Shawnee County Kansas Holy Smokin’ Jamboree Festival
Each September, a parish ground in North Topeka fills with barbecue smoke, bingo calls, and music drifting across the neighbourhood. The gathering at the heart of this article is published in parish bulletins and in local coverage simply as Holy Smokin’ Jamboree, with one bulletin form adding the word The at the front and another dropping the apostrophe altogether. No layer read prints the longer festival wording carried in the title above, and that difference is stated plainly here for honesty. What the layers do show is a real outdoor family event hosted by Mother Teresa Catholic Church, documented across six consecutive Septembers from two thousand twenty-one through two thousand twenty-six.
About
The jamboree is hosted by Mother Teresa Catholic Church in North Topeka, and parish bulletin layers describe it directly as hosted by that parish. Topeka is the seat of Shawnee County and also the capital of Kansas. Parish bulletins carry the fullest accounts, while a local radio layer and a local television news layer add independent confirmation for particular years, and an events-aggregator layer lists the most recent Sunday independently.
Across those layers the event keeps a recognisable shape. Saturday leans toward food, games, and evening entertainment, while Sunday opens with worship outdoors and moves toward a sit-down dinner and an auction. Registration activities sit alongside the main programme, so a visitor can run in the morning, wander the car show at midday, and still be present for music after dark. A local Knights group appears in one bulletin only in a food-service role, which is a supporting task rather than organisation, and hosting responsibility stays with the parish throughout.
The printed variants of this smoky name need careful separation. Bulletins, the radio layer, and the television layer all use the shorter jamboree form without any festival suffix, and one parish bulletin offering line prints the name without its apostrophe. Those variants are left separate here rather than blended into a single invented title.
Quick Facts
| Item | Detail |
| Published name | Holy Smokin’ Jamboree, with The Holy Smokin’ Jamboree also printed |
| Host parish | Mother Teresa Catholic Church |
| Location | North Topeka, in Shawnee County, Kansas |
| County seat status | Topeka is the county seat and the state capital |
| Documented run | Six consecutive Septembers, two thousand twenty-one through two thousand twenty-six |
| Weekend pattern | Saturday programme followed by Sunday worship, dinner, and auction |
| Signature food | Barbecue, with a roast beef dinner on the Sunday of the latest edition |
| Music anchors | Departure in two thousand twenty-one and THE BASH in later editions |
| Children’s offer | Games and inflatables covered by a two-dollar wristband in bulletin layers |
| Registration activities | 5K Run/Walk, car show, poker run in earlier years, and cornhole tournament from two thousand twenty-three |
History
No layer read offers a founding year, a first edition, or an origin story for this jamboree, so none is supplied here. The honest history is the documented run itself, year by year, with each edition fenced to the layers that describe it. That approach protects readers from invented beginnings and keeps attention on what can actually be shown.
For a useful comparison, see the Shawnee County Kansas Flora Lumina Festival for another county festival.
The earliest documented edition fell on the eleventh and twelfth of September in two thousand twenty-one, recorded in a neighbouring parish’s bulletin layer. That bulletin described an outdoor family event with food, drinks, bingo, a cake walk, a car show, crafts, and raffles. Live music on the Saturday night came from the band Departure, while the Sunday paired an outdoor Mass with a live auction. Registration was offered for a 5K Run/Walk, a car show, and a poker run.
A year later, parish bulletin layers placed the gathering on the tenth and eleventh of September in two thousand twenty-two and stated that it was hosted by Mother Teresa Catholic Church in North Topeka.
The ninth and tenth of September in two thousand twenty-three brought the fullest early description, carried by parish bulletins and a local radio layer. Barbecue joined the food offer explicitly, a silent auction appeared alongside raffles, and live music featuring THE BASH anchored the Saturday night together with a beer garden. The Sunday combined an outdoor Mass, a church dinner, and a live auction. A new cornhole tournament joined the registration set alongside the run, the car show, and the poker run.
For two thousand twenty-four, a local television news layer called it the annual jamboree at Mother Teresa Church and noted that the Sunday, the eighth of September, opened with Mass on the plaza at nine in the morning. Bounce houses, bingo, and cake walks were named among the activities. Parish bulletin layers then carried the sixth and seventh of September in two thousand twenty-five, describing the jamboree at the church with food, drinks, and the established programme.
The most recent documented edition, on the twelfth and thirteenth of September in two thousand twenty-six, comes from the host parish’s own bulletin layer. Saturday brought great food, drinks, barbecue, bingo, a cake walk, a car show, crafts, raffles, a silent auction, and live music featuring THE BASH at six in the evening with a beer garden. Sunday offered an outdoor Mass, a roast beef dinner, and a live auction, with registration for the run, the car show, and the cornhole tournament handled through the event’s own site. An events-aggregator layer independently listed that Sunday at the church from nine in the morning.
What to Expect
Arrive hungry, because food threads through both days in every detailed account. Barbecue is named explicitly in the two thousand twenty-three and two thousand twenty-six layers, and the Sunday dinner evolves in the record from a general church dinner to a specified roast beef dinner in the latest year.
Games give the weekend its lively middle. Bingo recurs in every edition, the cake walk offers a gentle contest where winners leave with baked prizes, and crafts and raffles fill the gaps between headline moments. The silent auction rewards browsers who enjoy checking bids quietly, while the live auction on Sunday gathers everyone together for faster, more theatrical selling. Children’s games and inflatables appear in bulletin layers as a defined part of the offer.
Saturday night belongs to music. Departure played that slot in two thousand twenty-one, and THE BASH, printed in capitals in the layers, took it in two thousand twenty-three and again in two thousand twenty-six, with a beer garden alongside. Sunday shifts the tone, because an outdoor Mass begins the day, on the plaza in two thousand twenty-four, and the shared dinner and live auction that follow feel like a parish family meal extended to the whole neighbourhood. Around the edges, runners tackle the 5K Run/Walk, drivers join the poker run in the earlier years, players toss bags in the cornhole tournament from two thousand twenty-three onward, and car show entries gleam for inspection.
Planning Your Visit
Timing your arrival around the two halves of the weekend makes the fullest difference. Saturday suits visitors who want the widest spread of food, games, and evening music, while Sunday suits those who value the outdoor Mass, the sit-down dinner, and the live auction.
Consider registering early for the activities that require it. The run, the car show, the poker run in its documented years, and the cornhole tournament all appear in the layers as registration elements, and the latest bulletin directs registration for the run, the car show, and the cornhole tournament through the event’s own site. Signing up ahead avoids queues at a busy parish ground.
Families should budget for the children’s wristband described in the bulletin layers. Editions documented in two thousand twenty-one and two thousand twenty-three state that a wristband priced at two dollars covers all-day children’s games, inflatables, and activities, which is a component charge for that part of the grounds. Beyond that figure, no layer read states a general gate price, and no layer states that general entry is free, so visitors are wise to bring spending money for food, raffles, and auctions without assuming either a free weekend or a fixed admission total. Parish layers do print telephone numbers and an office address for enquiries.
A Sample Itinerary
Begin Saturday with a wander around the car show while the grounds are still fresh, pausing for a cold drink and a first look at the craft stalls. Late morning lends itself to bingo and a first round of raffle entries, followed by barbecue at midday when the grills are at their busiest.
Return for the evening session, when live music takes over and the beer garden opens for adults. In two thousand twenty-three and two thousand twenty-six that meant THE BASH from early evening onward, so claiming a good spot before the set begins is worthwhile. On Sunday, arrive for the outdoor Mass, which began at nine in the morning in the two thousand twenty-four account, then stay for the roast beef dinner as printed for two thousand twenty-six and finish with the live auction.
How It Compares
Within Topeka itself, this jamboree should not be confused with other parish celebrations mentioned in the same bulletin layers. A Germanfest held at another Topeka parish and an Italian festival held at yet another parish are separate gatherings with their own traditions, and none of their programme details belong here.
A barbecue contest carrying a similar smoke name at Lake Shawnee also sits outside this story. That gathering is competition-only in character, judged around cooking entries, whereas the jamboree spreads its attention across worship, dinners, games, music, auctions, and motoring and running activities.
Your Visit Checklist
- Choose Saturday for music and games or Sunday for worship and dinner, or attend both days
- Register ahead for the run, the car show, or the cornhole tournament where sign-up applies
- Bring money for food, raffles, and auction bids beyond the children’s wristband charge
- Set aside two dollars per child for the all-day games and inflatables wristband
- Arrive before six in the evening on Saturday to settle in before the headline music
- Plan to reach the grounds by nine in the morning on Sunday for the outdoor Mass
- Leave time to browse crafts and check silent auction bids between main events
- Keep the roast beef dinner on Sunday in mind when planning weekend meals
Beyond the Jamboree
A parish weekend like this one sends ripples outward in quiet ways. Neighbours who might only nod in passing during the year end up sharing tables, bidding against each other in good humour, and volunteering side by side. Local coverage from radio and television layers suggests the event registers beyond the parish boundary as part of North Topeka’s early autumn calendar.
Visitors already in Topeka for the jamboree are also in the county seat and the state capital, so the trip naturally pairs with the civic and historic interest of the city itself.
Why This Gathering Matters
Parish festivals endure because they convert ordinary resources into community. A church hall, a plaza, volunteer cooks, donated cakes, and borrowed games become, for one weekend, a place where a neighbourhood recognises itself.
There is also value in how the programme refuses to choose between sacred and social. The outdoor Mass opens the Sunday and stands as the weekend’s anchor, with dinner and auction following naturally from it, while music, barbecue, and bingo carry equal weight on Saturday. That balance, repeated across the layers without fanfare, is arguably the jamboree’s defining quality.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which parish hosts the jamboree and where does it gather?
Mother Teresa Catholic Church in North Topeka hosts the event on its own grounds, according to parish bulletin layers that describe the jamboree as hosted by that parish.
What can children do during the weekend?
Bulletin layers describe children’s games, inflatables, and activities as a covered part of the grounds, with bounce houses also named in the television account of two thousand twenty-four. A wristband priced at two dollars in the two thousand twenty-one and two thousand twenty-three layers covers those all-day children’s activities, while bingo and the cake walk welcome a wider age range.
Which registration activities run alongside the main programme?
The layers list a 5K Run/Walk and a car show across the documented run, a poker run in the editions from two thousand twenty-one through two thousand twenty-three, and a cornhole tournament joining the set from two thousand twenty-three onward. The latest bulletin directs registration for the run, the car show, and the cornhole tournament through the event’s own site.
What food and evening entertainment stand out most?
Barbecue headlines the food offer in the detailed layers, with a roast beef dinner specified for the Sunday of two thousand twenty-six after a more general church dinner in earlier accounts. Saturday night brings live music with a beer garden, played by Departure in two thousand twenty-one and by THE BASH in two thousand twenty-three and two thousand twenty-six.
What to Expect From the Next Shawnee County Kansas Holy Smokin’ Jamboree Festival
How often is Shawnee County Kansas Holy Smokin’ Jamboree Festival held?
The documented layers show one edition each September across six consecutive years, from two thousand twenty-one through two thousand twenty-six, always as a Saturday and Sunday pairing. That steady rhythm is the strongest guide available, although each future edition still depends on the host parish confirming its own plans for that year.
When is the next Shawnee County Kansas Holy Smokin’ Jamboree Festival?
Following the pattern in the record, the next edition would be expected in September after the two thousand twenty-six gathering, most likely across a Saturday and Sunday in the first half of the month as in recent years. No specific future dates appear in the layers read, so anyone planning travel should confirm the weekend directly with the host parish once it publishes its bulletin notices.
Will the dates change?
Small shifts have already occurred within the documented run, since the weekend landed on the eleventh and twelfth in two thousand twenty-one but on the twelfth and thirteenth in two thousand twenty-six. The month and the two-day shape stayed constant throughout, so a modest movement of the exact weekend is entirely possible while a move away from September would break with everything the record shows.
Closing Thoughts
For a celebration published under a short, smoky name, this North Topeka jamboree carries a substantial documented life, with six Septembers of barbecue and bingo, outdoor worship and shared dinners, auctions, runs, car shows, and Saturday music. When the next September bulletin appears, the grounds at Mother Teresa Catholic Church will, if the pattern holds, fill once more with neighbours ready to eat, play, worship, and bid together.
