The Wild Horse Stampede, the oldest rodeo in Montana, is the one time a year that the town of Wolf Point draws a crowd.
It’s far more remote than your average American small town. In 2018, the Washington Post identified the most “middle of nowhere” towns in the contiguous United States. Wolf Point came in third (shortly behind two other northeast Montana communities).
But it’s more than the rodeo that attracts thousands of visitors—not only from surrounding states, but the whole country!
Any longtime rodeo attendee will say that you don’t go to the Wild Horse Stampede without getting a “Catholic Hamburger.”
It’s a simple, delicious hamburger made by people who take pride in their church and town.
The stand runs each day of the rodeo. From Thursday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 a.m., volunteers from the church grill and sell thousands of burgers.
Father Jude Okoye, pastor of Immaculate Conception, chats with the hungry customers as they wait in line to order their burger.
The customers, regardless of religious affiliation, love it. Duck Kurokawa was born and raised in Wolf Point. His grandfather was a Japanese immigrant who worked on the railroad.
Although he’s not Catholic, he values the stand not just for what they bring to the rodeo, but to the community.
Serving up compassion
The stand is Immaculate Conception’s version of the popular church bake sale or fish fry. Food-centric fundraisers such as these are put on regularly by faith communities nationwide to support projects at parishes and in local communities.
In 1936, Immaculate Conception Church first served these hamburgers from locally raised cattle on the nights of the Wild Horse Stampede. It used to be the only place in town for people to get food after the rodeo.
According to parish records, those initial dinners netted $227—a present-day value of over $5,000—that would support different needs and projects.
Operating the stand has always been a full-community effort. Local ranchers donate the steers that provide the beef.
This year, a record five steers were donated, creating about 5,000 patties. Dozens of volunteers prepare, grill and sell the burgers in what has become a high functioning and fast paced, yet always joyful operation.
With a population of just over 2,500 today, Wolf Point is the largest community on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. But it has faced hardships that range from drug addiction and suicide to economic turmoil and business closures. Only three stores remain open on downtown Main Street.
Yet despite the poverty and challenges that surround their community, the people at Immaculate Conception are looking to make a difference and bring at least a small sense of relief and happiness to one another. Their Catholic Hamburgers put full, hearty smiles on the faces of any person who orders one.
Eileen Karge, a lifelong parishioner, has been the chairperson for the Catholic Hamburger Stand for the last 40 years.
At 80 years young she drives 100 miles round trip from her home in Fort Peck to support the parish and community she’s known her whole life.
Now her son and grandchildren travel from Texas to volunteer at the stand with her.
The money raised from the sales of the delicious onion-topped burgers has not only kept the hamburger stand going and growing each year, but it has allowed this parish to open its mind to even more creative ways to give back to the community.
The only clothing store in 100 miles
Catholic Extension Society’s relationship with Immaculate Conception goes back as early as 1914, when we first helped build their church. It’s among 13,500 church structures that Catholic Extension Society has help build or repair in our 120-year history.
Immaculate Conception built and dedicated a new church in 2010.
It connects to its old church, which had served the community since 1949. They have found an excellent use for their former worship space.
Today, where pews used to sit, it is filled end to end with clothes, furniture, tools and numerous other household items.
This is the community “rummage sale,” run by a dedicated and loving group of parish volunteers.
This church thrift shop was founded in 2013 with a three-goal approach: to provide items for sale at a minimum cost, to have a place for people to donate usable items they no longer need or want, and to fundraise for community activities.
The rummage sale initially took place once a month, then two times a month. But now it is held every Saturday. This is largely due to the parish’s recognition of customers’ great need for affordable necessities. The town’s clothing store closed a couple years ago. Here at the rummage sale, you can buy a pair of jeans for as little as $3, which goes a long way in helping families living in dire conditions save valued dollars.
Karge—on top of her Catholic Hamburger Stand responsibilities—is also one of the founders of the rummage sale. Kerry Hanks, a parishioner and her “right-hand,” volunteers with Karge to manage the rummage sale. It’s almost a full-time job.
Karge and her team take great pride in the cleanliness and organization of this incredibly important church store. They sort through all donations to ensure they are offering quality items in good condition. They wash everything—even the shoes. Many of the items are given out for free, as well.
The money raised from the rummage sale pays for necessities at the parish such as repairs, but it also supports their surrounding community. Karge calls it the rummage sale “tithing” and it goes to places such as children’s charities, the local museum, the hospital and even other parishes, including the Lutheran church in Wolf Point.
“You can go to Amazon and you can have people go to larger towns like Billings [over four hours away] or Williston [in North Dakota], but a lot of people don’t have transportation to get there,” Karge said. “There was a man who came up to me and he said, ‘The things you have in here are so nice, and it’s so well organized. This is such a needed place.’”
The Catholic Hamburger Stand doesn’t just operate during the rodeo. On the first Saturday of each month at the Immaculate Conception rummage sale, the stand, located just a couple blocks away, will fire up its grill. People come to shop. People come to eat. But most importantly, people come to see one another—well aware of the challenges they face but with a common goal to support each other.
Karge said, “It’s just a way for people to get together, for us to help people.”
A church that strengthens its community
After a long day at the hamburger stand, parish staff and volunteers joined the festivities at the rodeo, located just down the road from the town.
Mary Long is also a lifelong parishioner of Immaculate Conception and she serves as the secretary and bookkeeper at the parish. “My church means everything to me. Without our church we wouldn’t have the resources to help people in the community. …I think it brings hope to people to have that type of faith and a place you can go when you’re down and out.”
This year, parishioners were excited to get a shout-out from the rodeo announcers.
“Have you heard of the Catholic Hamburger?” one of them said with a laugh.
The name might be funny, but Immaculate Conception’s Catholic Hamburger Stand has a serious job to do. This beloved tradition is feeding an entire community not just with burgers, but with generosity and love.
Trust for Civic Life is partnering with Catholic Extension Society to further invest in this community, which will allow them to scale their efforts to reach more people.
Catholic Extension Society has supported Immaculate Conception Church in Wolf Point, Montana, for many years. We rely on the generosity of donors to fulfill our mission: to build up vibrant and transformative Catholic faith communities among the poor in the poorest regions of America. Please support our mission!
This story is part of a series on how Catholic parishes strengthen society. Read more here.
Header image: Jackie Jensen Photography
