BY MEGHAN FLYNN
Garden City Telegram
Beef Empire Days has returned to Garden City for its 56th year.
While two events have already passed, the festival starts in earnest this weekend, and will run through June 9.
Some of the events this weekend includes the Specialty Risk Insurance Ranch Rodeo on Friday and the Garden City Open Tennis Tournament on Friday through Sunday. On Saturday, there is the Western Motor Beef Empire Days Parade, Commerce Bank Chuckwagons in the Park, Valley State Bank Book Scootin’ Rodeo Ball and Bulls, Broncs & Rodeo on Saturday.
Bonita McClure, Executive Director of Beef Empire Days, Inc., said while the festival has fun activities and events for the community, it’s about celebrating and promoting the beef industry and its importance in the community socially and economically.
It’s a celebration that involves the feed yards, processors, producers and the public, all the people who contribute to “our economy and to our communities that are involved in the beef process from producer to plate.”
McClure said the 10-day event sees anywhere from 15,000 to 20,000 over its course, with people coming from in from around the area.
There are a few changes to Beef Empire Days this year, McClure said.
One change is switching the parade to the first Saturday, which this year is June 1, at 10 a.m. McClure said. It will immediately be followed by Chuckwagons in the Park, which is in Stevens Park, beginning at 11:30 a.m.
“We will be feeding, free of charge, families and everyone who would like to stop by and have wonderful beef sandwiches and all the fixings as well as some nice surprises,” she said. “There’ll also be some entertainment that goes on at that time.”
Saturday evening will also see a new event, Bulls, Broncs and Rodeo, McClure said, highlighting KPRA and area surrounding regional area rodeo professionals.
“This will be a lot of excitement, tickets are $5 at the gate, but free from any of our sponsors,” she said. “This is going to be a great night of fun, bringing back traditional rodeo to Beef Empire Days.”
Also Saturday at 7 p.m. will be the annual Praise in the Park concert in Stevens Park.
On Sunday there is the feed lot and sponsor team roping in barrels and a full day of additional entertainment at the rodeo grounds, McClure said.
Saturday and Sunday also gives people the opportunity to see the Sunflower Livestock Youth Showdown, where youth from “a four-state area bring their cattle, horses, goats, sheep and hogs to participate in a jackpot show,” McClure said.
McClure said the heart of Beef Empire Days is the Merck Live Show, which this year will be live streamed on June 4, where feed yards bring their top cattle that they think will qualify to win the Live Show and the Carcass Show.
The cattle are judged, and members of the public are invited to attend and watch the process and enjoy a free lunch.
The last weekend of the festival winds down with Beef, Beer and Boots in Stevens Park on June 8, McClure said.
“The last weekend winds up with Beef, Beer and Boots in Stevens Park, it’s a great opportunity to come enjoy the evening, have a great time, we’ve got beef with sandwiches made from All American Beef Battalion. This will be a fundraiser for them,” she said. “There will be yard games, there will be prizes, touch-a-truck and a tractor, and a band a beer garden, great, great fun at Stevens Park.”
Also going on at the fairgrounds Saturday is the Sunflower Classic Truck Show, and then on Sunday is the final event in June, the Beef Empire Days Cattle Crawl at Baron’s Steakhouse, McClure said.
“It’s an opportunity to showcase a couple of the restaurants in the area and their beef entrees and then end up with a wonderful beef dinner,” she said. “Those tickets are reserved, and that event generally always sells out.”
