SIKESTON — The Cowboy Up! Festival and Rodeo Parade is one way for families to kick off the 72nd annual Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo.

The festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3, inside the Sikeston Depot Museum, 116 W. Malone Ave. in downtown Sikeston, as well as in the Depot parking lot and Legion Park.

Johnathan White, administrator of the Sikeston Depot Museum and Cultural Center, said the parking lot will have three food vendors.

“We will have a barbecue food truck vendor, an Italian ice vendor and a seafood vendor,” White said. “The Jaycees will also have the mutton bustin’ at the Depot parking lot.”

White said a foam party will also be held at the Cowboy Up! Festival.

“This is just a fun and exciting way to kick off the rodeo,” White said. “The rodeo will be the following week (Wednesday, Aug. 7, through Saturday, Aug. 10) and that Saturday, Aug. 3, will also be the rodeo parade.”

The Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo parade will begin at 10 a.m. and end in downtown Sikeston. Anyone can register to participate in the parade, and it’s free.

This year’s rodeo parade theme is “Red, White and Bulls”. Registration must be submitted by Friday, Aug. 2. Parade participants must arrive at 9 a.m. at the Sikeston Kindergarten Center, 1310 E. Salcedo Road.

According to White, children ages 4 to 7 who weigh less than 70 pounds will be able to ride sheep during the mutton bustin’ event.

Registration for the mutton bustin’ will be $10 and must be paid at the rodeo ticket office. The last day to register is Friday.

White added the Cowboy Up! Festival will feature an art exhibition featuring Barbi Myers and Juliana Comer inside the depot.

“Barbi and Juliana have both been artists for years and have won awards,” White said. “We are excited to have their work on display.”

White said Myers was born in Wiesbaden, Germany, but as an adult, she settled in Southeast Missouri, where she devoted herself full time to her art. Myers’ paintings are primarily in oils on canvas.

According to White, Myers’ affinity for roses, which are her main painting subject, is a testament to her dual passions for painting and gardening.

White said Comer is a watercolor artist and a retired art teacher from the Sikeston School District. Comer was a full-time teacher for 30 years, but she also pursued painting, sculpture, printmaking, fibers and portraiture for personal growth.

Comer specializes in watercolor, and her work ranges from realistic to abstract themes, frequently incorporating collage and mixed media techniques.

Comer’s artistic achievements, according to White, include multiple regional competition awards and solo exhibitions at prestigious venues such as Kent Library at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau and the Sikeston Depot Museum Gallery.

For more information about the Cowboy Up! Festival, contact the Sikeston Depot Museum at (573) 481-9967.

To register for mutton bustin’ or the rodeo parade, visit the Sikeston Jaycees Bootheel Rodeo website at https://sikestonrodeo.com.