The Pioneer Bluffs Foundation

Pioneer Bluffs Foundation: Past Events

Pioneer Bluffs Fall Festival: Celebrating Community and Local Food

October 8, 2011

Dedication of the Rogler Prairie Heritage Center. Through careful restoration, the exterior of the historic granary/carriage house will look much like it did in 1916 while the interior will be renovated to include a multi-purpose classroom, heritage gallery area, and accessible public restrooms. We’ll be celebrating the achievement of this much-needed year-round space.
A benefit auction to support the Rogler Prairie Heritage Center. A tractor, farm equipment, and handmade quilt have already been donated for the auction (we are seeking donations of more items).
Expanded activities for children, including drumming!
Local bands will perform throughout the afternoon and evening.
Featured performer will be singer-songwriter-teacher David Halley, coming to the Flint Hills from his home in Austin, Texas. Halley’s song, “Hard Livin'” has been recorded by Jerry Jeff Walker, Keith Whitley (Top Ten Country Hit), The Nighthawks and many others. In the May/June 2010 issue of American Songwriter magazine, the article 50 Country Songs Every Songwriter Should Know lists Halley’s “Rain Just Falls” as #18.
History demonstrations, arts and crafts, kettle corn, and more!
Of course, local food!

Trail Days

Prairie Talk: Agritourism

"Agritourism" - growing a cash crop in rural Kansas - will be introduced by Jan Jantzen.

The Dance of the Prairie Chickens

Jane Koger, Pioneer Bluffs board president and lifelong Flint Hills rancher, will be the guide for a unique experience offered to Pioneer Bluffs supporters on Sunday, April 3, and Wednesday, April 6.

Imagine an outdoor singles club for birds in which the males must sing and dance so the females can choose a mate!

For a $100 contribution, you can experience the early-morning Dance of the Prairie Chickens.

Early on your scheduled morning – April 3 or April 6 – you will meet at Pioneer Bluffs and travel to Homestead Ranch near Matfield Green to witness this primitive ritual. The prairie chickens arrive at the booming ground at nautical twilight (one hour before dawn). Camouflaged in a viewing blind, you’ll have a front-row seat at the booming ground. You’ll see the males inflate bright yellow air sacs on their necks, erect pinnae feathers on the tops of their heads, perform flutter-jumps and nuptial bows — all while making humorous cackles and a haunting booming sound. Bring your camera!

Coffee, hot tea, and a restroom are available in the blind. When the Dance has ended, you’ll return to Pioneer Bluffs for a hot country breakfast.

Jane Koger is a fourth-generation Chase County rancher. Her passion for prairie chickens reflects the values of her ecosystem approach to rangeland management. Jane and her prairie chickens were featured in the 2010 documentary film “Return to PrairyErth.”

If you would like to experience the Dance of the Prairie Chicken, send your payment. Space is limited.

Tree Pruning Workshop

A tree pruning workshop will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 5, at Pioneer Bluffs. Larry Crouse, Butler County Extension horticulture agent, will lead this free, hands-on workshop.

Participants will learn how to set the base structure of an apple or peach tree, the reasons behind pruning, and pest control problems that fruit growers encounter. Larry will demonstrate on a couple of trees and supervise as others try their hand. Participants may want to bring their own pruning tool.

Prairie Talk: Rachel Carson

Rachel Carson gave America a wake-up call with her 1963 book “Silent Spring,” becoming a key figure in environmental history. At 2 p.m. Saturday, March 26, Ann Birney will bring Carson to life in a first-person performance at Pioneer Bluffs. Birney, of Ride into History, will portray the private author who employed science to save the natural world from human arrogance. The event is in recognition of Women’s History Month. Carson’s books were best-sellers and helped people consider the impact of technology on the environment. Birney, who has a doctorate in American Studies from The University of Kansas, has received accolades from audiences and from peers, including the Kansas Arts Commission’s Mid-Career Fellowship.
Joyce Thierer will accompany Birney and sign copies of her new book, “Telling History: A Manual for Performers and Presenters of First Person Narratives.”

Game Night

Come in out of the cold for an evening the whole family will enjoy at 6:30 p.m. Tables will be set up throughout the house for a variety of games. Barb Armstrong is providing the beverages. Feel free to bring a snack to share and your favorite card or board game - or come to learn a new game. Whether it is Canasta, Pitch, Checkers, Old Maid, or something new, we will have old fashioned fun.

Earth Song Art Exhibit

December 6th

The Gallery at Pioneer Bluffs presents an exhibit of abstract work by New Mexico artist Julie Wagner. "Earth Song" represents Wagner's recent work related to nature and is the first of many rotating solo contemporary art exhibitions in The Gallery, representing regional, national, and international artists.

3rd Annual Hog Roast: A Celebration of Community and Local Food

Join us for an afternoon and evening of live music, activities for the young and young-at-heart, and local food. $10 in advance, $12 on Oct 9.

Click here for more details.

Small Town, USA

Prairie Talk. Director Jason Opat leads a community discussion on what he has discovered while filming a documentary on rural revitalization. “Small Town, USA” is currently in production. Opat, a native of Lindsborg, Kansas, is the managing partner of Integrated Media Group (IMG), which created computer graphics for Get Smart, Iron Man, Transformers, Spiderman 3 and other Hollywood blockbusters. He is chairman of the Kansas Film Commission and board member for the Wichita Association of Motion Picture Arts.

William Least Heat Moon Prairie Talk, Return to PairyErth

Author William Least Heat Moon will host a Prairie Talk at Pioneer Bluffs for the premier of the film "Return to PrairyErth."

The documentary film by director John O’Hara follows the return of the author to Chase County 25 years after his sojourn led to the New York Times bestseller "PrairyErth: A Deep Map. "

The premier event will include the Heat Moon Prairie Talk, an opportunity to meet some of the people featured in the book and film, a discussion by the director and live music from the soundtrack artist, Trevor Stewart.

Details on the day’s events will be announced soon on this website and via email. If you aren’t currently on the Pioneer Bluffs e-mail list and would like to be informed, contact Lynn Smith at 620-753-3484 or lynn@pioneerbluffs.org.

The film is funded in part by a grant from the Kansas Humanities Council.

Choosing Sustainability takes Curiosity, Creativity, and Leadership

A Prairie Talk by Ben Champion, Ph.D., Director of Sustainability at Kansas State University.

Society’s economy, laws, and other institutions don’t make it easy to make the right long-term choices. That is why we need curiosity, creativity, and leadership to re-learn how to take care of the earth. Join this group discussion.

Prairie Talk: History of auctioneering

Horses return

Mid-Winter Games - February 27th - 6:30p.m.

Come in out of the cold for an evening the whole family will enjoy. Tables will be set up throughout the house for a variety of games.

Artist Stan Herd will be a special guest at this community celebration. Details on our 150th anniversary celebration! View more information about the hog roast here.

Saturday, August 29 at 2:00 pm - Prairie Talk: Stories from the Barn

Hayloft swings and barn dances, rotten egg fights, courtships, and smoking "out behind the barn" - there are endless stories from the barns of our past and our imagination. Joyce Thierer, PhD, will share barn stories and explore the barn in symbol and reality. Stories from the Barn is made possible through a grant from the Kansas Humanities Council.

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 6:30 pm - Prairie Talk: Addie of the Flint Hills

Adaline Rogler Sorace will share stories of growing up in the Flint Hills during the 1920's and 1930's. Her book, Addie of the Flint Hills, will be published in late June. Adaline will be visiting Kansas from her home in New York.

An opportunity to experience history while helping to preserve it!

At the age of 93 Adaline Rogler Sorace has published her first book, a memoir about growing up in the Flint Hills during the Great Depression. Several of the scenes in the book occur at Pioneer Bluffs and involve the Rogler family who originally settled at Pioneer Bluffs.

Addie has generously offered to donate the majority of the proceeds generated through this offer of her book to preserving the history of Pioneer Bluffs! Click here to take advantage of this special offer and help Pioneer Bluffs by ordering your copy of "Addie of the Flint Hills" for $25 (plus shipping).