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Festival organizers announce Diamond Rio headline, 50th-anniversary programming and urgent volunteer needs
Summary
Organizers previewed the festival's headliners (including Diamond Rio), new programming and a sizable volunteer recruitment push; staff asked commissioners to help recruit volunteers and promote the patron program.
Organizers for the upcoming Smoky Hill festival briefed the Salina Arts & Humanities commission on headliners, programming and volunteer needs, and asked commissioners to help recruit volunteers and promote the patron program.
"Friday, we're gonna have Diamond Rio," said an entertainment coordinator, listing headliners and a Saturday 50th-anniversary set by Lost Wax. The coordinator also said organizers secured regional acts, roving performers and a Mariachi Los Rios de Kansas City collaboration with a folklorico group near the Eric Stine stage.
Festival staff described multiple volunteer roles and an online sign-up using QR codes; they asked commissioners to sign up, share links and deliver commemorative prints to high-level sponsors. Staff asked volunteers to take two-hour survey shifts on the grounds to capture festival-goer feedback before a survey closes the Monday after the event.
The commission discussed patron and reporting changes intended to help market and measure spending at the show. Staff described a patron program with a minimum pledge threshold (transcript inconsistent in one place; staff elsewhere referenced a $125 threshold) and said patrons must report spending to remain eligible for next year's program perks. Staff asked commissioners to encourage patron sign-ups and to report actual spending rather than the minimum.
Organizers reviewed operations: three new food vendors this year (including a bloomin' onion truck and a returning Texas Red Barbecue under new ownership), mobility shuttles and rental scooters to improve access, and a recent pavement project that replaced gravel parking in the park. Staff said mobility scooters will be available with a $50 minimum and $20-an-hour rate or a $125 full-day option.
The festival team requested on-site help with load-in and load-out, vendor hospitality and hospitality for performers (including airport pickups), and asked commissioners to check in at headquarters for short volunteer assignments. The commission was also reminded that setup begins midsession the week before the festival and that many shifts (including early and late shifts) remain unfilled.
Organizers asked commissioners to promote the festival and patron program through personal outreach and local marketing; staff provided contact information and QR codes for sign-ups and reporting. No formal votes were taken at the meeting on festival items.
