story by Ruth Nicolaus
Sean Miller is nearing the end of his high school rodeo career. The eighteen-year-old cowboy, a member of the Nebraska High School Rodeo Association, competes in the tie-down and team roping.
For the tie-down, he rides an eighteen-year-old sorrel named Amigo who was purchased two years ago. For the team roping (he heads for his cousin Chase Miller), he rides a 22-year-old gray gelding named Cash. Both of his horses “like to do their jobs,” he said, and both are “really easy to get along with.” He got Cash when he was six years old, but Amigo is his favorite, and the one he chooses to ride when it’s time to doctor calves or round up cattle.
A resident of Callaway, Nebraska, Sean is a senior at Broken Bow High School. He loves his political behavior class, where students learn how the government works. They’ll often debate current events and controversial issues. His least favorite class is Spanish 3.
Sean’s favorite teacher was his biology and advanced biology teacher, Mr. Altig, who made it fun to learn.
He is a member of the Broken Bow High School football and basketball teams. The basketball team did very well this year, finishing in fourth place in the state tournament. He plays forward and center.
For fun, he likes to hunt muley deer, Canada geese and snow geese. The family turns the goose meat into jerky and the deer into jerky and meat sticks.
On a typical Friday night, Sean can be found cruising the streets of Broken Bow (population 3,539) or Kearney (60 miles south, population 33,520). He enjoys going to the movies or, if he and his friends are in Kearney, going to the mall and eating at Buffalo Wild Wings.
The most fun he’s had on a trip is the time he and his family went to Des Moines for the National Junior High School Finals Rodeo, where he competed. He loved being with his friends.
The last three summers, Sean has worked for Milleson Hay Co., running a rake and mower, cutting prairie hay and baling it in big round bales. This summer, he hopes to work for an electrician in Broken Bow.
After high school graduation, he will attend Mid-Plains Community College in McCook on a rodeo scholarship and compete in both of his events. He’ll get an associate’s degree in business administration, then he hopes to transfer to a school where he can learn to be an electrician.
Sean has competed at the Nebraska High School Finals Rodeo his freshman, sophomore and junior years, and he’s poised to be at his fourth this June. Last summer, he competed in the tie-down at some Mid-States Rodeos.
The best meal his mom makes is chicken tacos, with mild salsa on top. He loves Butterfingers and Mountain Dew, and his favorite dessert is strawberry cheesecake. His preferred fruit and vegetable are strawberries and corn, and if he had the choice of any food at a buffet, the first thing he’d head for is the pepperoni pizza. Sean has two younger brothers: Matt, who is fourteen, and Zach, who is twelve He is the son of Brad and Stephanie Miller.
