Thrall, age 78, passed away on Friday, October 28 in Calgary. He was a founding member and a past chair of the Lethbridge College Foundation and was a member of the college’s President’s Advisory Council. An avid golfer, he was a formidable presence at 27 of the 28 Lethbridge College Foundation golf tournaments, co-sponsor of the Bull-shot, missing his first tournament this last year due to illness.
But Thrall will perhaps be best remembered forhis family ranch – the McIntyre Ranch near Milk River – and its world-renowned ranching practices which emphasized, and continue to emphasize, sustainable ranching and balanced grazing.
Billy McIntyre of Utah founded the McIntyre Ranch in 1894, and Ralph A. Thrall Sr. purchased the picturesque property in 1948. From the beginning, the Thralls were committed to sustainable ranching practices, and the ranch became known both for its scenic vastness and its commitment to the preservation of the natural grasslands, habitat and wildlife.
That tradition continued during the years that Ralph Thrall Jr. and his wife, Cathie, ran the McIntyre Ranching Co. and raised their four children, and it continues today under the stewardship of Ralph Thrall III.
The ranch is located on the Milk River Ridge on the Continental Divide in Alberta, 13 kilometres north of the Montana border. It is 56,000 acres and believed to be the largest tract of undisturbed grassland in North America. The McIntyre Ranching Co. worked with Ducks Unlimited Canada to restore wildfowl habitat on the ranch in the 1990s. In 1996, the ranch was featured in a Discovery Channel documentary on Prairie Grasslands by John and Janet Foster.
Thrall’s community contributions extended far beyond the gorgeous grasslands along the Milk River Ridge. He was committed to southern Alberta people and communities and showed that commitment in ways large and small. Whether it was singing with a choir, championing performing arts or volunteering at a golf tournament, he believed that “supporting others who do what you can’t do is one way of helping the community.”
He was inducted into the Lethbridge College Hall of Fame in 1997 in recognition of his leadership and vision inspiring environmental stewardship and community spirit. In addition, he received the Duke of Edinburgh’s Conservation Award in 2005; was a Queen’s Jubilee medal recipient in 2002; and was a member of Kainai chieftainship, an honorary chief of a west coast tribe.
He is survived by his wife, Catherine C. Thrall; his children, Erin, Ralph III, Eric, and Chris; and several grandchildren.
Family and friends are invited to pay their respects between 7 and 9 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 3, at the Martin Brothers Riverview Chapel, 610 - 4th Street South, Lethbridge. A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 4, 2011 at First Baptist Church, 1614 - 5th Avenue South, Lethbridge.