There's more to Rex Phebus than the rodeo

He's spent more than 50 years on the Clovis Rodeo Association’s board, but that just scratches the surface of his city involvement

By Ian Holmes / Special to The Independent Friday, Mar. 28, 2008

He arrives at the Clovis Rodeo Grounds faithfully at 8 each morning, working until 3 each afternoon.

He holds the distinction of serving on the board of directors of the Clovis Rodeo Association for over 50 years, acting as president for five years from 1974 to 1978.

Standing by an electric cart with the words Clovis Rodeo Association on the side, 86-year-old Rex Phebus downplayed his accomplishments and service to the organization.

"Every day I come down and do little jobs here and there," the modest Phebus said.

While Phebus may minimize his volunteer efforts, Stan King, who has served on the board of directors with Phebus for over 30 years, described him as the "mainstay" of the association.

"He's kind of the go-to guy we've used for years around the Rodeo Association, especially since his retirement," King said. "He's here all the time and he kind of oversees the daily operations, making sure those nuts-and-bolts kinds of things are taken care of. He has been very efficient at doing that."

King, a former city councilman and mayor who has known Phebus for over 45 years, said Phebus received an award from the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association in 1993. In a surprise ceremony at the Clovis Rodeo that year, Lewis Cryer, the commissioner of the PRCA at the time, presented Phebus with a plaque when he reached the milestone of 40 years of service on the Rodeo Association board.

Phebus, a Clovis native, graduated from Clovis High School in 1938, the same year he joined the Clovis Rodeo Association.

"My dad was a member, that's how I got involved," Phebus said.

From running errands and helping his father, George Phebus, with the Clovis Rodeo, to making the Clovis Rodeo a nationally televised event during his term as president, Phebus's devotion to the organization is only one of his contributions to the city of Clovis.

"For many, many years, he was known as Mr. Clovis affectionately by most everybody that knew him or talked to him," King said.

His community service was interrupted briefly in 1942, when Phebus left Clovis to serve in the armed forces during World War II in the China, Burma and India Theater.

"I was in Iran in the Persian Gulf Command and we went from there to Calcutta, India," Phebus said. "We were a medical team attached to transportation, pushing the supplies up."

Upon his return from the war in 1945, Phebus opened a gas station at Seventh and Clovis avenues near the Rodeo Grounds. Married in 1950, he and his wife Eleanor had three children, Tom, Jerry and Kelly.

His commitment to the community and youth of Clovis continued after the war. Phebus, a winner of the 1938 Sassano Blanket Award for outstanding senior athlete in baseball at Clovis High, used his athletic experience to help form the Clovis Boy's League in 1952.

In 1954 he became district manager of the Clovis Memorial District, a position he held for 30 years.

Created in June of 1946 to honor Clovis veterans, the Memorial District comprises almost the same area as Clovis Unified School District. The Memorial Building, constructed in 1951, serves as the center for social activities for Clovis families and community groups.

"Different organizations would have dinners and have dances," Phebus said. "We'd have the gym open over there weekdays, weeknights, have it open in the evening until 10 o'clock."

Besides running the facilities at the Memorial Building, as district manager Phebus coordinated recreational joint venture projects with Clovis Unified School District.

"We opened playgrounds in all the schools of the Clovis Unified School District for after-school activities," Phebus said.

King, who succeeded Phebus as district manager when he retired, said Phebus was instrumental in creating recreational activities for the children of Clovis.

"When no recreation was being provided by the city of Clovis, he had very active and effective programs, including a swimming program," King said. "In fact, there are second and third generation kids around town that participated in programs that he initiated."

When Phebus retired in 1984, the Memorial Building was renamed the Rex Phebus Veterans Memorial Building in honor of his dedication to the Memorial District and his contributions to the city of Clovis.

"It was nice of them I thought," Phebus said in his characteristically humble manner. "I'm not much into that, but it was very thoughtful of them." King, who was district manager at the time of the name change, said it was the right thing to do.

"It was a fine tribute to a fine person," King said.

Phebus, who holds the distinction as the first Clovis Citizen of the Year, an honor he won in 1975, said he enjoys the Clovis community. "There are lots of good people," Phebus said fondly.

Friendly Faces is an occasional series about people in Clovis who make it a great place to live. To nominate someone to be profiled in this series, please e-mail Patti J. Lippert at plippert@clovisindependent.com.