Nursing home residents take in a night of the Abilene rodeo
Every year, the residents at Village Manor in Abilene, Kansas get a special treat.
They attend the Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo.
For more than a dozen years, the staff at Village Manor transports the residents to the Central Kansas Free Fairgrounds in Abilene, where the residents sit on the west side of the arena, watching the rodeo.
They love it, said Cheryl Robinson, activities director at Village Manor. “They anticipate it,” she said, “and they talk about it for weeks after it’s over.” Approximately ten residents attend the rodeo each year, if the weather allows it. Last year, it was unusually hot, and the residents didn’t go.
The number of residents who attend depends on staff, Robinson said. It takes extra people to get wheelchairs and people with walkers in and out of the van, and into their seats at the rodeo grounds. They rely on staff to volunteer for the work, even though they are paid for it. Some of the residents are diehards, she said, willing to go even if the weather is hot and muggy. “They’d still go, if we let them,” she said. Sometimes former neighbors will recognize their senior friends and stop by and say hi. “They’ll see friends there, that come down and talk to them.”
They take snacks and drinks with them, and sometimes purchase cotton candy or popcorn. Village Manor has a resident fund to pay for the refreshments. In the past, they’ve enjoyed the rodeo parade, too, at times riding in it in a bus or air-conditioned van, and sometimes watching from the lawn at Frontier Estates, if it isn’t too hot.
“Rodeo week is a big week,” Robinson said. For years, Bud and Linda Bankes purchased tickets for the residents, free of charge. When the sold their business, Bankes Pharmacy in Abilene, their son, Scott Bankes, asked his employer, TCT, to purchase tickets, and they have continued the tradition. Robinson says the annual trip to the Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo is a highlight for the residents.
“It makes them feel good,” she said. “It makes them feel like they are leading a productive life. It’s good entertainment, and it puts them in a good mood.”
The Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo will be held in Abilene July 29-August 1. Performances begin at 7:30 pm nightly. Tickets are $12 for adults in advance and $15 at the gate. Children’s tickets (for ages 4-10) are $8.
Tickets can be purchased online at WildBillHickokRodeo.com, at West’s Country Mart and other area retailers, and at the gate.
For more information, visit the website.
Village Manor residents have a front row seat at the Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo. Each year, weather permitting, they make the trip out for one night of rodeo. Photo courtesy Village Manor.
Two Village Manor residents enjoy a night of the Abilene Rodeo. Photo courtesy Village Manor.
Each year, weather permitting, residents from Village Manor in Abilene, Kan., take in one night of the Abilene rodeo. Photo courtesy Village Manor.
