John Paul Ballweg

OLATHE, KAN. -- John Paul Ballweg, 93, passed away Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2016, in Overland Park, Kan.
Memorials: Memorial contributions may be sent to Mansfield Historical Society, 102 North Main St., Mansfield, Texas, 76063.
John was born Jan. 26, 1923, in Mansfield to Cora Elsie Rawdon and John George Ballweg. He graduated from Mansfield High School and served in the U S Air Force. John married Daisy Gordon Bett on Aug. 16, 1945, in St. Andrews, Scotland. They moved to Mission, Kan., in 1954. He had been a self-employed horse trainer for 80-plus years. John was a lifelong member of the American Quarter Horse Association, the National Cutting Horse Association, and the American Paint Horse Association. John judged horse shows all over the U.S., Canada and Europe well into his 80s. He joined the Saddle and Sirloin Club of Kansas City, Mo., in more recent years. He was highly respected by his clients and his peers at The Club and he was riding four to six horses every day! A celebration of life will be scheduled at The Club at a later date.
John was a legendary horseman, having trained and ridden some of the finest American Quarter horses in the U.S. He came to the Kansas City area to train for the late Robert "Bob" Q. Sutherland in 1954. John and Daisy showed Bob's horses nationwide to many AQHA Championships. Some of the greats were, Shortcut, Pretty Pam, Barbara Star, and AQHA Champions, Custus Belle, Capital Gain and Net Profit, plus APHA Champion, Adios Amigos. John often said he made champions when you showed a horse all day: halter classes in the morning, performance classes during the day, and the cattle classes at the end of the day.
In the mid-1960s, John and his late wife, Daisy, opened their own horse training operation. He continued to train and show more national champions in all breeds "on his own terms." A horseman, second to none, John was recognized for his integrity, work ethic, skilled hands, and ability to read each horse and rider to make them "better" in his quiet but confident manner. Needless to say, John had many dear friends in Kansas City and around the world.
John said he ". . . was blessed to have been a first-hand witness to many of the top hands and their horses - either competing against them or judging them . . . I (John) may be old school to some of the younger crowd, but I'm still hard at it. I'm still teaching and I'm still learning. And that's how I like it." (AQHA Journal, Jan 2012 - article by Frank Holmes). The great news is that he was still doing his job at age 93 on August 1st. He was riding a horse at the Club and said, "I just got bucked off, but I landed on my feet!" That's his story and the cowboy way. His figure on horseback will be dearly missed.
John was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Daisy, in 2004; and three sisters, Helen Margaret Linville, Martha Ann Linville, Elsie Ruth Foster.
Survivors: John is survived by nieces; nephews; and longtime family friend and caregiver, Vinita Canright.