The University of Lethbridge’s Dhillon School of Business will be honouring Ralph A. Thrall III and the McIntyre Ranch at its 32nd annual Scholarship Dinner. The dinner will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday, April 12, 2019 at the Coast Hotel and Conference Centre.
Each year, an outstanding member of the southern Alberta community is chosen to be honoured by the Dhillon School of Business and its advisory board for their leadership, achievements and commitment to the communities they serve.
Thrall is the current president, CEO and COO of McIntyre Ranch, a 55,680-acre beef cattle ranch located in the Milk River Ridge area, around 40 km east of Cardston. The ranch was originally established in 1894 by William H. McIntyre and Thrall is part of the third generation of Thralls and the fifth generation of ranchers who have sustained a successful beef cattle business there while remaining committed to the sustainability of the land. Because of the legacy of the McIntyre and Thrall’s commitment to preserving the native rough fescue on the ranch, the land has become a relatively unique habitat.
“Stewardship is perhaps the greatest legacy that my family has maintained from what the McIntyres had established and preserved themselves,” says Thrall. “My father and I believed that the McIntyres were some of the pioneer conservationists or environmentalists from a broad ecological management perspective.”
Thrall and his family have also worked to keep the ranch innovative as well as make a positive difference in the community both socially and environmentally.
Dhillon School of Business Dean Dr. Kerry Godfrey says that honouring Thrall is true to the core values of the Dhillon School of Business.
“We’re a school that encourages our students to think about how their actions and activities affect those around them, both near and far. The commitment to land stewardship that the original McIntyres established and Mr. Thrall continues to honour has created a business where success is not only measured by today’s performance, but also by how sustainable the business is for future generations.”
In the past 31 years of the Scholarship Dinner, more than $1.5 million has been raised in support of student scholarships. Friday’s event will celebrate Thrall and the McIntyre Ranch legacy as well as raise further funds for student scholarships.
Tickets can be purchased at go.uleth.ca/dhillonscholarshipdinner2019.