Riding for Our Lives: How the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo Is Expanding Its Legacy of Community Care Through a New Partnership With Guardant Health
By Milton Kirby | Memphis, TN | May 1, 2026
For forty‑two years, the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR) has been more than a showcase of Black cowboy excellence. It has been a cultural institution, a traveling classroom, a family reunion, and a lifeline — a place where heritage is preserved, children are affirmed, and communities gather to celebrate themselves. Long before “community engagement” became a corporate buzzword, BPIR was already doing the work: educating youth, supporting families, creating safe spaces, and showing up in cities where resources were thin but hope was abundant.
That legacy continues today through the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo Foundation (BPIRF), whose mission is rooted in value‑driven philanthropy and whose vision is clear: preserving heritage, empowering communities, and inspiring generations. Since 1987, the Foundation has delivered health and wellness programs, STEM initiatives, scholarships, senior support, emotional‑intelligence workshops, and anti‑violence education across the country. Its values, generosity, compassion, empathy, equity, inclusion — are not slogans. They are the operating system.
So, when BPIR announced a new partnership with Guardant Health, a trusted leader in blood-based cancer tests for more than a decade, as part of its “Riding Across America for Community Health” initiative, it wasn’t a pivot. It was a continuation.
It was BPIR doing what BPIR has always done: meeting the community where it is and bringing life‑saving information directly to the people who need it most.
The Heartbeat of the Mission: Rodeo for Kidz Sake
If you want to understand BPIR’s soul, you start with the children.
The Rodeo for Kidz Sake (RFKS) program is one of the most powerful expressions of BPIR’s values, an immersive, educational, joy‑filled introduction to Black cowboys and cowgirls, Western history, and the “cowboy mystique” that shapes childhood imagination. For many inner‑city students, RFKS is their first time seeing a horse up close, touching an animal, or witnessing Black excellence in a space they never knew belonged to them.
On Friday, April 10, nearly 4,000 students filled the AgriCenter Showplace Arena in Memphis. They laughed, learned, asked questions, and saw themselves reflected in a history that has too often been erased. RFKS events now take place in Denver, Memphis, and Washington, D.C./Maryland and for many children, the experience is life‑changing.
Margo Wade‑LaDrew, National Development / Sponsorship Director told me this as cowboys and cowgirls streamed past us, moving through the lines to enter the arena for Saturday night’s show a reminder that BPIR’s commitment to community isn’t theoretical. It lives in the dust, the boots, the laughter, and the anticipation of families gathering for a night of culture and competition.
“The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo is committed to empowering and uplifting communities across the country through dynamic outreach initiatives. We focus on promoting health, education, emotional intelligence, life skills, career development, anti‑bullying, and anti‑violence awareness,” she said. “This new partnership with Guardant Health is in total alignment with that legacy.”
RFKS is the heartbeat of that commitment — a reminder that BPIR’s work is not just about preserving the past, but preparing the next generation to thrive.
A Longstanding Commitment to Health and Healing
BPIRF’s health outreach didn’t begin with Guardant Health.
For years, the Foundation has delivered timely education on:
- COVID‑19 and flu vaccination
- Domestic and community violence prevention
- Anti‑bullying and emotional intelligence
- Mental health and suicide prevention
- Breast cancer, prostate health, diabetes, and high blood pressure
Through partnerships with Anti‑Violence Ventures and the Black Beauty & Wellness Foundation, BPIRF has created safe spaces for emotional expression, healing, and empowerment — reaching both men and women with culturally grounded resources.
This is the context that makes the Guardant partnership meaningful.
BPIR wasn’t looking for a sponsor.
It was looking for alignment.
And it found it.
The Crisis: Colorectal Cancer in Black America
Colorectal cancer is the second‑leading cause of cancer death in the United States.
For Black Americans, the burden is even heavier:
- 20% higher incidence
- 40% higher mortality
- More likely to be diagnosed at a younger age
- More likely to be diagnosed at a later stage
The difference between early and late detection is staggering:
- 91% survival when caught early
- 13% survival when caught late
We don’t fully understand why colorectal cancer behaves more aggressively in Black patients. But we do know this: early detection saves lives.
And that is where Guardant Health enters the story.
Shield Across America: Innovation Meets the Arena
On April 11, 2026, the Guardant Health mobile colon cancer screening education tour bus rolled into Memphis to join BPIR’s tour stop, marking a milestone in the “Riding Across America for Community Health” initiative. The bus is part of Shield Across America, a nationwide effort to expand access to colorectal cancer screening and education about Shield, the first and only test FDA‑approved as a primary screening option for colorectal cancer for average‑risk adults 45 and older.
Shield is:
- non‑invasive
- accessible
- covered by Medicare, and the VA Community Care Network
- designed to meet people where they are
For communities facing systemic barriers to healthcare including Black Americans this partnership is more than symbolic. It is lifesaving.
The Science Behind Shield: A Conversation With Dr. Sam Asgarian
To understand the test’s impact, I spoke with Dr. Sam Asgarian, Guardant Health’s vice president of clinical development for screening. He explained that Shield’s FDA approval was built on one of the largest colorectal cancer screening studies ever conducted.
In 2019, Guardant launched the ECLIPSE Study, enrolling more than 20,000 Americans across the country. The goal was not just size – it was representation.
“We made sure the study matched the demographics of the United States,” Asgarian said. “Not just white participants, not just white and Black participants — but a true reflection of the country.”
The results were strong:
- 83% detection rate for colorectal cancers
- 10% false‑positive rate
- Consistent performance across ethnicities
For Black families who have historically been excluded from clinical trials, this matters.
Cost, Coverage, and the Reality of Access
Eligible Medicare Part B or Fee for Service (FFS) patients will have $0 out-of-pocket cost for the Shield test. Medicare Advantage patients may be subject to co-pays, co-insurances and deductibles, depending on their specific plan. Veterans have zero copay through VA Community Care.
Coverage varies depending on private insurance.
But here’s where Guardant does something unusual:
They don’t leave patients to navigate the insurance maze alone.
“Every time a test is ordered, we reach out to patients,” Asgarian said. “We tell them what we think their coverage will be. We work with insurance companies. We help with financial assistance. We don’t want people going through that alone.”
As someone who has had two colonoscopies myself, I asked whether people like me could switch to the blood test going forward.
“It’s entirely up to you and your physician,” he said. “You have options now.”
Optionality saves lives.
Memphis: What Happened on the Ground
The Shield Across America tour launched in Las Vegas in March, Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. Since then, it has made several stops across the country navigating festivals, charity walks, and any event with enough space to park a 45‑foot mobile lab. The BPIR was a natural partnership for the tour.
Outside the arena, I saw a steady flow of people approaching the Shield Across America. Inside, Guardant had a table set up for conversations, questions, and education. I didn’t see the table myself — I was photographing from the opposite side of the arena — but the team reported strong engagement.
Even a few hundred screenings can shift outcomes in a community.
Looking Ahead: Atlanta and Beyond
When I asked about the next stop, Asgarian said the team was still finalizing the Atlanta layout, but that the latest information could be found at ShieldCancerScreen.com.
BPIR is uniquely positioned to make this work.
The rodeo is already a family event.
Adding health engagement to the pre‑show atmosphere is a natural fit.
This is not a one‑off partnership.
It is the beginning of a sustained health equity effort.
The Human Barrier: Fear, Anxiety, and Avoidance
Asgarian said something that stayed with me:
“People aren’t avoiding screening because they don’t care. They’re afraid. They’ve had bad experiences. They don’t trust the system. They don’t know what’s available.”
This is why meeting people at the rodeo matters.
When people are in a space they love — surrounded by culture, joy, and community — they are more open to engaging with healthcare.
BPIR becomes the bridge between fear and action.
The Role of Trusted Media
When I asked what Truth Seekers Journal could do to strengthen the partnership, Asgarian didn’t hesitate:
“There’s so much noise in the world. Breakthroughs get drowned out. When people hear about this from a trusted source — your publication — it means more. It pushes them to act.”
That is the responsibility of Black media:
to amplify what saves us, not just what threatens us.
Colorectal cancer is the second‑leading cancer killer.
But unlike many cancers, early detection changes everything.
This is breakthrough technology.
This is life‑saving access.
This is information our community deserves.
Closing: Riding for Our Lives
The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo has always been about more than competition. It is about culture, community, and care. It is about honoring the past while protecting the future. It is about showing up; for children, for families, for elders, for each other.
Now, through its partnership with Guardant Health, BPIR is riding for something even deeper: our lives.
Preserving heritage.
Empowering communities.
Inspiring generations.
Protecting futures. One family, one child, one screening, one city at a time.
Event Tickets and additional information
Related articles
Inside the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo — Part 5
Inside the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo — Part 4
Inside the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo — Part 3
Inside the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo — Part 2
Inside the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo — Part 1
Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo National Finals Nominated for USA TODAY’s Best Rodeo Award
Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo Celebrates 40 Years of Tradition and Excellence
Martin Luther King, Jr. African-American Rodeo of Champions Thrills Denver Audience
Support open, independent journalism—your contribution helps us tell the stories that matter most.