Cutting horse trainer and NCHA
Members Hall of Fame honoree Jimmy Orrell, 85, Monticello, Ark., passed away on Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Orrell, a friend, helper, and mentor to cutting competitors and newcomers to the sport for nearly six decades, said that the greatest reward for his efforts was the appreciation expressed by so many.

Raised to farming in Dermott, Ark., Orrell was introduced to cutting in 1954, while he was riding and training roping horses for Jack Mehrens. Riding Joe Peg for Mehrens four years later, in 1958, Orrell found himself in a three-way tie for first with Matlock Rose, on Goldwood, and Bill Iller, riding Poco Pine, at the renowned Fort Worth Fat Stock Show and Rodeo.

In the sixties and seventies, Orrell showed his own horse Marbo McCue to prominence in AQHA and NCHA competition, including as Open reserve champion in the 1974 NCHA World Finals, and in 1999, he showed Olena Dually to place sixth in NCHA Open World Championship standings for Robert Charles Brown.

In 2014, Jimmy Orrell won the annual NCHA Zane Schulte Award, given to a trainer who exemplifies the characteristics for which Zane Schulte is remembered, “integrity, service, values, respect of peers, contribution to the industry, and excellence in the arena.”

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 16, at Stephenson-Dearman Chapel with burial to follow in Rash Cemetery. Visitation will be on Friday from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., at the funeral home. Online guestbook at http://www.stephensondearman.com