A Western Week organizer told Bee County commissioners during public comment on July 28 that the community is reviving its Western Week scholarship pageant and a larger county celebration that will include a carnival, a rodeo and live entertainment, and said organizers are seeking sponsorships.
In the first public comment appearance of the meeting, the speaker said the pageant will kick off on Sept. 28 and that the Heart of America Show — a large carnival operator — will occupy the Bee County Expo parking lot for four days. The organizer said DRH Cow Company will stage a rodeo and that the event will include live music, a parade and downtown activities running Monday through Friday.
The nut graf: organizers said the event is intended both to raise scholarship funds and to bring business to the county; they requested sponsorships and help arranging stalls, parking and room blocks.
The speaker said the rodeo alone required about $10,000 and that the overall celebration goal was about $25,000; as of the meeting the organizer said she had raised roughly $21,000 and was about $4,000 short on the rodeo portion. The organizer also asked for county assistance with staging areas and parking because the expo lot will be used for the carnival and livestock trailers will need grass staging and additional stalls.
Organizers listed entertainment planned for the weekend, said the carnival and rodeo had already asked to return in future years, and asked commissioners to help publicize and support the event. No formal county funding request was placed on the meeting agenda; the remarks were submitted during the public comment portion of the meeting.
Ending: Commissioners thanked the speaker for the update and told the organizer county staff would work with her where appropriate on logistics in advance of the event.