink, hauling freshly baled alfalfa hay, cutting wheat and getting the
     chaff down your back, plowing the ground, and sowing the crops again, all
     of which are a part of farm life here in Barber County.
       I was born June 21, 1955, at Anthony, Kansas, the third child of Harvey
     and Wilda Mathews. I attended grade school at Hazelton and Kiowa. During
     the summer, I played baseball, took swimming and music lessons, and was 
     busy with my 4-H projects. I remember camp-outs in the Cedar Hills with
     classmates and friends, playing cowboys and indians, and riding the pony
     or bicycle to neighbors to play.
       At Kiowa High School, I was active in football, basketball, track, music,
     and FFA. I attended Basketball Camp at KU at Lawrence during the summer.
     I was awarded the State Farmer Degree in FFA when I was a senior. After
     graduation, I attended Pratt Community College for one year where I
     participated in football, basketball, and band. I transferred to Kansas
     State University in Manhattan where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science
     Degree in Animal Science and Industry. I joined Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity
     and lived at the Fraternity house for three years. I participated in intramural
     sports on the ATO team.
       As we raised registered Quarter Horses, some of my fondest memories are
     of Ole' Punk, Midnight, Red, Duke, Top Kicker, Leo, and Li'l River Queen.
     I was selected as a member of the Kansas Junior Quarter Horse team to
     participate in the All-American Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus, Ohio,
     where I placed third in reining with Li'L River Queen. I also attended the
     National Junior Quarter Horse Show in Tulsa, where our team was in the top
     ten in the nation. I have travelled many miles throughout the United States
     showing our horses and winning many trophies and ribbons. I enjoy working
     with and training our horses as each one present a challenge.  
                
     Source:Chosen Land - Barber County, Kansas, pg. 320
     Submitted by: Wilda Mathews