By Special to the Lake Okeechobee News
GLADES COUNTY — Celebrating 81 years, the Brighton Field Day Festival & Rodeo will take place at the Fred Smith Rodeo Arena on the Brighton Seminole Indian Reservation in Okeechobee, Feb. 15-17.
Presented by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, many Seminole favorites will return including PRCA Rodeo, clothing contests, American Indian arts and crafts and native foods. Attendees may also visit the Seminole Culture Camp where a living Seminole Indian Village will be on display.
Entertainment will include a Saturday evening concert by the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band. Kenny Wayne Shepherd is widely considered to be one of the best blues/rock guitarists today. The Louisiana-born axeman and songsmith has sold millions of albums worldwide while throwing singles into the Top 10, shining a light on the rich blues of the past and forging ahead with his own modern twist on a classic sound he has embodied since his teens.
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
In a 20-plus-year recording career that began when he was just 16, Mr. Shepherd has established himself as an immensely popular recording artist, a consistently in demand live act and an influential force in a worldwide resurgence of interest in the blues.
From television performances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel Live and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (amongst others) to features in Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Maxim Magazine, Blender, Spin, USA Today and more, his musical career has been nothing short of phenomenal.
The event weekend will also feature native dance troupes from neighboring tribes, storytelling, alligator wrestling and a snake show.
Attendees can visit the sponsor-driven Pro Rodeo Fan Zone on the way into the arena. The rodeo grounds will have a variety of crafts and food vendors for all to enjoy.
From Friday, Feb. 15 through Sunday, Feb. 17, gates will open at 9 a.m., 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m., respectively. Activities begin at 10 a.m. on Friday, 9 a.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. on Sunday. The PRCA Rodeo will take place Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m. The Kenny Wayne Shepherd concert is scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
The Brighton Field Day Festival & Rodeo will be held at the Fred Smith Rodeo Arena, which is located at 17400 Sports Complex Road N.E., in Glades County. For more information, go online to brightonfieldday.com or all 863-467-6039.