Rollins named TVE Western Heritage Award recipient

At the Trinity Valley Exposition’s Spring Event, Liberty County native and longtime cattle rancher, Jimmy Rollins was awarded the Western Heritage Award.

The oldest of four siblings, Jimmy Rollins was born in Cleveland TX in 1950 and raised in Plum Grove TX. He is a 1968 graduate of Cleveland High School. As a Junior in High School, Jimmy already knew his future was in agriculture when he bought his first set of cattle. Within just a few years, he already had cattle grazing in five different counties.

After graduation, Rollins continued his role of responsibility, even buying two of his younger sisters their first vehicle, something both have said they would never forget.

He is the father of four children, two boys and two girls. As soon as he decided they were old enough to drive (which may or may not have been legal driving age), they had vehicles rigged out to fix fences and feed cattle. He believed in teaching them to work hard and think ahead. They soon learned (as did his friends) that when Jimmy says, “Hey come go with me and check on some cattle”, that it’s really code word for “Hey come go with me because I need someone to open gates!”

Rollins has a habit of being absorbed in whatever he is doing and giving it his full attention. When Jimmy’s seven grandchildren were young, they learned to the best way to get his attention away from work or watching an old western was to say, “Papa, you have cows out!” It worked every time.

Rollins has always supported the youth in agriculture. He would go to local fairs and get the list of kids that made the sales, with his main goal of finding kids who may not have a buyer. Those are the kids he wanted to help. He has always participated and been proud to be involved with the TVE Partnership. He truly loves supporting the local youth and seeing others find his love of agriculture.

Rollins’ dedication to the cattle and agriculture industry is not just confined to his home area. One summer he and his wife, and a dozen other people went on a vacation to Costa Rica. While there, he asked their driver, “Do they have a cattle auction here?” He then asked several people in the group to go with him to this foreign cattle auction but couldn’t find anyone willing to attend. They explained the language barrier and how hard it would be to bring anything home and although disappointed, he didn’t bring home any Costa Rican cattle from that trip. Rollins’ search for cattle literally knows no boundaries. He just simply loves bovines, the entire cattle market and looks for any way he can support those who are as equally as passionate about it.

In addition to his full-time cattle operation, Jimmy Rollins ran a business for 32 years. Although he has finally retired (Jimmy Rollins style) he spends his time going to auctions and checking on the cattle he partners on with his son. He still looks for ways to support the youth of his community and regularly uses his place and arena to promote community events for worthy causes.

“Jimmy Rollins is a man’s man. He is tough, hardworking, and generous. He is good to the people he loves and tries to help people who are working to help themselves. Like the old western movies he loves, Jimmy is a true western original,” the TVE said in a statement.