ARCOLA - Once again, the town of Arcola held their annual fair, beginning with a pancake breakfast at the Ag. Pavilion before the parade began.
Jason Dukart, along with his chefs and waiters, made sure to have everyone served before the parade started. The breakfast was well attended and sponsored by the RM of Brock.
Everyone in the Arcola area knows it's parade time when the antiquee tractors come rolling, which included the popular sound of the Rumley. The parade was well attended with 62 entries from local and out of town businesses.
The Arcola Co-op gas bar acknowledged recent retirements on the float. The sky was suggesting that it might rain, but in the end the sky cleared, which was welcomed by the parade committee.
For the first time, Doug Wyatt entered his 1962 Thunderbird that he had cleaned up for his granddaughter Teleah Wyatt’s graduation. The Oklahoma Express Horses joined the parade once again this year. They return to Canada for two months to join local parades and will also enter the Calgary Stampede parade. Doug and Brenda Sauter were from the Fairlight and Wawota area at one time.
At this time, the slo-pitch tournament was also well underway at the grounds, keeping teams working hard for the end prize.
The new food booth was a welcome addition. It is now located on the west side of the pavilion.
Jim and Branda Milligan take care of the kitchen and they are pleased with the size and ease of the kitchen for volunteers to work in. The Optimist Club of Arcola donated $15,000 to the project, while B and A Holdings donated the floor in the kitchen. The old food booth will be removed to find a new home.
The kitchen staff was happy to accommodate people who had allergies and tried their best to make sure everyone was fed and hydrated.
In the exhibition hall, the entries kept coming in and Judy Naylen said this is the best she has ever seen since she began organizing it.
Ninety-one adults and children received prizes and 72 students received prizes for the schoolwork they entered.
The talent show needed to be canceled but they did hold an open mic for those who were interested.
At noon, the junior steer and heifer show was underway. This had young adults grooming, bathing and getting their cattle ready for the ring.
This show is one of the highest payouts with prizes and is well worth the effort to get into.
Each class had five or six entries, and judge Chad Hallinger was pleased with each participant in the quality of the cattle.
Hallinger is a fifth-generation rancher, has 250 head of cattle and works 5,000 acres.
With competition being tight, it was a difficult choice for the judge. The winner of the grand champion steer was Kehler Eaton, and the grand champion heifer went to Cheyenne Symers.
Reserve champion steer was Calder Jones, while reserve champion heifer went to Rowyn Shier.
It takes a great deal of dedication to get these animals ready for the show ring and it begins once the calf is weaned.
The silent auction was organized by Autumn Downey and her crew, and they had 30 items available to bid on.
Throughout the day a 50/50 draw was taking place and the lucky winner of the first draw was Jeff Lees. Another 50/50 was held later in the evening. At the time of publication, the second winner was not announced.
Janine Houston and her Grade 11 students ensured the grounds remained clean and did an amazing job.
Later in the afternoon, Rodney and Crystal Cutler hosted the Tanner Robertson Memorial team roping competition. It was a welcome addition to the day.
Luke and Karley Hislop and their crew kept the hitching post in order well into the night when the dance took place.
Zane Vanderhulst and his team organized the slow pitch tournament, and the winning team was Manor Mayhem.
The day takes a team to make it happen and the Arcola Fair Society is proud of those that they have to make this an exceptional day.
