General News in the 316

[Kel Varnsen]

Thanks SubGod22 for staying on top of news. As a Wichita native who is now in the KC area, it's really helpful.

[ShockTalk]

Out of curiosity, I pulled up the Orpheum upcoming events section. I can only recall one time that I've been, but it's a cool venue. Apparently they show a number of movies. Some are presented by the Tallgrass Film Festival and a few they call their Anniversary Film Series.

The link will show you everything and the following are just things that caught my eye for one reason or another.

Postmodern Jukebox will perform October 23rd. They are amazing.

Yes, yes they are.

[ShockBand]

Bonamassa has a recording of a live show on PBS Kansas right now, 7 pm on Tuesday May 31.

[SubGod22]

KFDI - Former Chiefs Receiver Tyreek Hill Hosting Football Camp in Wichita

Former Kansas City Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill is hosting the 2022 Tyreek Hill Youth Football Camp at Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita.

It will be on Friday, June 3rd from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The camp is open to boys and girls of all skill levels age 6-16.

Hill and camp coaches will provide hands-on instruction with activities including lectures, fundamental skill stations, contests and awards. All campers are grouped according to age to ensure proper levels of competition and instruction.

Guessing this was all set up before the trade and we won't see him back in ICT doing this. But it still may be a good experience for some.

[SubGod22]

KSN - All aboard! Boat tours begin on Wichita's river

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Have you ever wanted to take a boat ride along the Arkansas River in Wichita? Now, you can!

ICT RiverRides inaugural season is underway, giving people of all ages the chance to experience the Air Captial from the water.

Captain Sherman Padgett is eager to share his love for boating and the City of Wichita with everyone who hops on board.

This will be interesting and something I never thought about. Would be nicer if we had more built up around the river, but I hope it works out for him. Rides are only $5 and last about 15 minutes. I think it said it starts around the Douglas Street bridge and goes up to Exploration Place and The Keeper of the Plains and then back to Douglas.

He operates Thursday thru Sunday 1pm to 10pm.

[SubGod22]

We just can't have nice things. Or, at least not those of non-traditional ethnic flavor.

EB - Wichita's only Jamaican restaurant to close at the end of June

The journey began back in 2017 as a food truck near Hyde Park. Their first brick & mortar restaurant opened a year later off east Central, that was followed by a stop at 3090 W. 13th Street. Sorrel’s made a bigger move to downtown Wichita just outside Intrust Bank Arena that lasted until the pandemic.

Their current location on east Harry opened in 2021 and now the story for Sorrel’s will come to an end in the summer of 2022.

I really wish I got out more and tried more of these places.

[SubGod22]

Riverfest apparently has an app. Just an FYI for those who might attend and find an app with everything you need to know of value. I think it said something about saving the events you value and I'm guessing it has some sort of reminder set up within it.

Riverfest starts Friday.

[RoyalShock]

Even if their music isn’t your thing, Postmodern Jukebox and Joe Bonamassa are not to be missed. These are just excellent musicians.

I definitely want to see those two, along with Stryper.

And though this isn't in Wichita, Joe Satriani will be at the Stiefel Theater in Salina in October. It's similar to the Orpheum. I've seen Kansas and Pat Benatar there.

[ShockerFever]

Riverfest apparently has an app. Just an FYI for those who might attend and find an app with everything you need to know of value. I think it said something about saving the events you value and I'm guessing it has some sort of reminder set up within it.

Riverfest starts Friday.

Can’t believe the lack of events there are now. I really have had no desire to go much anymore but decided to look at their schedule and it’s like 1 or 2 events a day now. I remember back 20 years ago they had like 30 events going on on a weekend… and that was with a $2 button. I guess $15 would be ok if you wanted to attend every concert and i supposed youd get your value there, but it not, $15 to enter a gate to then shell out $15 for a pulled pork sandwich and $5 bottle of water with no other events going on just doesn’t seem worth it.

What a disappointment. Just not the same.

[SubGod22]

I get what you're saying, but I could see Friday alone being worth it for many. Granted, I've only been to Riverfest twice in my life. Once in HS/College when I went with a large group of friends for the fireworks. The second time when I had a friend from Tennessee visiting town and she wanted something uniquely Wichita. So we went down and walked around. The kids enjoyed some things, her and I mostly just caught up. We did get to hear a little of Cypress Hill as we were walking around.

Back to Friday, they have the parade (don't know if that's good or not), followed by the Wichita Symphony Orchestra (which I'm sure is good) and then fireworks.

Saturday morning is for the runners. Apparently the bathtub races are back. But then there's a long gap in scheduled events prior to Willie Nelson going on, then there's the Drone Show which may or may not be interesting.

Sunday has the Downtown Get Down, which I don't know what that is, but I do know the new Shox will be there. I also don't know what the Cardboard Regatta is. WAR performs Sunday night followed by another drone show.

Monday is mostly just Gospelfest in the evening, which should be good if you enjoy that music.

Tuesday evening is a concert by NewSpring.

Wednesday is the ice cream social and Gov't Mule.

Thursday is Cajun Food Fest which could be good, something called Touch a Truck and then The Floozies perform.

Friday is the Classic Car Show and Fiesta Del Rio. I don't know what that is either.

Saturday is more Classic Car Show, whatever Rivalry on the River Revival is, The Family Stone and more fireworks.

This is the first time I've actually run down the schedule and there's definitely more than $15 worth of entertainment for just about anyone. Hell, just going to one concert probably gets your money's worth and then some, especially for Willie. But certainly there are some other things going on as well during some of these times. During the week, the food court opens at 11am but there are no events on the schedule until 5pm or so.

I will say if you have kids, the Kids' Corner that goes on each day has a lot going on. The food court has a lot of good options, but from what I remember from a few years ago, the prices are a fair amount higher than what you would pay at these same food trucks outside of Riverfest. I'm assuming that's because Riverfest takes a cut and these food trucks already have pretty slim margins.

I didn't see it when going through the events, might have missed it, but ArtFest at Riverfest should probably be good. I know I've always enjoyed such things, if I purchase anything or not. I try to go to the Art Show at Bradley Fair most years.

This next comment isn't directed at anyone here, but I've seen a lot of social media comments about the $15 buttons making the event not worth it. You may decided that it's not worth your time, but there's almost definitely $15 worth of entertainment for just about anyone. It's not the money that keeps me away as much as it is the crowds and my anxiety.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - Wichita employers tap into pet insurance for new job perks

Not going to lie, I would consider this if the rates were as described in the article. My last job offered something, but to insure the two dogs I had at the time would have cost me as much as my own personal insurance, which would have easily cost me more money than what I generally pay at the vet over multiple years. Though the same goes for my personal, but a visit for just myself also costs more than a vet visit.

While some hiring managers may initially scoff at the idea of offering insurance for their employees' pets, Cross said it adds another tool to the toolbox amid such a tight labor market.

"These benefits can be very, very valuable when it comes to recruiting and retention strategies," she said. "These are benefit offerings above and beyond what we would consider the standard benefit package."

And pet ownership is on the rise. According to a 2021 report from the American Veterinary Medical Association, the number of households with dogs was up nearly 40% between 2016 and 2020. Cat ownership was up 25% in that same time period. Research has also found that younger generations are opting to own pets because they're having children later or not at all, and older generations are now empty-nesters.

I had some co-workers that used it at my last job and I've seen more and more talk amongst friends about it.

[Ted Lasso's Neighbor]

Today is Clue 1 of the Riverfest Medallion hunt. According to an article the other day, they're not putting the clues in the printed paper but instead just online and will post them outside their main office. The article pushed signing up for a paid subscription, so I thought maybe they were going to be behind a paid firewall, but the link today didn't have the padlock icon next to it and I was able to access it without a paid subscription. I did have to do the right click and open in incognito/private window though because I must have viewed some other articles at the site recently.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - Spirit shares in $185M defense award to Sikorsky

According to a Department of Defense notice of the award, Wichita will be home to 9.6% of the work on the program — second only to Sikorsky’s facility in Stratford, Conn.

Spirit (NYSE: SPR) buildsthe fuselage of the CH-53K locally as part of a contract originally won with Sikorsky, which was acquired by Lockheed (NYSE: LMT) in 2015.

The program of record calls for 200 of King Stallion helicopters over time as part of a fleet upgrade plan for the Marines.

The CH-53K is part of Spirit’s growing defense portfolio, which the company expects to be a $1 billion business unit by the middle of the decade.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - ICT Summit: Damon Young: In dreaming up Wichita's future, ask big questions and build bridges

Young's talk set the stage for the ICT Summit — an event that examined which direction Wichita is headed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Now we're going to be revisiting a lot of the plans and dreams that we have as a community and what we might do," he said.

Dreams should challenge the status quo, Young said, and leaders should ask themselves what's changed since 2020.

In planning for Wichita's future, he suggested the concept of "love through questions." Asking questions, he said, involves everyone in the conversation and builds inclusivity. Questions like: What is important about this? What would somebody with a different perspective say? For real change to happen, who needs to be involved? Who else?

Challenging the status quo is crucial.

[SubGod22]

WBJ - 'We're stronger together', New Sports Commission leader emphasizes engagement - and re-engagement

A Garden Plain High School graduate, he's a Sedgwick County native to boot.

But it's beyond what's on paper that has those around Jenks hopeful about what he can do for the Sports Commission moving forward since he took the reins in March after having the job on an interim basis.

"He brings a lot of passion and a lot of energy to the position," said Jeff Weiford, executive vice president at GLMV Architecture and Sports Commission board chair.

It's a good article on Kevin Jenks and the GWASC. I'm still not sure how important a role they play, but they are in charge of some things like the NBC, the Buster Posey and the Prairie Fire events. All things that benefit Wichita and it sounds like he has the energy and passion to push things forward to be a bigger factor and to work together with a lot of other local/regional organizations.