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National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame to Induct Four

Former First Lady Laura Bush to Receive Gloria Lupton Tennison Pioneer Award

FORT WORTH, Texas, July 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is proud to announce Deborah Copenhaver Fellows, Kay Whittaker Young, Mary Jane Colter and Cornelia "Ninia" Wadsworth Ritchie as inductees to the Hall of Fame for 2009. Laura W. Bush will receive the Gloria Lupton Tennison Pioneer Award. All five women will be honored during the 34th Annual Induction Luncheon Ceremony on October 16, 2009 at the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas.

The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is the only museum in the world dedicated to honoring and celebrating women, past and present, whose lives exemplify the courage, resilience, and independence that helped shape the American West, and fosters an appreciation of the ideals and spirit of self-reliance they inspire. It is the legacy of legends.

The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to preserve the history and highlight the impact of western women living from the mid-1800s to the present: the artists and writers, champions and competitive performers, entertainers, ranchers (stewards of land and livestock), trailblazers and pioneers. Today, there are 190 extraordinary women who have been inducted into the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame since 1975.

The Gloria Lupton Tennison Pioneer Award, established in 1999, is awarded to an individual who has pioneered new approaches to public service in the areas of business, law, sports, the arts or humanitarian causes. This award recognizes the difficulty in creating new avenues of service, while applauding the determination and trailblazing efforts of those who have successfully created programs. Previous award recipients include philanthropist, Nancy Lee Bass; second lady of the United States and author, Lynne Cheney; and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner and diplomat, Anne Armstrong.

The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is open Monday through Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday 11:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., admission is $8 for adults ages 13 and up and $7 for children ages 3 to 12 and senior citizens. Group rates and docent tours are available. For more information please call (817) 336-4475 or (800) 476-FAME, or visit www.cowgirl.net.

For background information on the inductees and award recipient, please visit http://www.cowgirl.net/news.asp.

SOURCE National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame