Clarence Necochea; Trophy-Winning Cowboy

Clarence “Waho” Necochea, a cowboy and ranch hand who worked on the Taylor Ranch near Ventura for 30 years, died Sunday following a brief illness. He was 86.

Necochea was born Sept. 3, 1911, on the Morongo Indian Reservation near Palm Springs. A gifted horseman, he ran cattle on the tribal lands. In the late 1950s--by then married and the father of four children--Necochea moved his family to Ventura.

“He wanted a better life for us kids,” said his daughter, Millie Edwards of Ventura. “He moved us off the reservation, and although we missed it, he was right. We prospered.”

Necochea soon put his skills to work at the Taylor Ranch, east of Ventura, where he served as ranch foreman and ran the ranch’s feed mill.

“He was a cowboy,” Edwards said. “We all have photographs of the last roundup on the reservation, with both my dad and mom in it.”

Necochea took part in local and regional rodeos, winning awards for riding and roping. He and his partner always won the wild milking cow competition.

“His partner was a woman, and one of them would rope the wild cow, the other would milk her, and then they would rush the milk to the finish line,” Edwards said. “All of the children and grandchildren know how to ride. He taught us all.”

In addition to Edwards, Necochea is survived by daughter Caroline Mahl of Ojai; sons Roy of Ventura and Chester of Oak View; six grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.

Friends may call at Ted Mayr Funeral Home in Ventura today from 5 to 8 p.m. Services will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday at the funeral home, with the Rev. Samuel Burgess of the First Southern Baptist Church of Casitas Springs officiating. Burial will follow at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park.