One Man’s Wish to Meet Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame Clown Lecile Harris

Courtesy Wish of a Lifetime

David “Slick” McMath is no normal Wish of a Lifetime recipient.

Beginning his sophomore year of high school, McMath hopped on the back of a bull and never looked back. He started off bareback riding, moved to bull riding and eventually went full daredevil and started getting drilled by bulls in the infamous role of the barrel man.

Needless to say, McMath broke many bones in his day, but he always bounced back.

ProRodeo Hall of Fame barrel man Lecile Harris, a four-time PRCA Clown of the Year, was one of McMath’s favorite bullfighters and rodeo clowns. Harris, 81, helped grant the wish of the 80-year-old McMath, who had admired Harris from afar.

“I would say he (Harris) is cut from a different cloth, but I don’t think he was cut from cloth at all,” writes Jeremy Garver, Wish manager at Wish of a Lifetime. “Maybe scrap metal or something of that nature.”

McMath has shown strength and resilience in many aspects, including caring for his wife who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease and being a two-time cancer survivor.

Although he left the rodeo scene behind when he started his family, there was still a fire in McMath that Wish of a Lifetime wanted to reignite. Deborah, McMath’s daughter, reached out to the organization to tell her dad’s story and submit his wish to meet Harris.

Harris had recently written his autobiography, “This Ain’t My First Rodeo.” The book captivated McMath and brought back many memories of his rodeo days.

It’s unusual that a wish to meet a celebrity gets granted, but McMath and Harris shared an old rodeo buddy named Johnny Clark, who helped get WOL connected with Harris.

On April 27, Wish of a Lifetime brought McMath to meet Harris, along with an appearance from Clark, for a day McMath would remember forever.

As the three rodeo clowns swapped stories of their adventures, you couldn’t help but want to grab your own cowboy hat and get on a bull yourself.

To read more about McMath’s day, go to wishofalifetime.org/wish-stories

Courtesy of PRCA