Cross Country Farms
A Tribute to Max Lawson
12-28-1935 to 9-6-2011
God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagles’ flight,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it "Dad"
 | ||||||
| ||||
Tonight the AMHR/ASPC is honoring a great man- Mr. Max Lawson. Max was a very generous and loving father. He was of Baptist faith and self-employed working with heavy equipment for most of his life supporting his little horse habit.
Max started in the ponies in 1952 and quickly made a name for himself with his uncanny way of negotiating a good deal. He began breeding the miniature horses in the late 70s and with his daughter Belinda Bagby- entered the show ring competing at the top level. In the early 1980s at the Julep Cup Show Max came in and purchased some horses there at the show. One was a black pinto driving stallion- Jim Dandy- nicknamed the Slug. He told Belinda to get in and drive in her big fancy lacey dress and floppy church hat- the Slug took her for a ride and Max just smiled from ear to ear. Max was very proud of his daughter and their Cross Country horses.
One of the most well known horses that Max purchased was Lazy N Redboy. When people asked Max if he was the man that owned the farm, he would say “No- see that horse over there?- He does”- referring to Redboy. There was once a time that Redboy’s fate and the Cross Country Farm may not have been what it is today. Belinda remembers when Mr. Bob Erwin of NFC Farms approached Max to purchase Redboy. “Bob made Dad an offer that he was really getting itchy about accepting. I told Dad, Well, if you do that, then tell Bob to send the biggest trailer he has and just load Redboy and all his mares because you just sold your whole program!” Needless to say Max thought about it and Redboy remained the permanent fixture. Max was instrumental in getting the B division started in the AMHR and promoting the Cross Country ponies and minis throughout the country raising several National Champions.
Max loved to be on the farm, doing whatever he could on his bulldozer- even when Belinda didn’t want him to. Max enjoyed dancing and hanging out with the bikers in Hot Springs even up until just a few short weeks ago that was what was on his mind. Max is survived by his 2 daughters- Lorrie Hard and Belinda Bagby, 5 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren along with his brother Richard Lawson. Lorrie considers herself so lucky to have had a dad that was so caring and loving and a best friend.
And so we honor Max Lawson tonight with a memorial trophy in his name to the recipient of the 2011 AMHR National Grand Champion Mare Award.
The Award is presented by his daughters Belinda and Lorrie, his grandson William Bagby and great grandson- Matthew Bagby.
This Trophy will be given every year to the AMHR National Grand Champion under mare in Memory of Max Lawson .. Each owner will have their mares name engraved with theirs on the gold plates . Dad always thought the mares were 80% of the breeding program so this trophy just honors what he believed in .
*
We deeply appreciate all the
Love and Support we have recieved
during this time in our lives. We will
all miss Max and his passing will
impact all our lives!
