The Stockmen’s Foundation’s biggest awareness event of the year is set to kick off Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, and that means director Scott Grattidge is busy.
The Bunkhouse Bonanza gives kids of all ages the chance to learn things about their western heritage they may not have been aware of, and for those who know it already, it’s about the most fun they can have not on horseback.
“This one is our biggest awareness event, for exposure to the public at large,” Grattidge said. “Our mandate is about commemorating and honouring the builders of the livestock industry. It’s our way of giving people a glimpse of that ag industry.
"As the world progresses, people have less and less of a connection to the farm," he added. “A lot of us who are a bit older, if you didn’t grow up on the farm, your grandma and grandpa, your aunt and uncle, did – you had a connection. So we’re trying to connect to those agriculture and livestock roots that helped build the province originally.”
Over coffee in the Stockmen’s headquarters in the memorial library at the RancheHouse, Grattidge mused about the history of the building, which used to be the Western Heritage Centre.
“It’s been now 24 years since it’s been the Western Heritage Centre, so we’re turning it back into a heritage centre for a couple of days for people to have some fun and learn what Western art is.
“You might not think an auctioneer is an artist, but if he gets you to overpay for something, that’s an art,” said the sometimes amateur auctioneer. "A saddle maker is an artist, even though it’s a practical thing they’re providing. A blacksmith is an artist.
"So it’s not just painters," he added.
Cowboy poets, always a crowd favourite, will once gain entertain the crowd.
“Not everyone had their iPads on the trail, so if you wanted to remember things you kinda had to have some rhyming verse to help remember some of the tales,” he said.
Friday Jan. 31 is set aside to accommodate local schools, who will be treated to all kinds of booths and entertainers.
The Friday night Kickoff Concert at 7 pm (open to everyone) features Ben Crane, Charlie Ewing, and BJ Smith. Tickets are $25.
Saturday Feb. 1 will feature a mix of art and western cultural booths (everything from rope making to branding to blacksmithing), and will also include poets, musicians, storytellers and horse-drawn wagon rides.
“It’s going to be nonstop entertainment,” Grattidge said.
Admission is $5 or a donation for the local food bank, and free for kids under 12. The Location will be The RancheHouse at 101 RancheHouse Rd. in Cochrane.
For more information about what’s happening go to stockmen.ca.
