Cowboy entertainers gather this weekend in Townsend

Helena's own cowboy poet Mike Logan and western music artist Jason DeShaw of Plentywood are among nearly 40 entertainers at the 7th Annual Townsend Cowboy Entertainer Gathering this weekend at Broadwater High School.

Logan was honored as the 2006 Cowboy Poet of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists.

Other popular returning artists are Wayne Nelson and John Westbrook.

STAMPEDE!, a high energy trio from Layton, Utah, performs Saturday.

The Friday evening program includes Larry Gibson, Smoke Wade, Jim Aasen, Nelson, Jamie Parker-Frank, Logan and DeShaw.

A preshow with two Montana performers, Jamie Baker of Alder and Orville Riley of Townsend, begins at 6:30 p.m.

Saturday night performers are Gordon Peterson, Dallas McChord, Sam Deleeau, Colt Angel, Sam Mattise, Hank Cramer and STAMPEDE!

A preshow at 6:30 p.m. includes performances by Gary Ferguson of Townsend and Westbrook of Bozeman.

Tickets for evening shows are $8 for those 13 and over. Those under 12 are free.

Saturday at 8 a.m. the fire department will provide a pancake breakfast at the school.

And at 5 p.m. Saturday, the fire department hosts a pig roast dinner. An $18 ticket covers both dinner and the show. For dinner tickets call Larry Gibson or Joann Shindoll at 266-3946 or 266-5771.

Tickets for the gathering are available at the Made in Montana store on the Helena walking mall.

Sunday morning at 9 a.m. there is a church service provided by the Christian Cowboy Balladeers and local performers.

On the Web

Cowboy entertainer

Jason DeShaw

Mike Logan

Montana City School teacher honored

Melanie Williams of Montana City School is among 160 educators who will visit Japan in June as a participant in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.

She was selected from a national pool of 1,700 applicants for this honor.

The educators will visit Tokyo, as well as a host city, where Williams will meet Japanese teachers and students at a primary and secondary school and a teacher's college. She will also visit cultural sites, local industries and have a brief homestay with a Japanese family.

The JFMF is sponsored by the Government of Japan and was started in 1997 to promote greater intercultural understanding between Japan and the United States.

Brother Van's Cowboy Poetry Festival slated for Boulder June 15

The Brother Van's Cowboy Poetry Festival returns to Boulder First United Methodist Church, Father's Day, June 15.

The music, poetry and art event proved so popular last Father's Day, organizer Steve McCann has brought it back.

Admission is free. However, donations at the event help fund restoration of the church's stained-glass windows.

This year's program runs from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. and includes seven cowboy poets, Native American flute music, cowboy and folk music, vocals and an art display.

A gourmet "tube steak" dinner is offered at the close of the event.

For more information, call McCann at 202-4048.