18 BRAND STORY PRODUCED BY THE OREGON BUSINESS MARKETING DEPARTMENT BY JON BELL There’s a huge transformation that happens every year at the Pendleton Convention Center. It comes during the annual Pendleton Round-Up, the four-day rodeo and celebration of Western heritage that draws more than 50,000 people to Pendleton the first week in September. It’s then that the convention center, which offers more than 40,000 square feet of meeting and event space, becomes Goldie’s Bar, beckoning Round-Up attendees for some fun — music, dancing, gambling — into the wee hours. The Grand Entry at the Pendleton Round-up “By Saturday night, we’ve got 5,000 people in here dancing and drinking and having fun,” says Pat Beard, event manager for the Pendleton Convention Center. “It’s the biggest night club in Pendleton.” And then, just like that, the Round-Up’s over and Goldie’s reverts to its convention center self, ready to host meetings, events and conventions of nearly any size and sort. “It’s a pretty juxtaposed position,” Beard says. “We finish the biggest party of the year, and then the next week we have a religious event in the same space. It just shows how fast we can shift gears.” The Promise of Pendleton The Pendleton Convention Center offers world-class event amenities and service in a charming Western town.
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