You don't have to dress Western, but most do.
Caleb Mills will don his cowboy hat and big belt buckle. Devotees of campfire country music and cowboy poetry will converge on the Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William St., on Saturday for the 12th annual Cowboy Jubilee and Poetry event.
"At least half of the people really get into it," Mills said Wednesday.
A total of 1,600 people, half of whom will probably be in buckskin and Wrangler's, are expected at the fundraising event. Mills' wife, Delsye, coordinates the event for the Carson Tahoe Regional Healthcare Auxiliary.
Last year's event raised $18,000, which went toward the construction of the Carson Tahoe Cancer Center and the purchase of the medical campus' shuttle, which was recently put into use.
Delsye Mills said the two-hour show is a popular event, but tickets sales have been slow this year. She sells the $25 "campfire" seats in advance because they are closest to the stage. Seats farther from the stage are $20. By this time, she's usually sold out of the best seats.
"I think people may have donation fatigue after Hurricane Katrina and all the other natural disasters that we've had over the last year," Mills said. "It's hard to ask people to keep giving. I think people are worried about the economy and the war."
The money raised from this event is pledged toward establishing a sexual assault response team at the medical center. This program is a resource for sexual assault victims in the area.
Mills is hoping the last-minute guests will round up her ticket sales. Guests will eat 300 pounds of tri-tip steak and 25 gallons of cowboy beans while Back 40 plays bluegrass music. Tickets for the barbecue cost $10.
The Nevada Beef Council donated $700 to cover a portion of the cost. Red's Old 395 Grill donated the beans. The medical center prepares the side dishes.
-- Contact reporter Becky Bosshart at bbosshart@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.
If you go
WHAT: 12th annual Cowboy Jubilee and Poetry. Sourdough Slim, Kent Rollins, Randy Pollard and Rush Creek and a special appearance by Dennis Golden and Texas Tom Weatherby
When: 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday; barbecue 5-8 p.m.
Where: Carson City Community Center theater, 851 E. William St.
Cost: $25, $20 for seats; barbecue is $10 for adults, $5 for children
information: Call 883-1532