Franklin "Tex" William Appledoorn

Funeral Mass for Tex Appledoorn, 93, of Killdeer, will be 10:30 am, Saturday, February 21, 2026 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Killdeer with Father Joseph Evinger celebrating. Burial will follow at the Killdeer Cemetery.

Visitation for Tex will take place from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm, Friday, February 20, 2026 at Stevenson Funeral Home in Dickinson with a rosary and vigil service at 6:00 pm.

Tex passed away Monday, February 16, 2026 at Hilltop Home of Comfort, Killdeer.

Franklin "Tex" Appledoorn was born January 28, 1933, to William and Sarah Appledoorn at Zenith, North Dakota, a small town between South Heart and Belfield. When he was five years old, his family moved to Dickinson, where he grew up on the edge of town. From an early age, Tex always seemed to have a rope in his hand and was known to rope just about anything-even a few neighborhood kids around the neck. His love for horses began young, and he eventually talked his dad into buying him a horse. He worked on the HT Ranch near Amidon during the summer of 1950 and later graduated from Dickinson High School in 1951, where he played football and basketball. That same year, he worked on the Connolly Ranch north of Dunn Center and soon after began rodeoing in 1952.

Tex attended Dickinson State College from 1952 to 1953, participating in football and basketball, before serving in the United States Army from 1954 to 1955. Tex was stationed in Fairbanks Alaska along with his brother Clairion. They lived in the gym and ran the sports program for the army, along with playing football and basketball for the army. He returned to college in 1956 and competed on Dickinson State's first rodeo team in 1957 and 1958, specializing in calf roping, steer wrestling, and ribbon roping. The team won the Rocky Mountain Region title their first year. On June 10, 1958, Tex married Pauline Kuntz, and in 1959. He took her to the Collage National Finals Rodeo for their Honeymoon. The couple moved to the Rock Springs Ranch located along the Knife River, east of Killdeer.

Tex rodeoed extensively throughout the Dakotas, Montana, and Canada. He won the Dickinson Match of Champions He was the non-RCA calf roping champ from 1960-1969. He went on to earn RCA/PRCA honors, including a state non-RCA steer wrestling title in 1959 and RCA titles in 1960, 1964, and 1967. He was named an all-around cowboy and an RCA champion in 1965, 1967, and 1968. A favorite mount of his was a big gelding named Wyoming Baldy, which he trained and used for calf roping, hazing, and team roping. Rodeo helped Tex get his start in the ranching business, where he broke many horses and bought and sold numerous others. He raised commercial cattle for more than fifty years and often said ranching was something you could never quite get out of your blood.

In addition to his rodeo and ranching accomplishments, Tex served as chairman of the Killdeer Mountain Roundup Rodeo for 31 years and was a life member of the Killdeer Saddle Club. He also served on the North Dakota High School Rodeo Association Board for ten years and later as a county commissioner for twelve years. He was a member of the Ezra Barrow American Legion in Killdeer and many other community organizations. Tex was a member of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Killdeer and was inducted into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2003. He was named Rodeo Rancher of the Year (2000-2001) by the Dickinson Roughrider Association and was a PRCA Gold Card member. He also received the Outstanding Service Award from the Killdeer FFA Rodeo and was honored in 2023 with induction into the Dickinson State University Hall of Fame as a member of the university's first rodeo team, which won the Rocky Mountain Region and placed third in the nation. Tex truly treasured the time he spent with his grandkids and great-grandkids and will be fondly remembered for his storytelling and jokes.

Tex is survived by his son, Bernel (Elayne) Appledoorn; daughter, Janel (Shawn) Lee; grandchildren, Chance (Keri) Appledoorn, Kailey Appledoorn (Luke Morast); great-grandchildren, Kade, Cale, Kace Appledoorn and Liddon Morast; sibling, Marjorie Samek and many nieces and nephews.

Tex was preceded in death by his wife Pauline Appledoorn; parents, William and Sarah Appledoorn; siblings, Clarian and Robert Appledoorn and Bernadine Braun; sister-in-law, Irene Hamilton; brother-in-law, Neil Hamilton; mother-in-law, Helen Kuntz and father-in-law, John Kuntz.