Saturday, July 26, 2008

Welcome Night: Wyoming Western Style!

Wyoming is the Cowboy State, so it's appropriate that Welcome Night for the 2008 International Convention of Germans from Russia be a "Western" gathering. Nearly one thousand would-be cowboys and cowgirls are gathering this week at the Parkway Plaza Hotel and Convention Center in Casper for workshops, music, business meetings, storytelling, and a wide range of other activities. The historic convention runs through Sunday, August 3.

And while the Welcome Night Western Buffet in the Parkway Ballroom this Wednesday (July 30) will have a decided cowboy motif, most of the week will be focused on "Celebrating Our Common Heritage" -- a German-Russian heritage -- that pre-dates the Old West and that transcends the two societies sponsoring the convention -- the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia and the Germans from Russia Heritage Society.

Convention co-chairs Al Feist of Hebron, North Dakota and Patti Sellenrick of Sheridan, Wyoming, will corral everyone together about 5:30 p.m. to begin the festivities, which include a greeting from Dr. Maggi Murdock, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Wyoming.
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Entertainment will include a bit of music from cowboy singer Kent Neubert, along with the Crimson Dames Red Hat Band, directed by Bev Miller. A bit of humor and drama will be combined to help tell the "Painted Past" of Casper. Angel Capone will deliver the facts, with Carol Chapin protraying Ettie Hurt and Marvin Nolte as Dr. Benson.
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Nick and Barb Bretz of Arvada, Colorado will be in charge of the Wester Theme Prizes.

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