The carnival lights were on, the bands performing, vendors were serving food, and the Junction City Fire Department also served up a meal of hot dogs, beans, and chips in Heritage Park on the opening night of Sundown Salute.
The opening evening was dedicated to performances by Christian music bands “Abandon”
from San Antonio, Texas and “MIKESCHAIR” from Nashville, Tennessee.
Sharon Glessner, executive director for Sundown Salute, estimated the audience attendance at about 2,000 people.
The Geary County Ministerial Alliance helps line up the Christian music bands. Abandon took the stage first, but there was a glitch about 15 minutes into their performance. It was caused by a computer malfunction. Brad Seifert with the Ministerial Alliance explained, “Well, they had a problem with a piece that was connected to their computer. They don’t have all the instruments that they need so some of their instruments are prerecorded, and the box that they had, one of those electronic things, it just shut down. ” Seifert added, “But they had another one thankfully and they got going again. The malfunction prevented a sound trac from playing.
There was a delay of approximately 20 minutes while the repairs were made.
Despite that, the performances by both “Abandon” and “MIKESCHAIR” were well received by the audience.
The Fire Department prepared and served their meal to 500 people free. That included a hot dog or brat, potato chips, and baked beans plus water. The hot dogs and brats were provided by Armour-Eckrich. It took about one hour to serve all the food to 500 people.
Ottaway Amusements opened their carnival Wednesday evening with rides ranging from a large ferris wheel to a new ride called the “Viper,” which is located just up 6th Street from the main concert stage.
Sundown Salute continues Thursday beginning at one p.m. in Heritage Park. Activities will range from performances by juggler Brian Wendling and the Chris Clark Bicycle Stunt Show to evening concerts by “Charlotte Embry & Soigne” at 6:30 p.m., “The Killer, The King & Cash”( The Tribute to Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, and Johnny Cash ) at 7:45 , and “Edge of Forever” at 9:30 ( The Tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd ).
Sundown Salute also continues Friday and Saturday in Junction City.
