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July 18-27, 2025
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The Cheyenne Frontier Days™ Old West Museum is pleased to announce the 40th Annual Western Spirit Juried Art Show and Sale. The Member-Only Opening Reception will be on March 6 at 5 p.m.(MST), and the Virtual Western Spirit Award Show will be livestreamed on Facebook at 7 p.m.(MST). The show will be open to the public March 7 through April 18, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily for the price of regular Museum admission.
The Member-Only Opening Reception is a limited in person event at the Museum. Tickets for this event are $100 per person. Members should call the Museum office at (307)778-7243 to purchase tickets. To inquire about becoming a member of the Museum and the benefits of being a member please visit us during regular business hours or call the Development Manger Lonnie Reese at (307)778-7291.
Artwork from Western Spirit and the Vandewark Miniature Show will be available for purchase online and in the Museum. Thirty-five percent of each purchase will go towards the Museum’s general operations budget, which supports the Museum’s day-to-day operational costs. To purchase online or to find out more information on the show visit westernspiritartshow.org.
Quick Facts:
What: CFD Old West Museum 40th Annual Western Spirit Juried Art Show & Sale
When:
Where: CFD Old West Museum
Contact: Cameron Green, Art Show Coordinator, cameron.green@oldwestmuseum.org
After the pandemic forced its cancellation, CFD worked on lending a hand
As Cheyenne Frontier Days looks ahead to celebrating its 125th anniversary in July, the organization released its 2020 Report to the Community, which looks back at how CFD’s volunteers and staff turned their focus toward supporting the community after the coronavirus pandemic forced the historic cancellation of the iconic western festival in 2020.
“We were all pretty deflated after the cancellation, but we decided to look at it as an opportunity to use the downtime to do what we could to help our community,” said Tom Hirsig, Cheyenne Frontier Days CEO.
The report recaps how CFD donated its facilities and volunteer manpower to help a variety of community organizations in Wyoming.
“We are grateful for the chance to give something back to the community,” continued Hirsig. “It was important for our staff, volunteers and sponsors that we made good use of our time and facilities during the summer instead of letting them sit idle.”
Cheyenne Frontier Days announced that the renovated Barn 15 will be re-named in honor of longtime volunteer Marietta Dinneen.
The Cheyenne Frontier Days Foundation launched a campaign in July that includes the renovation of Barn 15 on Frontier Park to better house and protect the antique carriage collection. This renovation is part of the 365 to 125 campaign which supports the 125th anniversary celebration.
Marietta Dinneen moved to Cheyenne in 1951 with her husband, the late William J. Dinneen, Jr. after earning a degree in home economics from the University of Wyoming.
She was teaching home economics classes at Carey Junior High when she was invited to join the W-Heels organization in 1966. This group of women volunteers stages the historic vehicle portion of the downtown parades.
During her time in the W-Heels she noticed that many of the carriages in the collection were worn an in need of restoration. As part of the Carriage Coordinating Committee, Dinneen and her fellow volunteers knew where some of the carriages had come from and through interviews and research, they began documenting the history of the carriages.
This led to the creation of a group of volunteers called the Wagon Doctors who were dedicated to restoring and maintaining the collection. As their knowledge and expertise grew, the volunteers were able to restore selected vehicles to their former glory and they began to build the collection into what is displayed at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum today.
In the spring of 1978, Dinneen became one of the founding members of the board of directors for the Old West Museum, which then became the permanent home of the growing collection of carriages assembled by those who were working on their restoration.
Dinneen was also involved in the Carriage Association of America and the National Stagecoach and Freight Wagon Association.
The museum and CFD now have 160 vehicles in their jointly managed collection, 65 of which are regularly used in the annual parades.
“We are grateful to be able to honor Marietta and her years of service and dedication to our carriage collection today,” said Parades Chair Ruthanne Hubbard. “Marietta served as my mentor and taught me how to volunteer – she is the epitome of the perfect volunteer. If the world were full of people like Marietta, it would be a much better place.”
The public is invited to join Cheyenne Frontier Days™ volunteers, friends and staff at a blood drive on December 21 and 22 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Cheyenne Frontier Days™ Event Center.
According to Vitalant, the nonprofit community blood service provider coordinating the drive, the community is facing a critical need for blood donations this winter. Healthcare systems are stretched thin and many blood drives have been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Vitalant protects donors by following CDC safety guidelines, and all donors will be tested for COVID-19 antibodies. Even someone who has already had COVID-19 and recovered can make a difference, since their plasma can help someone who is currently fighting the virus.
“We are eager to do our part to help our community,” said Tom Hirsig, Cheyenne Frontier Days CEO. “It’s not often that we get a chance to give someone the gift of life. The more of us who donate, the more lives we can potentially save.”
Everyone who donates during the CFD Blood Drive will be entered into a drawing to win Two VIP Passes to the PRCA Rodeo Performance of their choice during the 125th Cheyenne Frontier Days™ in July. The package includes a special pre-rodeo lunch.
To register for the CFD blood drive, call (307) 638-3326 or go to www.vitalant.org.
WHAT: Frontier Fun Food Festival
WHEN: Sept. 3-4 & 6-7 from noon-10 p.m., and Sept. 5 from 10 a.m.-10 p.m.
WHERE: Carnival Midway Area of Frontier Park
VIEW MENU HERE
Cheyenne Frontier Days™ (CFD) has a brand-new food concessionaire with an emphasis on customer service, product quality, cleanliness, speed of service and most of all, a focus on fun! Fun Biz Concessions was selected to provide food for the Daddy of ‘em All® starting in 2020.
Concessionaires Nate and Stephanie Janousek of Fun Biz Concessions, Inc. were set to provide an all-new food experience on Frontier Park until the 2020 edition of the Daddy of ‘em All® was cancelled. Now there will be sampling of menu items to preview the food experience for 2021 on Frontier Park over the upcoming holiday weekend.
“For a preview of what’s to come next July,” Nate said, “join us on Labor Day Weekend to engage in the adventure of trying some of the most cutting edge and delicious food products in the entire amusement industry.”
Select food items will be offered in the Carnival Midway Area (west side) of Frontier Park on Sept. 3-4 & 6-7 from noon-10 p.m., and Sept. 5 from 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Cash and credit cards as well as Apple, Google and Samsung Pay will be accepted.
Janousek continued, “We are excited to meet community members, leaders and future CFD patrons as we seek to build relationships that we intend to cultivate for a lifetime by being transparent, forward thinking, community oriented and authentic. We look forward to meeting folks from the Cheyenne community and beyond as we welcome them to our food experience and celebrate a love of food and Cheyenne Frontier Days™. We are so looking forward to beginning this journey with you all and cannot wait to give a small preview over the days leading to Labor Day.”
CHEYENNE – The Cheyenne Frontier Days™ (CFD) General Committee has named its new Grounds Committee Chair.
The new Grounds Chairman is Wally Reiman. He is a long time CFD volunteer, and he has served 36 years on the Grounds Committee, and was inducted into the HEELS organization 28 years ago.
Reiman brings a wealth of knowledge to the Grounds Committee and Frontier Park. He is a local general contractor and Executive VP at Reiman Corp. He was President of Associated General Contractors of Wyoming (formerly known as the Wyoming Contractors Association) and he is a past winner of the Contractor of the Year.
The Cheyenne Frontier Days General Committee has already begun planning for the 125th Daddy of ‘em All.
The Cheyenne Frontier Days™ (CFD) Foundation kicked off the 365 to 125 Campaign on July 22, 2020. This campaign will support initiatives for the 125th celebration, which is scheduled for July 23 – August 1, 2021.
The CFD Foundation is dedicated to supporting the charitable and educational aspects of Cheyenne Frontier Days™. The campaign will focus on two major projects to mark the 125th anniversary of Cheyenne Frontier Days™.
A bronze statue of Chris LeDoux will be added to the sculpture collection on Frontier Park. This sculpture is by D. Michael Thomas from Buffalo, Wyoming and memorializes the tie of Chris LeDoux to the rodeo and music worlds and his place in CFD history.
In addition, work will begin to refurbish Barn 15 to house the world-class carriage collection. These rolling pieces of history are displayed in the CFD Old West Museum galleries until they are used in the Grand Parades in July. The improvements to Barn 15 will allow the carriages to be stored in a protected environment and will keep these artifacts out of the elements between parade runs, when they are not on display.
Legendary country music entertainer Garth Brooks talked about his memories of performing with Chris LeDoux at CFD in a video he created. Brooks asked CFD organizers to supply a 125th buckle to match the buckle from the 100th annual celebration.
Donations to the 365 to 125 Campaign will be matched up to $200,000. For more information, or to make a donation, please visit cfdrodeo.co/foundation or email Roger Schreiner at foundation@cfdrodeo.com
F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. – The Wings Over Warren Airshow is still scheduled for July 22, 2020, but the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds will not be performing at this year’s event.
“It is unfortunate that the Thunderbirds will be unable to perform at Wings Over Warren this year,” said Col. Peter Bonetti, 90th Missile Wing commander. “We are still planning an amazing show for our community and we look forward to having the Thunderbirds back in Cheyenne in 2021.”
Please see the statement from the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds for more information.
The show will feature the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II demonstration teams in addition to appearances by the KC-46 Pegasus, B-1 Lancer, UH-1 Iroquois, and C-130 Hercules.
For more information on the airshow please visit warren.af.mil or the F.E. Warren Facebook Page @FEWarrenAirForceBase and search for the “Wings Over Warren” event.
For any questions regarding this release, please contact the 90th Missile Wing Public Affairs Office at (307) 773-3381.
The CFD Old West Museum and the Western Art Show Committee are pleased to announce that Jump the Gun for ticket holders only begins July 9 on https://cfdartshow.com/.
All artwork purchases are made on a first come, first serve basis. All available artwork on the website will be priced at Jump the Gun (JTG) (25%) + $160, the cost of a ticket. Ticket holders will receive a coupon code to remove the added ticket price to each piece of art. JTG buyers receive an additional tax-deduction on top of the standard 35% rate during regular and public buy. From July 9 until July 16 at 7 p.m. MDT, buyers may jump the gun either online or call during the Museum at (307) 778-7289.
Kickoff for the 40th anniversary of the Western Art Show will be on Thursday, July 16 with the Virtual Opening Reception on Facebook Live with appearances from our artists, and some special guests. While the opening is free to view on Facebook, audience members who wish to purchase art during the event must purchase a ticket to the event.
Please support the Museum and purchase a ticket by visiting: https://visitcheyenne.regfox.com/2020-cfd-art-show
For additional information about the show please visit: https://cfdartshow.com/
As a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, the Museum relies heavily on donations, admission to the Museum, events admission, and art sales. Ticket sales alone for the Western Art Show & Sale normally raise enough funds for the Museum to pay for nearly a month of operating expenses.
Since 1981, the Committee has raised over $3 million in support of the CFD Old West Museum’s day-to-day operations through the Western Art Show. Today, this high-caliber art show has become the Museum’s largest fundraiser, supporting nearly a quarter of our operating expenses.
For additional information please contact Art Show Coordinator Cameron Green at cameron.green@oldwestmuseum.org or by calling (307) 778-7289.
