{"id":7739,"date":"2026-02-28T04:09:57","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T04:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/?p=7739"},"modified":"2026-02-28T04:09:57","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T04:09:57","slug":"in-the-quiet-heavy-days-after-losing-little-oaklynn-rae-domer-her-family-made-a-choice-that-stopped-people-in-their-tracks-through-tears-and-heartbreak-no-parent-should-ever-face-the-family-of-rod","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/?p=7739","title":{"rendered":"In the quiet, heavy days after losing little Oaklynn Rae Domer, her family made a choice that stopped people in their tracks. Through tears and heartbreak no parent should ever face, the family of rodeo champion Kelsie Domer shared a message that cut straight to the heart: \u201cDon\u2019t send flowers\u2026 send dreams.\u201d They didn\u2019t want bouquets that would fade in a few days. They didn\u2019t want something beautiful that would only remind them of how quickly life can slip away. Instead, they asked that every bit of love meant for Oaklynn be turned into something that could live on. They asked people to give to the Rope Like A Girl foundation, helping create scholarships in Oaklynn\u2019s name and support families fighting their own silent battles. It was more than a request\u2014it was an act of courage. In the middle of unbearable pain, they chose to build something instead of breaking. They chose hope instead of darkness. The people closest to them say this was never about money. It was about making sure Oaklynn\u2019s story didn\u2019t end that day. It was about helping young rodeo girls chase the dreams Oaklynn never got the chance to finish. No fading flowers. No final goodbye. Just dreams, still running, still alive, carried forward by others. While the world stood still in sorrow, this family decided to move forward\u2014not away from the pain, but through it. They turned loss into purpose, heartbreak into strength, and silence into something that will echo for years. Oaklynn may be gone from their arms, but through every rider who gets back up, every dream that refuses to die, and every life touched in her name\u2014her spirit keeps riding on… WATCH BELOW \ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Rodeo star\u00a0Kelsie Domer<\/strong>\u2019s 3-year-old daughter, Oaklynn Rae,\u00a0died earlier this month\u00a0after an accident allegedly involving a horse.<\/h4>\n<\/header>\n
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\"Rodeo<\/a><\/p>\n

Oaklynn died on Thursday, February 19, after a \u201cfreak wreck involving one of their horses,\u201d according to\u00a0Rodeo Life<\/em>, which claimed the animal \u201cfell onto Kelsie and Oaklynn\u201d at their ranch in Texas and the toddler didn\u2019t survive.<\/p>\n

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Fox San Antonio\u2019s<\/em>\u00a0Ryan Wolf<\/strong>\u00a0reported\u00a0that Domer was allegedly \u201cleading two horses while holding Oaklynn when one of the horses suffered a sudden medical emergency, collapsed and fell onto them.\u201d The journalist added, \u201cDespite life-saving efforts, Oaklynn did not survive\u201d and her mom\u2019s condition remains \u201cprivate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"3-Year-Old<\/a><\/p>\n

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Kelsie and her husband,\u00a0Ryan Domer<\/strong>, have not publicly commented on the circumstances surrounding Oaklynn\u2019s death, but their\u00a0daughter\u2019s obituary\u00a0shed light on the positive mark she left on everyone who knew her.<\/p>\n

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Oaklynn was born in August 2022 in Grandbury, Texas, the same birthday as her great-grandma, which the family said made them feel like they had \u201cthe angels\u2019 blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was taken from us too soon \u2014 soaring to heaven on February 19, 2026,\u201d the obituary read.<\/p>\n

The tribute to Oaklynn noted that she \u201cpacked a lot in her short time with us,\u201d including \u201ctraveling the\u00a0rodeo circuit\u00a0all over the U.S., hitting the practice pen with mom and dad, and loving her family with all her heart.\u201d (Kelsie is a 10-time Women\u2019s Professional Rodeo Association world champion breakaway roper while her husband, Ryan, qualified for the College National Finals Rodeo.)<\/p>\n

Oaklynn \u201cloved frogs, horses, everybody\u2019s puppies, going to \u2018yodeos,\u2019 and hanging out with all her friends,\u201d per the obituary. \u201cShe did not know a stranger and lit up the room the minute she made her grand entrance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 3-year-old is survived by her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents as well as several aunts, uncles and cousins.<\/p>\n

According to the bulletin, there will be two funeral services for Oaklynn on Thursday, February 26, in Dublin, Texas, followed by graveside services on Friday, February 27, in Cherokee, Oklahoma.<\/p>\n

The family asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Rope Like A Girl to help others with \u201cfamily expenses and scholarships in Oaklynn\u2019s memory for rodeo athletes\u201d at Southwestern Oklahoma State University or Northwestern Oklahoma State University.<\/p>\n

\"Rodeo<\/a>
Oaklynn Domer.\u00a0Courtesy of Kelsie Domer\/Instagram<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While Oaklynn\u2019s family mourns their loss privately, the\u00a0rodeo community\u00a0has publicly shown support for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn honor of Oaklynn Rae Domer, the breakaway ropers filled the arena with pink tonight as a heartfelt tribute to her memory.\u00a0\"\ud83e\ude77\",\u201d Cowboy Channel wrote\u00a0via Instagram\u00a0on Friday, February 20, sharing glimpses at the riders tribute at the San Antonio Rodeo, which also included a moment of silence for Oaklynn.<\/p>\n

Professional roper\u00a0Hope Thompson<\/strong>\u00a0shared\u00a0a video montage\u00a0via Instagram on Friday in honor of the late little girl.<\/p>\n

\u201cOaklynn Rae Domer, \u2018Baby Oakie,\u2019 \u2018Oakie\u2019 \u2026\u2026 the brightest light and the biggest love. In just three short years, you filled a lifetime with joy, laughter, and a kind of warmth that can never fade. You taught us how to live fully, love deeply, and find beauty in the simplest moments,\u201d she wrote. \u201cYou didn\u2019t meet a stranger and I admired that about you. Selfishly, I feel your time here was far too brief, but you were too perfect for this broken world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rodeo<\/a><\/p>\n

Thompson continued, \u201cYour spirit shines on in every memory and every heart you touched. You will always be missed, forever cherished, and never forgotten. Thank you Jesus, for giving us the divine gift of peace knowing we will see Oakie again one day. What\u2019s left of my time on earth I pray I can LIVE as BIG and LOVE as PURE as you did sweet girl. Fly high precious Angel\u00a0\"\ud83e\udebd\"\u00a0\"\ud83e\ude77\".\u201d<\/p>\n

She concluded: \u201cThank you \u2014 Kelsie Domer and Ryan Domer for sharing your baby girl with us. Prayers to the Domer and Chace families and everyone who loved Oakie\u00a0\"\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffc\".\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rodeo star\u00a0Kelsie Domer\u2019s 3-year-old daughter, Oaklynn Rae,\u00a0died earlier this month\u00a0after an accident allegedly involving a horse. Oaklynn died on Thursday, February 19, after a \u201cfreak wreck involving… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7740,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7739"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7739\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7741,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7739\/revisions\/7741"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7740"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow48.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}