Just minutes after a moment of silence in tribute to her father, Cierra Watson led the first Charolais calf into the show ring.
Canadian Western Agribition was marked by Charlie Watson’s death on the grounds the night before the show opened, but everyone agreed he would have wanted the event to go on.
“The world couldn’t revolve for Charlie Watson without going to Agribition,” said long-time friend Wayne Burgess. “This is where it’s at.
“The proudest moment of his life was last year when he bred and owned the grand champion bull.”
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Regina police continue to investigate Watson’s death. The well-known 52-year-old cattle breeder and businessperson from Mount Forest, Ont., was rushed to hospital after he was found injured between a barn and the Agribition building around 11:45 p.m. Nov. 19. He died from massive internal injuries consistent with being crushed by a heavy object, police said.
They are trying to locate witnesses or anyone who was driving or operating heavy equipment in the area that night. On Nov. 27, a spokesperson would say only that the investigation remains active.
For Watson’s family and friends, the uncertainty about his death is difficult. Rumours swirled throughout the barns about what might have happened and how.
“I still wake up at night and the first thing I’m thinking of is how he got killed and the shock,” said Neil Gillies, general manager of the Canadian Charolais Association.
“We hope it was an accident and at some time guilt will bring (someone) forth,” added Burgess, Watson’s friend for 32 years.
Like many others, he last saw Watson at Farmfair in Edmonton where the two competed in the show ring. They enjoyed trying to beat each other and this time Burgess came out on top.
“We had a great time,” he recalled. “We were pretty close to brothers.”
Watson became the seventh generation to operate the family cattle operation when he began managing it in 1974. He was also involved in real estate and automobile dealerships, and he expanded the purebred Charolais business to also include Angus and Limousin.
In the Charolais barn last week, exhibitors pinned black ribbons to their shirts and jackets in Watson’s honour.
Agribition president Herb McLane said Watson was his friend.
“He was a colourful individual, a good breeder, knowledgeable, an excellent marketer,” he said in an interview. “He loved good cattle.”
Burgess said Watson was also generous.
“A lot of people did not realize the size of his heart,” he said. “He did have a fairly big soft spot for energetic, wanna-win young people. He would buy a half-interest in heifers just so kids could show them.”
In addition to Cierra,Watson is survived by a son, Charles, his father, sister, stepmother and two stepbrothers.
The funeral was planned for Nov. 29 in Mount Forest.
