AQHA Past President and Hall of Fame member Everett Salley, 73, of Owasso, Oklahoma, died June 13.
Salley was born March 11, 1935, in Burr, Texas, to Clifton and Mary Salley. He graduated from Tidehaven High School in 1953 as salutatorian of his class. He received football scholarship to Texas Christian University, he received a degree in business administration and a minor in marketing.
He married Marilyn Breno and lived in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was president of North Texas Advertising Inc. In 1968, they moved to Tulsa where he was president and CEO of Breno Painting Company for eight years. In 1976, he purchased the Tulsa Stockyards, one of the premier livestock auctions in Northeastern Oklahoma. He owned and operated the stockyards until 1996. In 1978, he founded Green Country Horse Sale Company, which conducted American Quarter Horse sales from California to Florida. The company had numerous sales, which included different events for the legendary King Ranch, plus many other events all across the United States. In 1980, Salley established the Tulsa Holiday Circuit, one of the longest-running AQHA circuits. After a short retirement, he worked for Southwest General Agency for six years. He served as president of AQHA in 1993, and he was president of Oklahoma Quarter Horse Association, Oklahoma Palomino Exhibitors Association, Palomino Horse Breeders of America, Goodwill Industries of Tulsa, Livestock Market Association of Oklahoma, Tulsa Twisters professional rodeo team, plus many other directorships and offices of social and civic organizations. He was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2003.
He was a member of Church of St. Mary’s and was a former member of Southern Hills Country Club.
Everett was preceded in death by his parents, Clifton and Mary Salley; and a sister, Wanda Bunton of Wharton, Texas.
Survivors include: his wife of 43 years, Marilyn Salley; a son, Cas Salley and fiancé, Melanie Lively, of Watova, Oklahoma; a daughter, Lisa Jones and husband, Steve, of Overland Park, Kansas; his grandchildren, Kaslin and Clay Salley, and Amelia and Andrew Jones; his brothers, C.D. Salley of Harrison, Arkansas, Al Salley of Rockport, Texas; and a sister and brother-in-law, Hazel and R.E. Roecker of Markham, Texas.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Junior Livestock Scholarship Fund c/o Tulsa State Fair, P.O. Box 4735, Tulsa, OK 74159 and the Retired Priest Fund of the Tulsa Diocese, P.O. Box 690240, Tulsa, OK 74169.
Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 17, 2008, at Calvary Cemetery, Moore’s Eastlawn, (918) 622-1155.
