Cattlemen’s Ball ticket deadlines are nearing

    Planning on either attending or donating to the Cattlemen’s Ball of Nebraska? There are some deadlines coming up.
    Ticket sales will be available through May 15 for both the $400 Trail Boss and $100 Top Hand tickets, in addition to the Trail Boss reserved tables at $4,000 each. There will be no ticket sales at the gate.
    Calf for the Cure sponsorships — $1,000 for a calf, $600 for feed or $1,600 for both — and $100 for Promise Petals plants in the Serenity Tent are due by May 15
    Cash donations, starting at $2,500 and going up to $99,999, are due by April 30. There are five donation levels.
    Donations also are being sought of items for four live auctions and the silent auction. Information on that is available from Nick Ladenburger at 308-340-3123 or Clay Owens at 308-882-8171.
    Ticket and donation information are available online at cattlemensball.com. Mail donations and ticket orders also are available by mail at Cattlemen’s Ball of Nebraska, P.O. Box 9, Wauneta, NE  69045.
    With about six weeks to go before the event June 7 and 8 six miles west of Wauneta near Enders Dam, local organizers are ramping up their work.
    During a meeting of the committee last week,members were told that while some sponsorships already have come in, others still are being either sought or arranged.
    Three shuttle buses have been procured to run ballgoers from McCook to the festival site. Registration for those will be required and may be done through the ball’s Facebook page. The committee also discussed possibly charging $10 per person for a spot on the buses, but did not make any formal decision on that.
    Auctioneers have been lined up for all four of those events.
    Derek Sandman told the committee about 720 tickets have been sold and sales have “picked up in the last week,” with those expected to accelerate as the event gets closer. More than half of tickets sold so far were for people 70 miles or more away, he noted.
    “The radio [ads] seem to be working,” he said, adding with a chuckle, “People are just going to wait for the last minute.”
    Allison Sandman said the first round of ticket orders has been sent out.
    The committee still is in the process of lining up security. Farm Credit Services will handle ticket collection and wristbands at the gate and organizers remain in talks with an area security firm over how the grounds will be patrolled, Treasurer Joey Large said.