The Elkhorn Ag. Society (EAS) Fair has been around since 1893 and after a two-year absence its back for its 129th year.
However, this year was a bit different. Over the past 40 years I have come to enjoy the ag fair as a wonderful learning experience to discover where our food comes from, to see the baking and traditional handmade arts and crafts.
The ag fair this year was a shadow of its former self, due to a number of circumstances beyond their control and perhaps some changing social conditions.
The fairgrounds is located on the northwest side of the village, complete with a new canteen building. regular and handicap washrooms and a sheltered picnic table eating area. During the construction of the canteen they also had the contractor lay in power lines to other parts of the fairgrounds, to provide a convenient power source for other community events.
The night before the Saturday events there was a drive-in family movie, with canteen service.
Darren Johnson, president of EAS welcomed everyone to the movie put on by Bulldog Outdoor Movies on a large inflatable screen with a great sound system. The Disney production called "Encanto" drew families who sat bundled up in the back of trucks and vans on lawn chairs.
The next day started out with a pancake breakfast before the start of the horse show, and at noon there was a barbecue lunch.
By 2:00 pm it was all over. The horse show had light entries with English, Western, specialty and costume classes.
Where was the cattle show, the sheep shearing, the children’s events, the wonderful displays of flowers, new vegetables, baking, quilts, art work, local entertainment and my favourite, the cotton candy machine?
In talking to the present and past heads of EAS, Darren Johnson and Evan Overand, they said that a number of factors led to the smaller event.
In part, there are still some concerns about Covid and its variants. A late spring and an earlier show date did not give nature a chance to produce horticultural products for competition, and the main Ag Society display buildings were badly damaged by a recent break in and vandalism.
However, the main problem is the lack of community involvement.
They said, "Sadly the fair has been dwindling over the past few years and community support is vital for the survival of this event.” The president added, “We thank the exhibitors and volunteers who came out to support this community event and we hope everyone in attendance enjoyed the events we were able to hold."
In this time of a fast-changing world, it’s important to remember the traditions of the past and to see what our farm people do and where our daily bread comes from.
