story by Michele Toberer
Arkansas Cowboy Association member, Haven Wise has just finished her senior year at Arkansas State University, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. Although she has enjoyed her time at ASU, as well as her internship at Greene Valley Tech, she is excited to start her new career, and ideally would like to secure a 4th grade teaching position right away. She wants to start a fresh new school year, on the other side of the teacher’s desk.
Haven has lived in Arkansas since she was 5-years-old, when her dad’s job took the family from Missouri to Jonesboro. Once in Arkansas, Haven’s love of horses emerged as she was influenced by her uncles in two different arenas of the horse world. Haven’s Uncle Greg Schaaf, who is a team roper, would put her on his team roping horses, letting her ride them around the roping pen between runs. Her Uncle Winred Saffell was involved in smaller horse shows around Jonesboro, and at 6-years old, she started entering barrel racing and speed events at local playdays. Her family didn’t have much of a horse background, and were more involved in sports, questioning Haven’s desire to jump into the horse world at first. “We all kind of learned together, and now every rodeo we go to, you can see my dad, Reg Saffell, right there.”
The Saffell family has a long-standing presence in Arkansas, with a background in cattle and farming. Haven has fond memories of spending weekends at her grandparent’s house, located in small-town, Saffell, Arkansas, with family, and family land, surrounding them. When Haven was a young teen, her friend Cayla Cory introduced her to the rodeo world, and her rodeo love affair began. “I fell in love with rodeo after the first one I went to. It is so much fun when you can compete and make some money when you win. I just love the atmosphere, it just gives you so much hype when you go out there.” Haven began going to the Wednesday night, Ash Flat rodeos held each week from May until August, at the Hall Rodeo Arena in Ash Flat, Arkansas. When she turned 18, she bought her IPRA and WPRA member cards, in addition to her ACA card, and ran barrels in all of them.
Another love affair that came along with rodeo, was with her husband Garrett Wise, whom she met at the Ash Flat rodeos, and after dating for a couple of years, they were engaged and then married three years later, in October, 2017. Garrett is a bullfighter that is also on the ACA Board of Directors, serving as the labor director. He works with Hall Rodeo Company putting on rodeos, when not working as the assistant manager for a seed and chemical company, MFA Chemical.
Haven competes in barrel racing on Fame, a 13-year-old sorrel mare that she’s owned for 7 years. “She has so much personality, when she walks in the barn you can tell her mood when you look at her. At rodeos, she is very consistent, and I know she’s going to give me the same run every time.” Four years ago, Haven purchased Fame’s full sister from Gay Self in Missouri; a 9-year-old palomino named Keeper. “Keeper has good and bad days, you either like her or you don’t, my dad and husband don’t. I have fallen in love with her though, and I am hopeful to get her going in her rodeo career this next season, hopefully starting her in some IPRA rodeos.”
Haven enjoys being an ACA member and looks forward to a future filled with rodeo. “It’s so important to have a strong mental game when you rodeo, and to have family and friends that lift you up and encourage you, Garrett really helps me, bringing me up when I’m down, and is always positive. The ACA is awesome because it’s such a competitive group of girls, top to bottom in the standings, any girl could win on any given night. Lord willing, I’ll still be going well into my 80’s.”
