Food Truck Warz has already added several new features (increased # of food trucks, larger downtown location, Wonder Shows Midway, 3rd day) that could make the community celebration more popular than ever. Today organizers are pleased to announce the plan to add a fenced-in beer garden, hosted by Career Connections Inc, to this year's festivities.  The proposed occupancy for the beer garden will be approximately 750 people with both Budweiser and Bud Light being served.  Rum, Rye and Vodka will also be available. "We at Career Connections are excited to be able to host this event here in Brandon.  This will be our major fundraising event for 2018.  Funds raised will be put directly back into the services that we provide to residents of Westman.  We are on track to provide supports to over 300 individuals this year who identify with having a barrier to employment" said Tracy Williams, Executive Director at Career Connections Inc. Career Connections Inc. is a professional, results driven, employment agency which specializes in working with and securing employment for individuals living with a disability. Career Connections has been a leader in supplying these services for over 45 years in the Westman region. "We look forward to seeing everyone out enjoying Food Truck Warz, make sure you stop by for a cold beverage served to you by our staff and board members.  We thank Darryl and Jody for providing us with this opportunity" added Tracy. Food Truck Warz happens September 14th – 16th, 2018 in Brandon, MB at Princess Park.    The annual event is presented by BDNMB.CA, alongside corporate support from Westman Communications Group, Vanguard Credit Union, & Catalyst Credit Union.  Corporate media sponsors include Q Country 91.5FM and Star FM Brandon.  Admission is free.

John Mellancamp will be touring Canada this fall with a stop scheduled for Brandon, MB.  The critically acclaimed American songwriter will play Westoba Place on Wednesday, October the 24th.   The concert will kick off the start of Manitoba AG EX and the Manitoba Finals Rodeo Oct. 24 – 27. Tickets for the tour will be available to the general public beginning Friday, June 1st at 10:00am local time. His 20-city Canadian tour is titled Sad Clowns & Hillbillies and begins on August 26 in Monton, NB and ends November 14th in Abbotsford, BC. “This is a big show for the Keystone Centre,” said Jeff Schumacher, general manager, Keystone Centre. “John Mellencamp will be one of the most recognizable names our facility has seen–his music spans generations and genres we’re looking forward to it.” Jack and Diane, Hurts So Good and Cherry Bomb are among some of Mellancamp's best known hits.

Brandon, MB – Another year of the City of Brandon’s popular “Music in the Park” summer program hits its opening note on the evening of Tuesday, June 5th in Princess Park in downtown Brandon. The eclectic FREE music programming is presented each year by the City of Brandon’s Community Development Section and features amazing musical talent of some of Western Manitoba's finest performing artists. New this year, the program will also feature weekly opening acts who have been selected to perform short sets ahead of the evening’s featured performers to draw in and warm up the crowd. Kicking off the 2018 edition of the Music in The Park program will be a performance from Mayer May Not Be, a talented group of current and former BU music students playing a mix of rock, pop, blues, and soul music. A full lineup of this year’s scheduled Music in the Parks performances running from June 5th through to the finale performance at Riverbank Discovery Centre’s new Festival Park on August 21st featuring Brandon-based pop/rock 4-piece, The 204, can be found at www.brandon.ca/music. All shows begin at 7 p.m. and the public is encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket for outdoor music-listening comfort. The City of Brandon’s Community Development staff extend their sincere thanks to all musical performers, sponsors, and audience members for their commitment to community building through live music.

Habanero Sombrero, an award winning food truck from Winnipeg,will be making their first appearance at Food Truck Warz in Brandon this September.  They serve delicious homemade Mexican food inspired from trips across Mexico, Arizona and California. Tacos are served on a 6 inch soft corn tortilla topped with coleslaw, pico de gallo and quesco fresco cheese.   The meats (chicken, beef, pulled pork) are all slow roasted with their own special house rub.  Habanero Sombrero also offer a complimentary salsa and sauce bar including a jalapeno hot sauce or pineapple tomatillo salsa. In 2016 Habanero Sombrero won best food truck in Metro Winnipeg Community Choice award voting.  They were also voted the 2nd best food truck in the Best of Winnipeg Readers Choice Awards in 2015, as hosted by the Winnipeg Free Press.

Brandon's first ever Food Truck Warz has been nominated in the category of "Event of the Year" at this year's Tourism Westman Awards Gala to be held next month in Gladstone.   Food Truck Warz took place in Brandon, MB in September of 2017.  The event played host to 17 gourmet food trucks from all over the province and attracted over 20,000 people to the 2-day event. "It's quite the honour" said event co-organizer Darrly Wolski when he heard the event had been nominated.  "I am very proud of the effort we put forth in hosting the event and we are looking forward to making this year's event even bigger and better" added Darryl. The evening recognizes and celebrates the exceptional individuals, businesses, organizations and communities within the Westman region that have made significant contributions to tourism development and promotion over the past year.  Other nominess for Event of Year include: Brandon Cruise Nights, Camp Hughes Heritage Day, Grimm Acres Scare Away Cancer, Neepawa Street Party, Westman Multicultural Festival and the Royal Canadian Legion National Youth Track & Field Championships. In addition to Event of the Year, awards will also be handed out in five other categories including Aspiring Youth, Marketing Excellence, Partnership, Service Excellence, and Volunteer of the Year.  Award winners will be announced at the Tribute to Tourism Gala being held at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 13th, 2018 at the Gladstone Community Centre.  Winners will be nominated for the chance to advance to the Manitoba Tourism Awards for a chance to be recognized at a Provincial level.