How Nevada’s Mormon cricket invasion inspired ‘Cricket Con’-Selambe

ELKO, Nev. (ABC4) — Identical twin sisters Katherine Kelly and Cynthia Shedd put together a bug-themed event that was met with mixed reactions from the small-town community of Elko, Nevada.

“The feedback we have gotten has either been complete joy at how hilarious this is, or complete disgust at why would we celebrate these things,” Shedd told ABC4.com.

So, what type of event would be met with such varied reactions? The one and only Cricket Con.

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Together, the twins run their company CK Connections and Events LLC. Kelly and Shedd said they had a “crazy idea” after Mormon crickets began coming into their town earlier this year.

“We have been invaded by these, three- to sometimes kajillion-inch things called Mormon crickets for several years now, and they are an infestation,” Shedd said.

Kelly laughed at Shedd’s estimation of “kajillion-inch” long crickets, clarifying that four inches was a more accurate size. The sisters said the crickets cover the roads and affect daily life.

“It impacts businesses, it makes it so that people don’t want to go out, (the crickets) smell bad,” Shedd said of the infestation.

Kelly and Shedd said people often use leafblowers to move the crickets away from their front doors. Others have a broom that they use to sweep their way to their car when they leave home, and sweep their way back to their door when they get back home.

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“We are just kind of those people, that when we see a need, we’re brave enough to kind of take on the stress to give back to our community in whatever kind of ways they deem fit,” Kelly said.

The twins told ABC4.com that they had previously thought about having a cricket-themed event after the Mormon crickets came to town.

For Cricket Con, they partnered with local nonprofits, vendors, and townspeople — including the sheriff and local media personalities. Whoever raised the most money was tasked with eating a food-grade cricket live on social media.

“We wanna be a part of making our community and our world a place that we wanna live in and that we want our kids to grow up in, so we’re just trying to do our part,” Shedd said.

There were activity booths, food trucks, and even a costume contest, with categories for kids and adults alike. One booth had a challenge — attendees could call on their friends or family members to eat a cricket, and if they ate the cricket, they won a sticker designed by Kelly’s son.

“We need to have a conversation with the Mormon crickets about appreciation and gratitude, because they were just not feeling it,” Shedd said. “But the community definitely felt it, we’re getting great feedback.”