Supporters gathered in Oklahoma City for the 2026 Diamond Hats gala, celebrating young agriculturalists and raising $310,787 to support exhibitors at the Oklahoma Youth Expo.
Supporters gathered in Oklahoma City for the 2026 Diamond Hats gala, celebrating young agriculturalists and raising $310,787 to support exhibitors at the Oklahoma Youth Expo.
Co-hosted by Farm Director KC Sheperd and Lake Carpenter, the evening featured high-energy bidding and live entertainment. Musical guest Diamond Rio took the stage to perform a lineup packed with all their classic hits, keeping the crowd engaged throughout the night. Fundraising momentum stayed strong across both the live and silent auctions, with attendees placing competitive bids on a wide slate of premier donated items to benefit Oklahoma youth.
The centerpiece of the evening was the presentation of the organization’s top honor, as Dr. Rosslyn Biggs was officially named the Diamond Hats Agriculture Woman of the Year.
For Biggs, an assistant professor and beef cattle Extension veterinarian at Oklahoma State University, the recognition came as an absolute surprise orchestrated by her family.
“I was very, very surprised,” Biggs said. “My sisters and my husband got one over on me, which doesn’t happen very often. It was a great honor and an absolute surprise.”
The honor also marks a unique family milestone. Biggs joins her sister, Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur, as a recipient of the award. Biggs recalled being on babysitting duty the night Arthur was recognized years earlier.
“I remember exactly when she won because I had just had a baby about a week ahead of Diamond Hats Gala, and I watched all of the children—hers and mine—and the rest of the family came and got to be here,” Biggs said. “It’s an honor to be the second. I have two sisters, both Blayne and Chelsey, that have regularly outperformed me in my life.”
Raised in western Oklahoma with deep roots in 4-H and FFA, Biggs earned her agricultural communications degree before completing veterinary school at Oklahoma State University. While she never anticipated returning to the university as a faculty member, she noted that serving through OSU Extension and the veterinary college has been the best role of her career.
Working daily with veterinary students and agricultural communications students, Biggs emphasized how rewarding it is to mentor the next generation, especially during a time when rural and food animal veterinarians are in critically high demand.
“I’m very fortunate because of my role in Extension as well as Vet Med, and frankly, if I’m having a bad day, students are the ones that fix it,” Biggs said. “I just get out of the office and go walk the halls of the teaching hospital, or work with a lot of Ag Comm students that I’m very fortunate to work with, too. They will make a bad day much better.”
Reflecting on the impact of Diamond Hats and the funds generated for OYE, Biggs noted that the expo provides vital opportunities for all young people, whether they are in the show ring, building ag mechanics projects, or competing in shooting sports.
“There’s really nothing better,” Biggs said. “If you’re looking to hire whatever profession you’re looking for, you need an ag kid if you want a good one.”
Raised in western Oklahoma with deep roots in 4-H and FFA, Biggs earned her agricultural communications degree before completing veterinary school at Oklahoma State University. While she never anticipated returning to the university as a faculty member, she noted that serving through OSU Extension and the veterinary college has been the best role of her career.
Working daily with veterinary students and agricultural communications students, Biggs emphasized how rewarding it is to mentor the next generation, especially during a time when rural and food animal veterinarians are in critically high demand.
“I’m very fortunate because of my role in Extension as well as Vet Med, and frankly, if I’m having a bad day, students are the ones that fix it,” Biggs said. “I just get out of the office and go walk the halls of the teaching hospital, or work with a lot of Ag Comm students that I’m very fortunate to work with, too. They will make a bad day much better.”
Reflecting on the impact of Diamond Hats and the funds generated for OYE, Biggs noted that the expo provides vital opportunities for all young people, whether they are in the show ring, building ag mechanics projects, or competing in shooting sports.
“There’s really nothing better,” Biggs said. “If you’re looking to hire whatever profession you’re looking for, you need an ag kid if you want a good one.”
