Bluebonnet News is proud to launch the first episode of its new Headlines and Heartlines podcast, a series that goes beyond the news to share the stories, voices, and experiences of the people who shape our community. Kicking off the series is Chance Ward of Tarkington, a cowboy and community figure who gained national recognition during Hurricane Harvey for his daring livestock rescues.
Chance Ward first made national headlines during Hurricane Harvey when he saddled up to rescue stranded livestock from the floodwaters, but his story begins long before that storm. The son of John and Helen Ward of Tarkington, he grew up with a respect for the Trinity River and a passion for the cowboy way of life. His father was a dairy farmer, while his mother came from the Stanfield family, who once operated the historic Stanfield Ferry near where the FM 787 bridge stands today.
“There’s not an inch of that river I don’t know,” Ward said. “My family grew up and down the Trinity.” That knowledge, passed down through generations, has guided him through some of his most daring moments. His grandfather, E.V. “Earl” Stanfield, taught him as a boy how to spot when the river carried a deadly undertow.
“If the water along the banks is heading north and the center of the river is heading south, it’s got an undertow that day,” Ward explained. That lesson once spared his own crew from danger, though tragically, two swimmers drowned near the SH 105 bridge at Moss Hill the same day.
Ward was equally influenced by the land.
“My dad was a farmer and my mother’s brother was a rancher. Believe it or not, there is a difference,” he said.
His uncle, who had no children, became one of his greatest teachers. By the age of 5 or 6, Ward was already obsessed with all things cowboy. At 8, he was helping with chores, and by the time he was 10 or 11, he was working cattle alongside his uncles.
It was also through his uncle that Ward was introduced to stock dogs, a legacy that continues today.
“He handed me my first puppy and it was a stock dog,” Ward said. “Those genetics are still bred on our ranch today.” In 1991, he bred his first cross, beginning a line that still runs through every dog on his place. His East Texas curs — descendants of the Hutto, Hart, and Woodruff bloodlines — work cattle, hunt feral swine, track lost livestock, and even assist in finding missing children.
He and his wife, Trisha, now own Last Chance Feed Store in Cleveland, where they continue to serve the agricultural community. Supporting the next generation of ranchers and farmers is one of Ward’s strongest passions.
“I believe wholeheartedly that food and educating children in agriculture overrides any other education in this world,” he said. “People need to know how to grow and raise their own food in order to survive.”
Despite the national recognition and adventures, Ward remains a man who values old-fashioned ways. His life — shaped by the Trinity River, his cowboy heritage, his love for family, and his dedication to his dogs — is still lived by a handshake and a promise.
To hear more about Ward’s passion for agriculture, his misadventures with wayward animals — including a couple of unforgettable llamas –and the adventures that made him a familiar name far beyond Liberty County, click the following link to the Bluebonnet News Headlines and Heartlines podcast. To listen on Spotify, follow this link: Click here.
The podcast can also be heard next Tuesday and Friday, Sept. 5 and 8, on KILE Radio, 94.9 FM. To listen to the radio broadcast online, go to www.kilefm.com. The shows start at 10 a.m. on the radio.
The following week’s podcast will feature Tarkington Volunteer Fire Chief Paul Gregory and TVFD Public Information Officer/Firefighter Clayton Eutsler, who discuss their upcoming fundraiser.
What a joke