It’s never too early to start talking about the upcoming annual Trigg County Country Ham Festival.
And that’s the goal of the celebration’s committee, which convened Wednesday at Cadiz City Hall in order to develop the 49th iteration in 2025.
Chief among discussions: a desire for a unique logo that serves not only as a mainstay for the party, but also serves as an online and printed symbol best representing theme and community.
Committee Chair and Cadiz-Trigg County Tourism Director Beth Sumner, along with several others, parsed through seven different variants of a logo — including the original pig drawn by Sarah Neighborgall years ago — and came to the conclusion that some mix of cursive writing, a pig, a mention of the festival’s establishment in 1976, and an outlining shape of a circle or the county’s border would work well.
Cadiz Police Chief Tyler Thomas, alongside John Raymond Hopson, also noted that any logo decided upon would make sense as a patch for trucker hats and tote bags, and that stickers would also quickly sell to locals and visitors.
Sumner then asked about the logo’s color, which brought about another bit of nostalgia from the group.
Many will remember that color palette was almost like a reddish-brick-brown-burgundy.
Sumner also noted that subcommittees needed to start forming for a number of festival categories, including auxiliary events, sponsored events and contests, vendor booths, volunteers, decorating and signage, the Ham Fest central headquarters, entertainment, the carnival, festival logistics and media/social media outreach.
As such:
— Hopson said he would help oversee and promote auxiliary events, following his successful barrel race.
— Amber Syester, with the Cadiz Police Department, said she would be the point of contact for sponsored events and contests, which Sumner noted could include pig races, cooking demonstrations and contests, and the possible return of a Sunday parade.
— As an employee of the city, Shannon Booth will again likely help spearhead the task of vendor applications and placement.
— Kara Allen, with the Trigg County Hospital, said she would be the liaison for volunteers, especially through the Trigg County Senior Citizens Center.
— Sumner and Lucy Kyler, county treasurer, agreed to stanchion Ham Fest Central, which will be in charge of the information booth, as well as things like scheduling, budgeting and sponsorships.
— The Cadiz Police Department, under Thomas and Syester, will once again be in charge of logistics, including parking, traffic and emergency response.
Kyler specifically noted the budgeting part is important.
Sumner said future meetings also need to serve as benchmarks for deadlines. By January, sponsorships, entertainment, vendor information and carnival plans need to be on the table. By February, a full media plan, with staging and scheduling, should be in pencil. By March, auxiliary events and their representatives should already be in the fold. By April, a T-shirt design should be ready to go, with stencils visible to the public.
And after a summer review, July, August and September need to be used for the development of volunteer schedules, the “Spirit of the Ham Festival” award and all other details should be well ironed.
Entertainment, she added, is “the biggie,” especially during the festival itself.
In other Ham Fest news:
— Sumner all but confirmed she cannot be the committee chair for the 2026 festival, because she will be spending much of next year as a co-chair for the Cadiz Rotary Club Annual Radio Auction. She said that she would be one of the festival’s “top helpers” when the time comes, but that another main chair would need to step forward at some point.
— The committee will next meet at noon Wednesday, January 15.
Results from the Stop/Start/Continue/Change Group Suggestions & Feedback Form:
Stop:
+ Placing music acts downtown
Start:
+ Shopping for other carnival providers
+ A sand sculpting event
+ A racing pigs event
+ A “Kiss the Pig” contest
+ A golf tournament
+ A canoe race
+ A city/county softball game
+ Placing a stage in the Courthouse Parking lot
+ Studying other festivals
+ Putting vendors in the middle of Main Street
+ Using sub-committees
+ Using larger signage
Continue:
+ Developing Renaissance Stage sound
+ Involving local school choirs
+ Embracing a big stage, and a big stage production company
+ The Petting Zoo
+ The Ham & Biscuit Eating contest
+ The HF Barrel Racing/Horse Show at the Complex
+ The embracing of “A Local’s Lane”
Changes:
+ Bring back music all day
+ Bring back the Pork Chop Review
+ Bring back the pig races
+ The tradition of using nights for “big” events like pageants, etc.
+ Repainting vendor booth numbers on street
+ Using National Guard or ROTC for traffic
+ Using mesh fencing to control crowds at West Cadiz Park crossing
+ Having more police presence during festival hours and after concerts
+ Have vendors that focus on festival’s theme
+ Have more food closer to the main stage
+ Have vendors park on one side of the street during set up so that one lane is still available for traffic
+ Identify what is prohibited in contract and vendor agreements
+ Have more places to buy country ham
