Ronald "Sid" Sidman

Longtime cowboy, Ronald "Sid" Sidman, passed away on December 21, 2025, at the Smith County Hospital, in Smith Center, Kansas, at the age of 68.

Ronald Lynn Sidman was born on April 4, 1957, in Phillipsburg, Kansas, to parents Warren and Hazel (Dowty) Sidman. He was united in marriage to Betty Ferguson on November 25, 1977, and 3 children, Christina, Matthew, and Jackie, were born.

Then on August 2, 2008, he was married to Jackie Kallhoff at the Kansas' Biggest Rodeo Arena, in Phillipsburg, Kansas.

Sid lived by the Cowboy Code. Some of his earliest and best memories included his road on the rodeo trail with bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, and bull riding. His favorite place to be was on horseback working cows on the FBI Ranch, on which he worked from 1975 until his retirement. Tell him something was impossible, and he'd prove you wrong. Ron loved the challenge of rounding up the neighbors' ornery bulls and cows. He was especially proud of his volunteer work on the stripping chutes at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo. He and Jackie would sit at the picnic table, talking to all their friends and meeting new ones before and after the rodeo.

Many people knew Ron as "The Cowboy Poet." While he occasionally wrote poetry for himself, his passion was reignited one night helping Matt with his homework. He loved to tell stories and recite his poems at a variety of places. And while he's now living his poem "If I Die," his famous words will live on: "Win a few; lose a lot. This is a lesson not to be forgot."

Ron is preceded in death by his mother Hazel and wife Jackie.

Survivors include father Warren (Iona) Sidman of Stuttgart, Kansas; children Christina Sidman of Rapid City, South Dakota; Matthew (Lynn) Sidman of Kensington, Kansas; and Jackie (Craig) Carroll of Colby, Kansas; sister Cathy (Dennis) Dewitt of Prairie View, Kansas; as well as three grandchildren: Reed, Molly, and Whitley.

The funeral service will be held on Monday, December 29, 2025, at 10:00 a.m., at First St. John's Lutheran Church, in Kensington, Kansas, with Pastor Dave Hutson officiating. Burial will follow at the Stone Cemetery, in Smith County, Kansas.

Ron will lie in state on Saturday and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m., with the family receiving friends and relatives for a visitation on Sunday afternoon from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, in Phillipsburg, Kansas.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Kansas' Biggest Rodeo Committee.