Adam Bramburger
Beaver Staff
From inflatable castles, to coloured goats, to speeding horses and lawnmowers, the 165th Centreville Fair had something to tickle nearly every fancy — but it also offered a comfortable familiarity.
Under the hot sun, Saturday, a good number of fairgoers simply ducked in behind the grandstand, grabbed a burger or slice of pie from Centreville United Church volunteers, and caught up.
“That’s one thing we really pride ourselves on, that people are comfortable enough they can come and visit with friends and family, meet some new friends, see old friends and have a nice family time,” said Centreville Agricultural Society president Lori Hurd. “We really try to keep the atmosphere of a good old country fair.”
Lennox and Addington 4-H goat club members Myah Rae-Detlor and Anthony Kerr show their animals in the ring Saturday morning. photo by Adam Bramburger.
People, surely, are responding. A large crowd gathered Friday night for the opening ceremonies. There was excitement for the horse races and Joe Saunders and the Red Road Express put on a great grandstand show.
According to Hird, livestock shows were well attended on Saturday and there were more participants in the goat show, which included Lennox and Addington 4-H club members getting points for the Royal Fair, and the cattle show. More horse riders appeared on the ball diamond as well for various games throughout the day. At the cattle area, a demonstration allowed members of the public to get into the ring and try their hand as show people. Home craft was also well represented this year as colourful arrays of flowers and produce as well as quilting caught the eye.
The Redneck Riders lawnmower races also provided a fun spectacle to round out the two days of fun.
Brittany Skinner competes in a barrel racing competition Saturday. Photo by Adam Bramburger.
One big plus this year was the installation of a new cattle tent, which went up Thursday with some members of the Lennox and Addington Cattlemen’s Association, fair board members, and other volunteers helping.
“We have no government funding, so we do it all through sponsors and the community attending the fair,” Hird said. “We held two craft shows this year and our father’s day breakfast in the spring — it was a huge success and we’d like to see it become an annual event. Things like that help us raise funds so we’re able to purchase and maintain the fairgrounds and the playground.”
Hird said the continued success of the fair is due to the interest of locals who come and show year-after-year. In the goat show, which she organizes, she said exhibitors are also travelling from other rural eastern Ontario areas like Pontypool, Merrickville, and Toledo for the chance to compete.
The efforts of many volunteers also serve as a testament to the spirt of the event.
Two wandering Tyrannosaurus caused a stir on the fairgrounds with many young visitors taking time to check out the unexpected guests. Photo by Adam Bramburger.
“We have a great group of volunteers. We’re small, but there’s people who come out the day of the fair that help us,” Hird said. “For myself, being president, all of the volunteers make my job easy and I don’t know what I would do without them. Everybody works well together and pitches in. As long as we can keep this going, it will be going.”
Kasey Woodcock tries his hand at the corn stalk toss during children’s games in front of the grandstand at this year’s Centreville Fair. Photo by Adam Bramburger.
That said, new support is always welcome. Those interested in seeing a lively small-town fair in Centreville are invited to find the Centreville Agricultural Society on Facebook, visit the society’s meetings at 7 p.m. on the third Wednesday of each month at the fairgrounds, or call Hird at 613-379-3039.