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PAGE A2. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Pigeon King story still too close to home for some

The good times The Blyth Festival premiered The Pigeon King last year, telling the story of Arlan Galbraith and his Pigeon King International company. While the scheme left many bloodied in its wake, in the early days, farmers were excited and hopeful for the future, not knowing what was ahead of them. From left: Birgitte Solem, Jason Chesworth, J.D. Nicholsen and George Meanwell in last year’s Blyth Festival production of The Pigeon King. (Terry Manzo photo)

pigeon-breeder himself, was never recorded showing any remorse and has remained steadfast that it was a legitimate business venture. He promoted himself as a saviour of the family farm. In the end, he also ended up personally bankrupt so there was no restitution for farmers who signed contracts with PKI. The Pigeon King play follows the entire trajectory of Galbraith’s journey from passionate soliloquies on the importance of the family farm to bumbling attempts to defend himself when he acted as his own lawyer in court. It was the farmers’ stories that Garratt really wanted to hear and that he went in search of for this story. “It was really, really hard,” said Garratt. “They were still too upset to talk.” Some farmers were afraid the play would vindicate Galbraith and others were still too bitter as they continue to pay off debt. “People are just so ashamed. I talked with one woman who said if someone drove by while she was mowing the lawn, she would hide behind the bushes because she didn’t want to be seen,” said Garratt. It’s why he wanted the play to

present some important themes. One, that it could have happened to anyone. Secondly, the precariousness of a family farm income that puts farmers in the line of fire and third, the “seductive optimism” of someone like Galbraith that drew farmers in. “Farmers who got taken in were not fools or bad farmers,” said Garratt. “[Galbraith] went after communities that were inherently trusting; that relied on relationship and word of mouth.” Still, if you were one of the farmers who trusted Galbraith, the fall-out has been harsh. Using a pseudonym, ‘John’ said he would not be going to see the play because he still has a “bitter taste” in his mouth dating back to when he was left with years of debt and the sorry task of having to empty his barn of hundreds of birds he really enjoyed raising. John and his family bought 500 breeding pairs under the meat-bird program to raise specialty squab. They got in early but lost 70 per cent of the young due to a disease in the birds the first year. “We called PKI but they did not come out to help us. It was the local Continued on page A4

By Lisa B. Pot The Rural Voice Convicted fraudster Arlan Galbraith is the main character of The Pigeon King play that premiered at the Blyth Festival last season. However, as the theatre prepares for a remount of the hit play, the actor who plays Galbraith says the real story is about farmers. “[Farmers] are really the heroes of the show,” said Blyth Festival Artistic Director Gil Garratt, who co-wrote the play and acts in it as well. He will start shaving his head in May for his dynamic portrayal of Galbraith in a play that has just been picked up by the National Arts Centre in Ottawa for a three-week run as part of its 2018/2019 season. There is hope that the play will tour the country. Garratt also hopes the farmers who raised pigeons for Pigeon King International (PKI), before it collapsed as one of Canada’s more virulent pyramid schemes, will come see it. “During the first season, the play did what I hoped it would do... it ended up being a cathartic, healing experience for former pigeon farmers who came to see it,” said Garratt. “Instead of perpetuating their shame, it offered some relief.” The Pigeon King scandal saw farmers across Canada and the United States in financial straits struggling with shame, bitterness and burdensome debt that some are still paying off. According to research done for the play, other farmers struggled with marital conflicts, emotional stress and trust issues after being conned by the persuasive Galbraith. Meanwhile, Galbraith was convicted of fraud in March, 2014 for luring hundreds of farmers, many from the Mennonite and Amish communities, into his pigeon buyback scheme. Paying lucrative prices for farmers to first raise racing, then meat pigeons, only to sell them to new investors without any end market in sight, Galbraith was sentenced to seven years in jail. It’s estimated investors lost $20 million when the Waterloo-based offices of PKI closed. Farmers were stuck with thousands of birds and nowhere to sell them. Galbraith, a

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A3.

Ontario’s first IPM Princess has busy six months

A landmark day Brooklyn Hendriks from the Lucknow area was crowned the first-ever International Plowing Match Princess last September, paving the way for other young women to follow in her footsteps. She has been busy over the following six months, but it’s all been worth it since her life changed when program creators George and Ruth Townsend first slipped the crown onto her head that hot September Saturday. (File photo)

Knowing that winning the Huron County competition meant a bid in the first-ever provincial contest at the IPM added pressure for Hendriks. So, when she won, she said she was pretty thrilled. She then spent the rest of the summer as the president of the special Huron County-wide IPM 4H Club. The club formed with just under 20 members with the goal of hosting the county’s 4-H Club tent at the IPM. Those who participated learned about hosting an event from both an administrative and a logistical side. Where the club truly benefitted Hendriks in her quest to become the province’s first-ever Princess is the history that came from long-time 4H leader and plowing match judge Don Dodds, who served as one of the leaders of the club. Hendriks said that Dodds filled the club members with knowledge of Huron County history and stories from past IPMs that served her well when it came time for her interviews in the competition. When the time came for Hendriks to represent Huron County in the IPM competition, she admits that while she had prepared mentally, she

was so busy in the days leading up to the actual competition that she didn’t think about it much. Hendriks participated in a 4-H show the Saturday before the IPM and then was a part of the IPM church service the next day as the Huron County Princess. On Monday, she was busy helping to set up the 4-H Club tent on the IPM grounds and then spent a number of days at the IPM working at the tent, serving as a guide for guests, taking them around the display and telling them about Huron County 4-H. With the Princess competition due to only take one day (on Saturday of the IPM, the final day of the match), she was busy until the time of the competition. This is unlike the Queen of the Furrow competition, that sees contestants spend the entire week together, dining together, taking tours of local businesses and getting to know one another in advance of the public speaking and interviews. Hendriks said she was nervous for the IPM competition and that pulling the first speaking position didn’t help. But, in the end, she was relieved to speak first. Not only did Continued on page A7

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Brooklyn Hendriks says she has had the time of her life blazing a trail as the first-ever Princess of the Furrow since winning the crown at last September’s International Plowing Match (IPM) in Walton. Prevailing on home soil, Hendriks said, made her particularly proud. This was her match, she said, in her home county and that made her want to win it just that little bit more. Her journey to the top of the IPM’s first-ever Princess competition actually began in the summer of 2016 when she first entered the local competition at the Huron County Plowing Match. Hendriks came up just short with Irelyn St. Onge winning the crown, but Henriks was determined to come back in 2017, especially knowing that a win there would lead to a shot at the first-ever provincial crown at the IPM. The local Princess competition was spearheaded by George and Ruth Townsend of the Seaforth area just over a decade ago. The Townsends started the program with the hope that it would serve as a feeder system for the Queen of the Furrow competition. The Townsends had been involved with local plowing matches for decades and have now seen the Princess competition produce a number of intelligent, confident and capable young female contestants that have gone on to do great things not just in the Queen of the Furrow competition, but in the world. What first attracted Hendriks to the competition is that it wasn’t unlike agricultural competitions she was familiar with through her love of 4-H. To her, being the Princess of the Huron County Plowing Match was just another agricultural competition. Hendriks also enjoys public speaking and has proven to be good at it over the years, whether it was through school speech competitions or her eventual Princess win. In the 2017 Huron County competition, Hendriks competed against 11 other girls, which she says made her rather nervous. Not only were there a dozen competitors vying for the crown, but she knew many of them from school, 4-H or from the community.

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PAGE A4. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

‘Galbraith was a smart man’ says one farmer they orchestrate things like that.” He says the whole situation left a very sour taste in his mouth. “[Galbraith] was a smart man. Callous. I saw him on television and the interviewer asked him what he wanted to say to the farmers he hurt. You know what he said? He basically said we should ‘suck it up’ just like he had to.” That was the final straw for John. “I’m surprised nobody went and shot him.” Dave Sjaarda of Dungannon was another one of PKI’s victims but he has gone to see the play. “I was really impressed with it. I don’t think they left anything out.” said Sjaarda, who did meet Galbraith when he was raising pigeons in the early 2000s. “We got in it early and we shipped 11 times so at the end of the day, we were only left with a debt of about $5,000.” Using an existing barn, his outlay for renovations was minimal. Sjaarda recalls asking Galbraith about the end market. “He told me it

was my business to grow the birds and his business was his business.” He was starting to see the writing on the wall and wasn’t surprised when he did not receive payment for his 12th shipment. His own losses withstanding, Sjaarda says he’s grateful he only invested in 250 breeding pairs. He knows of Mennonites living nearby who took a “real hammering”. “You live and you learn,” said Sjaarda. “That Galbraith, he was sharp and definitely not a stupid man. But I can tell you I’d be more leery next time.” Frank Hogervorst of Avonbank in Granton, Ontario is now settling into retirement but remembers sitting across the desk from Galbraith in the man’s home. “He seemed like a good, honest man.” Feeling no qualms, and on recommendation from a friend, he signed a contract with PKI. It was, as Galbraith portrayed, an ideal family business. Hogervorst says when he Continued on page A5

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Arlan Galbraith, portrayed by Gil Garratt in the Blyth Festival’s show The Pigeon King, has been described by many as being both “smooth” and “smart” when it came to his business. His story will be back on stage this year in Blyth and then early next year at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. From left: Rebecca Auerbach, J.D. Nicholsen and Garratt. (Terry Manzo photo) Continued from page A2 vets who came up with ideas to help us through that,” said John. He never met Galbraith face to face, although he saw him speak at a meeting. “There was something about the guy I didn’t like. He was so smooth and buttery. Turns out I was right when I got that feeling.” Later, he realized he had been buying basic farm pigeons as breeding stock from PKI; not at all meaty enough for a squab market. John had, at first, really believed pigeon breeding was a legitimate business after visiting four other setups and researching for months. He had hoped to have 750 pairs in rented facilities. Both he and his wife had off-farm jobs. “I was 52 when I went into it and 55 when it went belly up. How much time does a fella have at 55 to regain those losses?” he asked. He was in it early and long enough to pay feed

bills but was left with a “hefty debt”. Looking back at those years, he remembers liking the work of raising pigeons. “All that cooing in the barn. It was a unique sound. Very serene.” He doesn’t feel serene now. “When I think back I can feel the emotions. It was hard. I remember

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Festival show set for National Arts Centre stage Continued from page A4 thinks of that time, he mostly recalls how raising pigeons was a uniting family experience. “We’d spend Saturdays in the barn cleaning the nests and it was great family time,” said Hogervorst, who, like Sjaarda, got into pigeons early. “It was to be the kids’ project,” said Hogervorst. “We had an existing barn to renovate, borrowed $60,000 and bought 150 pairs of flyers.” The family was under contract to raise sport pigeons for PKI. At first, the family couldn’t believe how lucrative the venture was. The work was easy and Galbraith’s buy-back of the young was incredibly profitable, allowing for a calculated return on investment (ROI) within two years. That’s exactly what happened. “Less than two years later it collapsed but we had our investment back out and the kids received a wage for the work,” said Hogervorst. “We were one of the lucky ones.” Toward the end, he was beginning to realize what was really going on. “At first, PKI was sending people (interested in raising pigeons) to see our barn and we were encouraging them. But when we looked at the end user and began to suspect this was a pyramid scheme, we told people not to get into it,” he said. PKI soon stopped sending prospective clients to see the Hogervorsts. Still deep in their investment, the Hogervorsts continued to sell young, but Frank warned his children the business would implode. It was just a matter of when. “They certainly learned a lot about business during those two years,” said Hogervorst. Looking back now, he wonders at Galbraith’s culpability. “How could anyone develop such a scheme knowing it would hurt and ruin so many farm families?” he asked. Many young farm families were looking at pigeons to get ahead in much the same way Hogervorst was: to give his kids a start via PKI. Later, though, when warnings of the scheme were published in magazines such as Better Farming, he wondered if it was tough for

farmers not to resist the dream. What happened with PKI is a word of caution to business owners. “When it looks too good to be true, it generally is. This turned out to be just like that.” Hogervorst doesn’t doubt Galbraith’s culpability in bilking investors of millions of dollars. “When you have a business there is either an end user or it’s a scheme. It has to be one or the other,” said Hogervorst. “If he has any innocence, he should have talked.” Galbraith was a verbose man but he would choose when to talk or not according to Mary Baxter, part of a three-member team from Better Farmer that broke the story back in 2007. Working with her were former colleagues Don Stoneman and Robert Irwin. Baxter is now TVO’s southwestern Ontario hub editor. “If he wanted something from you, he’d talk. If he wasn’t interested, he would blow you off,” said Baxter. She said it was a challenging story to write because nobody wants to think ill of others and the farmers themselves were in a difficult place. “The farming community is a proud community and they have many reasons to be proud,” said Baxter. “But people’s farms were in jeopardy and people were not happy with me. There was a lot of anger about the coverage.” However, she’d learned that Galbraith’s former employees had warned him that what he was doing was very likely illegal. Yet Galbraith kept issuing pigeon contracts. “[Galbraith] always seemed to have responses with enough plausibility to make you pause. It really was never black and white,” she said. “The greatest schemers are the ones who keep you guessing.” That’s why her biggest understanding from writing the story is that people who get scammed are not stupid. “Everybody and anybody can get scammed. What I really liked about the play was how it respected the farmers involved; that it understood farmers are proud and didn’t want to be seen as victims. All the pigeon farmers ever wanted was to have a good business,” she said. Providing a vehicle for farmers’ voices is key to the success of the

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play as the Festival prepares to launch the second season of The Pigeon King on May 30. “When we did research for this play we listened to the trial and got to go though all the evidence,” said Garratt. “It became very clear that the story was different than the one Galbraith projected.” However, the outward signs weren’t there. Galbraith did not bounce cheques. Pick-ups were regular and timely until the very end. “And he was very affable,” said Garratt. “We talked to people who said the business part made them really upset and was a blow to their family, but they would still sit down and have a meal with Galbraith.” Baxter believes the play has an important role in opening the conversation about what happened. “It needs to be talked about and I hope the play will foster discussion in a gentler fashion, allowing farmers to talk in a way they could not do before,” she said. Personally, as the actor who portrays Galbraith in the play,

Garratt said it was exciting for him to have “free reign” to capture Galbraith’s showy personality. “I had many comments from people saying how much I was like Arlen.” It was important to him to capture Galbraith’s likeability, because it was part of the scam; he was believable. Of the farmers interviewed for the play, most were hesitant to talk and would not see the production. However, once word got out about how the play gave farmers a voice, it turned into a hit performance for the Festival. “Obviously this play won’t give those farmers their farms back, but we hope it will give them some dignity back,” said Garratt. With the National Arts Centre producing the play, there is resounding amplification for both the theatre and farmers. “As a theatre artist and for the theatre company, this is a big, big deal,” said Garratt. “Then to take this play full of farmers and about farmers to the stage in the

nation’s capital, well, that’s huge.” The underlying message that is vital for an urban audience to see and hear is that farmers are attached to their animals. “To have this play seen in an urban environment; showing that farmers do care about their animals, will have a profound impact,” said Baxter. For more information on The Pigeon King or the Blyth Festival’s upcoming season, visit its website at www.blythfestival.com.

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PAGE A6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Leftover pigeons reached crisis proportions said Beaven. “With avian influenza, there is a reason and rationale of protecting the industry. With the pigeons, there was no reason except the fallout of human greed. It was frustrating for the farmers, myself

and the team, but it had to be done to protect the poultry industry.” Frank Hogervorst, a former pigeon breeder said what he had to do at the end was so difficult. “The Continued on page A8

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The Pigeon King production at the Blyth Festival, above, dealt with the euthanization of thousands of leftover pigeons as a result of the Pigeon King International scheme with both humour and sadness. From left: Jason Chesworth, Birgitte Solem, J.D. Nicholsen, Rebecca Auerbach, Gil Garratt and George Meanwell. (Terry Manzo photo)

By Lisa B. Pot The Rural Voice Writing or visualizing the mass killing of pigeons can overshadow the human tragedy of what happened to farmers when the Pigeon King International pyramid scheme collapsed. In The Pigeon King play, the reality is handled with both humour (“pigeons don’t just fly away no matter how much you ‘shoo’ them”) and great sadness as it shows one farmer drowning his pigeons in burlap sacks. In real life, it was both a traumatic and in a weird way, an angelic experience says Mark Beaven of Seaforth, who is currently the Executive Director of the Canadian Animal Health Coalition and VicePresident of Ogena Solutions. He was the Director of Operations for Egg Farmers of Ontario (EFO) at the time of the crisis. With thousands of farmers left with pigeons they could not sell, and those farmers generally having thousands of birds in each barn, the problem reached crisis proportions. Exacerbating the problem was the potential for disease if released pigeons infected the stable and profitable chicken industry.

“I talked to one veterinarian in the [U.S.] because he had seen the diseases in the pigeons,” says Mary Baxter, currently TVO’s southwestern Ontario hub editor and formerly of Better Farming magazine, who followed the Pigeon King scandal for many years. “He was very concerned about the health of the birds and the kind of instruction Arlan Galbraith (the Pigeon King) was giving farmers to take care of the birds,” she added. It’s a concern Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) and EFO took seriously. “We had a team in place that had developed and practised bird euthanasia in case of an outbreak of avian influenza,” said Beaven. When the Pigeon King pyramid imploded, the team offered its services to assist pigeon producers in euthanizing their large flocks. “We saw it as a way to help, but also as an opportunity to gain scientific experience and data in regards to bird euthanization,” said Beaven. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was invited to make sure the process was humane and farmers were also on-site. The farmer was responsible for removal

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A7.

Hendriks says she’ll consider Queen competition

The first of her kind Brooklyn Hendriks was crowned Huron County Princess in 2017 and just about a month later she won the provincial crown in Walton – the first time it had ever been handed out. Not only did she impress herself, but she made her family and supporters like George and Ruth Townsend proud.

Since the big win, Hendriks has been busy. She attended a number of local fall fairs, which led right into Santa Claus parades. In addition, she has attended a number of plowmen’s association functions, both local and provincial, as well as an Ontario Federation of Agriculture dinner alongside local representative Margaret Vincent. This summer, however, Hendriks is preparing for another busy time that will be followed by a difficult time for her. Unlike Queens of the Furrow, Hendriks will have to pass down two crowns in one year. Hendriks will serve as the emcee for both the Huron County and IPM Princess competitions. They will both be bittersweet moments for her, she said, but at the IPM in ChathamKent, she hopes to be able to pass her crown on to a girl from Huron County to start a local winning streak. The experience, she said, has been tremendous. Admittedly, the Ontario Plowmen’s Association hasn’t had a playbook for the Princess competition and Hendriks and her family have often had to play it by ear, but she says she has enjoyed every second of it. She hopes that what she’s done has provided a bit of a path for future Princesses to follow and that it will be easier for those who win in the future. As for the whole reason for the Princess competition, to prepare participants for the Queen of the

Furrow competition, Hendriks says it has succeeded and she hopes to one day compete in the Queen competition. Both Hendriks and her mother Cathy acknowledge that it might be tough as Brooklyn gets older and attends post-secondary school, but it’s a hope she’s not yet ready to abandon. Hendriks, a 16-year-old Grade 11 student at Wingham’s F.E. Madill

Secondary School, said she isn’t sure about her path in life yet, but she hopes to maybe one day be either a dietician or to enroll in the agriculture program at the University of Guelph. For more information on this year’s IPM Princess competition, set for the IPM in Chatham/Kent this September, visit the Ontario Plowmen’s Association online at plowingmatch.org.

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Continued from page A3 she get it out of the way, but she was the first to mention a number of topics, so she felt she couldn’t be accused of copying any speakers who came before her. She said she wasn’t thrilled with her answer to the impromptu question she was handed about the heritage of tractor-pulling, but she was able to answer and impress the judges, as her father had been a long-time tractor pull participant. She remembers how hot it was that day and the agonizing wait while the judges made their decision. When she was named to the Princess competition’s top five, she said she was happy, sitting with the Huron County crown and a top-five finish

in the provincial competition. When she won, however, she was over the moon. When she was being crowned by George and Ruth Townsend, her mind went back to something George had told her over a month earlier. When she was crowned the Huron County Princess, George told her that “she better win” the provincial crown the first time it was up for grabs, especially since it was happening in Huron County. She said that definitely made her want it much more, but she was also happy to have made the Townsends proud, not to mention the numerous family members she had in the audience, including her grandparents.

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PAGE A8. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Fall Fair/IPM partnership paid off says Cardiff By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen An audacious plan to marry two great agricultural institutions – an authentic rural Ontario fall fair and the International Plowing Match (IPM) – proved a great success last September, all thanks to the Brussels Agricultural Society working with the IPM executive. The decision to hitch the society’s wagon to the IPM’s star was made years before the 2017 event and after months of healthy debate and logistical investigations. Matt Cardiff, who would be president at the time of the 2017 fair, said that while he understood some of the concerns, he had always been supportive of the move. He says he knew it would be a lot of work, but that in the end it would be worth it. Dorothy Cummings, who is now president of the organization for the third time, said she has always been amazed at the ability of the society’s members to pull together and host a fair of its

Making his mark Brian Schlosser, the long-time secretary of the Brussels Agricultural Society, welcomed thousands of International Plowing Match visitors to sign his barn quilt, entitled “Norah’s Pinwheel” while the society hosted its annual Fall Fair at the match. It marked the coming-together of two (File great provincial agricultural institutions at long last.

Pigeons were the innocent victims on the floor and the CO2 would fill the barn from the bottom up. “Within minutes they were euthanized,” he said. The team would let the barn sit for between 20 and 30 minutes, then go in with airtesting equipment before clearing the barn for entry. “And it didn’t happen every time or to every bird, but it happened enough. We’d go in and the dead pigeons would be lying there, heads back, wings outstretched, tail feathers spread out, looking like dead angels. “It was freaky. It was not what I expected. It was truly ironic given the situation that the pigeons ended up in an angelic pose because the pigeons were not at fault. They were the innocent ones.”

ability was simply just multiplied. Both Cardiff and Cummings said the true success of the fair was that Continued on page A9

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Continued from page A6 hardest thing for us to do was kill our investment.” Another farmer who contracted with PKI couldn’t talk about it. “What can I say? They disappeared. What do you do with 3,000 birds?” Farmers who got into pigeon breeding on a large scale and those who managed the holding barns where Galbraith kept pigeons between pick-up and selling them as breeders had to empty their barns. Beaven and his team had the awful task of gassing pigeons to death. An unusual visual gave him pause after these mass euthanasias. Describing the system of manifolds, pipes, hoses and CO2 trucks that pumped gas into sealed barns, Beaven said most birds were

size. When the society did just that for a fall fair on the IPM grounds that would eventually host tens of thousands of visitors, that

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Messy Wednesday eased pressure for Brussels Fall Fair members of the IPM committee had lined the entire tent with wood shavings and tended to moisture issues as a result of the rain. Both Cardiff and Cummings said that was an amazing display of community spirit for which they’ll be forever grateful. After the relocation of the 4-H show and maintenance to the Walton location, the Thursday, Friday and Saturday of the IPM all proved to be banner days for the Brussels Fall Fair, Cardiff said. The only other challenge the society faced over the course of the week was its best-laid plans of Continued on page A19

well as the IPM, that Cardiff thinks really impressed was how the community pulled together in the face of adversity. While the majority of the society members were busy at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre on the Wednesday of the IPM due to the change of venue for the 4-H show, members expected to return to Walton with a mountain of work to do at their tent. With no one tending to the location over the course of the day, members anticipated hours of work that night in order to get it ready for the next day when the IPM was scheduled to reopen. However, upon returning, they found that

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A fortuitous move While the rains of the opening day of last September’s International Plowing Match will live on in infamy for years, there was one rainbow that came out of the storm. The Brussels Fall Fair’s annual sheep and beef 4-H shows were going to have to be shortened to 45 minutes in the IPM show ring. The competition often takes over four hours, so when the fair was forced to move back to Brussels for Wednesday due to the weather-related site closure, 4-H members breathed a sign of relief, as did fair organizers and judges like Kayla Bishop, left. (File photo) Continued from page A8 the community’s exhibitors came through. Without exhibits, Cardiff said, there is no fair. So, when the fair moved location and the society expanded its reach, it was the exhibitors who rose to the challenge and helped ensure the success of the fair. In addition, the most pivotal moment in the entire IPM, the massive Tuesday downburst that forced the closure of the site on Wednesday, actually worked in the favour of the fair – perhaps the only group to benefit from the unfortunate weather event. Cummings said that as a result of the Wednesday closure, the fair had to move its 4-H beef show and achievement day, as well as the 4-H sheep show, to the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre, its traditional home. At the IPM, the fair was set to host the shows in the match’s main show ring. However, due to scheduling pressures and paid entertainers, the 4-H shows would have to be completed in 45 minutes, rather than the four hours they usually take. This was one of the few areas of stress for members of the society

without a clear solution. Cummings said that IPM Chair Jacquie Bishop, who had been a champion for the fall fair moving to the IPM since first proposing the idea to the society several years ago, couldn’t do anything to help. The conflict was completely out of her hands. With the pressure mounting and no solution in sight, the site closure on Wednesday provided a clear solution for the society, although the closure wreaked havoc for everyone back in Walton. Having said that, both Cummings and Cardiff say that the IPM representatives were fantastic to deal with, outside of issues over which they had no control. The group spent over a week setting up their tent at the grounds and whenever they needed something, they would contact one of the match’s representatives and, no matter how obscure the request, it would always be filled promptly. “The IPM guys were amazing to deal with,” Cummings said. “We all really pulled together to make the experience as good as possible.” While the 4-H shows proved to be a success in Brussels, in front of a larger-than-average audience, the

bulk of the fair was still back in Walton under the Brussels Agricultural Society’s tent. Because of the quantity of exhibitions and the quality of their stage shows – whether it was musical performances by area-based musicians or the local 4-H Go for the Gold competition – Cardiff said he felt that the society put its best foot forward in the Walton-based tent. “I think we showed a really good fair at the IPM,” Cardiff said. “Despite the challenges I think we really pulled it off.” One of the aspects of the fair, as

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PAGE A10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Scott-Land Yard Honey starts with retirement gift

A new kind of Honey-Do list North Huron residents and former OPP officers Mike Scott, left, and Arden Farrow found themselves thrust into the world of beekeeping when Farrow received bee boxes as a retirement gift. The couple turned their home farm and their cottage near Lake Huron into Scott-Land Yard Wild Flower Honey. The company harvested 1,500 lbs of honey last year, up significantly from their first harvest of 100 lbs. (Photo submitted)

By Denny Scott The Citizen While typical retirement gifts can vary significantly, very few likely get bee boxes like North Huron’s Arden Farrow did when she retired from the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). The boxes are for harvesting honey from bees, something Farrow had expressed an interest in after retiring, which she did in 2014. “I always said I wanted to have

bees, so, when I got this as a gift, it was great,” she said. “I took a weekend course, got the kits and was ready to go.” “We ordered a nucleus from Fear Apiaries and had two colonies initially,” Farrow’s husband, fellow retired OPP officer Mike Scott said. In a tale that is shared by many farm producers, Farrow and Scott began giving their product to friends as gifts, and those friends loved it so much they said they would buy it. “From there, we started pursuing

it as more of a business,” she said. Scott said that, while the bees and honey were originally Farrow’s project, he was happy to get involved. “We were buying everything to expand the colony and, long story short, the pricing was pretty high,” he said. “I downloaded some plans, starting getting lumber and making boxes.” From those two boxes, the honey making operation, called Scott-Land Yard Wild Flower Honey, has grown into 35 boxes and, if Scott’s plans come to fruition, will expand to 50 this year. “Fifty boxes is the top-end while balancing this as a hobby and a quasi-business,” Scott said, though Farrow said that 35 is a fine number too. After the second and third seasons in operation, the couple have started splitting colonies to grow them. “We’ve really been kind of selftaught,” Scott said. “We did watch some YouTube videos and picked up a book called Beekeeping for Dummies which was a huge help, but we’ve just started and learned as we went on.” Scott builds the boxes out of reclaimed wood and, while many people may be more used to seeing fields of white bee boxes, there is a little more colour to the Scott-Land Yard operation. “We use reclaimed paint and reclaimed wood to make everything,” Farrow said. Scott said he is loving having the hands-on experience of building the boxes because nothing is more satisfying than building and painting them and seeing them used in such a productive manner. The honey-making operation is split between Farrow and Scott’s home in North Huron and cottage near Kingsbridge, providing two different kinds of pollen for their product. “Here at home we have everything Continued on page A11

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Boxes an exercise in recycling for Scott-Land Yard help to avoid major problems if she is stung again. “The needles build up my resistance,” she said. Now, however, she does wear protective equipment when handling the hives and the honey. Having been a career police officer, Farrow found some humour in the development. “I wore a bullet-proof vest all my career and faced down dangerous situations, but then I was taken down by a bee sting,” she said with a laugh. Despite the challenges, however, the two agree that being beekeepers is an excellent way to spend their

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Colourful creations When Arden Farrow’s beekeeping hobby started growing, her husband Mike started building bee boxes. The boxes and paint are all reclaimed, making the project pretty environmentallyfriendly. (Photo submitted) Continued from page A10 from hayfield to wildflowers,” Farrow said. “We’ve got 10 hives at home and the rest are at the cottage, which are surrounded by clover.” Last year, Scott-Land Yard produced 1,500 lbs of honey, a significant increase from their first harvest of 100 lbs in 2015. “We were actually very impressed with last year’s harvest because we heard other keepers had a terrible season,” Scott said. “That wasn’t what we experienced.” Fifteen-hundred pounds of honey may seem like a lot, but, through word-of-mouth, Scott-Land Yard doesn’t have to do much to move all the honey it produces. “We had a call from a lady based in Mississauga,” he said, explaining she was a friend of a friend. “She wanted to buy and give out honey to her extended family, but couldn’t find any naturally-produced honey in her area.” The woman showed up and apparently liked what she saw, Farrow said, as she has a standing order for 400 pounds of honey, between one-quarter and one-third of the harvest, every season. The couple has also taken to some interesting advertising with their company car: a Volkswagen bug painted bright yellow featuring the company name on the side. The car was a restoration project and actually includes parts from both 1968 and 1973 models of the car. Not everything has been easy with the company, however. From finding the right equipment to learning what works and what doesn’t, Farrow and Scott have faced off against some difficult challenges. “In the first year we had an extractor which we bought from a man outside of Listowel,” Scott said. “We picked the thing up, it was all iron and stainless steel and it must have weighed 300 pounds.” Scott and Farrow went on to explain that the extractor, which automatically removes the honey from the boxes, operated slower than just doing the process by hand. “We started doing it manually because of that,” Farrow said. “Our big concern, however, was making sure we left enough honey for the hives to get through the winter.” More recently, the couple invested

in an Italian extractor which does a much more effective job of collecting the honey, they said. Farrow also recently found out that she had become allergic to bees. She explained that being stung numerous times can result in the development of an allergy, which is a serious concern in the beekeeping industry. “Two summers ago, I would open the boxes every couple weeks and it wasn’t a problem,” she said. Scott agreed, saying that she would sometimes work around the hives in shorts and a t-shirt with, at most, a beekeeper’s hat for protection. “Sure, I got stung, but nothing ever really happened,” she said. Then, one day last year, the allergy manifested. “I was stung on the hand and, shortly after, my feet started to get itchy,” she said. “It wasn’t long before I was having a full-blown reaction.” They got some allergy medication and made their way to the hospital, admitting it was a surprise. After meeting with doctors,

time now that they’re both retired. “It’s really rewarding,” Scott said. “It’s good, sweet fun.” While the project initially started as something Farrow was interested in, Scott admits, at times, he may seem a bit more excited about it than Farrow is, though she is quick to admit that everything about the business is a two-person job. For more information contact Farrow and Scott at 519-523-9196 or at scottlandyardshoney@gmail.com. Locally, their produce can be found at Stitches with a Twist or the Queens Bakery in Blyth or at the Auburn Branch of Huron Bay Cooperative.

Farrow was told that people, and especially beekeepers, can develop the allergy from the constant stings. Farrow had to get a series of allergy shots, which she said was “intensive”. That first series is now followed by regular boosters which

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PAGE A12. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

First season full for ambitious Brussels barn project interesting and unique artifacts that really add to the feel of the barn and help sell it as an agricultural location,” Terpstra said. “He really wants to share his love of barns and his love of agriculture with people through this building.” She added that Floral, Morton’s wife, has been a constant asset to the project as well.

That agriculture-centred attitude permeates the people involved with the project as well, Terpstra said, saying that many of those involved with the project are directly linked to a farmer. Morton, in previous interviews, has explained that much of his desire to build the barn comes from his Continued on page A13

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By Denny Scott The Citizen Turning a large empty space into a modern, rural-themed wedding facility and community-focused facility has been no mean task for Bryan Morton, but making that site a success, with bookings already well into 2019, has fallen to site administrator Barb Terpstra and manager Kathy Stephenson. Getting the bank barn, piece for piece, to downtown Brussels from the Wheeler farm, outside of Brussels, was no mean task. It took years of working through the system, proving that not only would the structure be a benefit to downtown Brussels, but also guaranteeing it wouldn’t result in a negative impact as far as everything from storm water management to Brussels’ downtown heritage. After that, it was a timeconsuming and meticulous project, requiring that, as Mennonite labourers carefully took down the Wheeler barn, an English high post bank barn built in 1862 in the former Grey Township, each piece was tagged and catalogued to be put back up again as the original agricultural structure in the middle of downtown Brussels. Bank barns, by definition, are structures that are fully accessible from the ground level and, with two full levels, both of which have outdoor ingresses, the structure lives up to its name. From there, pieces were brought back in and the structure was recreated as close to the original as possible, with a few new touches including a restructured silo roof Morton designed himself. Part of what makes the project so impressive is that much of the work has been done by volunteers, friends and family. One of the last major “to-do” items was the interior stonework, according to Terpstra. It was being completed in midMarch by community members

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and friends of the project. The final product has been a labour of love, instead of something people were paid to do. “You can see that in the craftsmanship,” Terpstra said. “Under Bryan, everything is aesthetically correct for the barn, and that has required a significant amount of hands-on work at all levels, making sure what was original was reassembled properly and what was recreated was done so faithfully.” While great care was given to recreating the barn, sourcing the right kind of materials for new additions and retouches, it also features some unique changes that make it an attractive facility that honours its rural roots. “Bryan brought in a lot of

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Morton inspired by children to take on project Aside from weddings and private bookings, the barn will be the site of car shows, Christmas parties and a pop-up wedding dress sale is being planned for the site. While the two said they wanted to start slow and make sure the policies and practices were in place before aiming for more events, they were both excited about a monthly “Diner’s Club”

they plan to operate monthly there. The duo plan to bring in local chefs to prepare multi-course meals as a way to offer additional dining experiences in Brussels. “We’re not making a restaurant here,” Terpstra said, adding they weren’t looking to compete with the two restaurants in Brussels. “We do want to offer people in Brussels Continued on page A16

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Bryan Morton has been a busy man over the past several years, planning, taking down and rebuilding an English high post bank barn in the middle of Brussels. The project has been a hands-on one for the local farmer, as he has been involved with everything from hauling materials to designing parts of the structure. (Denny Scott photo) Continued from page A12 children, including his daughters, author Ann Voskamp and the late Aimee Morton who died in a farming accident when she was two years old. Morton created the barn, in part, to honour Aimee, calling the wedding reception hall “Aimee’s Wedding Loft”. It may be fate that the first wedding in the barn, held in early March, involved Brussels native Ami Schimanski and her husband Tim Hendry-Gallagher. While the spellings may be different, the coincidence wasn’t lost on Morton, who took some time to have his photo taken with Schimanski under the reception hall sign. Some of the work is still being completed, including final touches on the locally-made chairs and liveedge tables in the reception area. While the interior work continues, the two explained they are also preparing to landscape the exterior of the site, not only for photographs, but, in the next two years, to be able to offer an outdoor wedding space,

which many couples have asked about. The Hendry-Gallagher/Schimanski wedding was the first of many scheduled for the next three years. “We have 54 bookings into 2019,” Stephenson said. “We had a wedding on March 3, and the next is June 1, and, going forward we have every weekend booked this year. “We also have weddings booked in 2019 and are booked for July, August and September,” she said. Much like the building of the barn, the Hendry-Gallagher/Schimanski wedding took a village to pull off, Stephenson said. “We had volunteers out to help,” she said. “The Lions Club was amazing.” While they are still in the process of finalizing permits and licences, Stephenson and Terpstra said the space will seat up to 200 adding that the two have directed requests for bigger events to the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre. The two have also started working with local wedding industry professionals to create a list of suggested vendors for weddings.

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PAGE A14. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Firmly Rooted moves operation to North Huron

Moving on up Tamara McMullen, left, and Brian Wiley recently moved Firmly Rooted, the couple’s agricultural company, which produces organic greens and runs a CSA, to a farm in North Huron. The move has opened up new partnerships for the couple. (Denny Scott photo)

“We’re planning on scaling up to three acres of produce soon,” she said, adding that owning the land and being able to have more permanent infrastructure has already paid off. “We’ve been able to build a larger hoop house which is more advanced and automatic, which leads to better quality produce.” Wiley explained that he and McMullen are trying to implement technological advancements throughout their operation, including more efficient venting systems and overhead sprinklers in their hoop house that are far less labourintensive than the drip tape system they used before. “We struggled with getting everything done sometimes,” McMullen said. “The labour took so much time that we would sometimes find ourselves getting behind on things like paperwork.” Work like weeding, which prevents problems with future production, was also difficult to schedule due to time crunches at Firmly Rooted’s old site, but, with new automatic systems, Wiley and McMullen said the efficiencies are helping free up time. “We’re in for the long haul here and plan do to this forever,”

McMullen said. “But you have to respect your own body and doing this work, and using the walking tractor takes its toll and we want to be able to do this when we’re 60 or 70 years old.” While there never really is an end to the work, Wiley said, having more efficient equipment allows him and McMullen to focus on other parts of the business. More efficient work also lends itself to a more productive company, which will allow Firmly Rooted to hire additional help, further making sure all the goals of the company are met. The change also lets Wiley and McMullen focus on other aspects of farming they haven’t explored yet, including cover crops, larger machinery to find further efficiencies and offering more of the crops the company has become known for throughout the county and beyond. “It’s about having quantity and quality for every week of the season,” McMullen said. “We want to make sure we have salad mix and enough crops to do well.” While the bulk of the land and equipment will be dedicated to offering more of what Firmly Continued on page A15

By Denny Scott The Citizen For farmers Brian Wiley and Tamara McMullen and their farm business Firmly Rooted, waiting just wasn’t in the cards. The couple purchased a farm north of Blyth last year and had planned on moving to the site slowly from the plot of land they worked on Wiley’s family farm near Bayfield. However, they moved their community supported agriculture (CSA) project and organic produce business to North Huron as soon as possible. “When something is yours, you want to be there,” McMullen said. “The idea behind us buying was to start to put down roots and build infrastructure for the farm and the business.” The move also resulted in the couple and their young son moving out of their home, a tiny house and yurt merged together, to a more traditional, two-storey farm house. “The living arrangements are good,” McMullen said “It took some time to get used to it, and Brian still misses the yurt sometimes. That really wasn’t like any other space.” As for the business, McMullen said that Firmly Rooted is currently taking two of the farm’s five acres.

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A15.

More space means more crops: Wiley Continued from page A14 Rooted already sells, the couple did say they may look at expanding into special varieties of potatoes. The property also includes other agricultural assets, including a small barn, that the couple plan to use. The move to the Blyth area has opened up new markets to the couple who have struck partnerships with local businesses like Blyth Cowbell Brewing Company and Part II Bistro. Firmly Rooted is providing some produce right now to Cowbell’s chef Alex Lussier, and, when the growing season starts, will be able to deliver kale, eggplants, zucchini, basil and herbs. “With the changes we have been able to implement here, we will be able to have more covered space and provide more year-round produce in the coming years,� Wiley said. With the Bistro, Wiley and McMullen are preparing to provide their flagship product, salad greens, to Chef Peter Gusso and hope to

work with him to offer their entire range of produce through both Part II Bistro locations in Blyth and Goderich. “We’re really excited to be in the Blyth area because of all the interesting businesses that are starting up,� McMullen said. The company will also continue with existing partnerships they created when based near Bayfield, including the Benmiller Inn, Samuels Hotel in Saltford, the Black Dog and Little Inn in Bayfield and Cait’s Cafe in Goderich. Firmly Rooted will also continue to be a part of farmers’ markets in Goderich and Bayfield. The CSA program will run two sessions in the coming year, Wiley said, 18 weeks from June until Thanksgiving and the 10 weeks after Thanksgiving into December. With the new farm location, a drop-off in Blyth has been added. For more information on the program, visit www.firmlyrooted.ca, call 519-440-6676 or e-mail firmlyrootedfarm@gmail.com

What once was Last year at this time, Brian Wiley, left, and Tamara McMullen were considering slowly moving from their home and fields on Wiley’s parents’ farm to a farm in North Huron the young couple had purchased. However, they decided to push up the schedule a bit. The two traded in the yurt and tiny house, shown above, for a more traditional two-storey farm house and now own five acres of farmable land in North Huron. The move means they can offer their organic produce through businesses like Part II Bistro and Blyth Cowbell Brewing Company as well as offer a Blyth stop for their community-supported produce. (Denny Scott photo)

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PAGE A16. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

County to consider Carbon Footprint Initiative By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Huron County has lofty goals when it comes to its energy consumption and carbon offsets for

its place in the national landscape. Just last month, Warden Jim Ginn raised the concept of Huron being the country’s first-ever carbonneutral county. Not only would it be good for the environment, he said,

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but it would also drive things like tourism, economic development and new resident attraction from the ever-allusive young professional sector. Admittedly, Ginn said he didn’t know exactly how attainable that goal would be, but he felt it was worth investigating further. In a county the size of Huron, with no public transit system, becoming

completely carbon-neutral would be a lofty goal, but some businesses have made it their mandate. Blyth Cowbell Brewing Company, for instance, has pledged to be North America’s first-ever carbon-neutral brewery, according to the company. In that same vein, the county is considering participating in the Carbon Footprint Initiative program, which is an energy-saving effort

being rolled out through the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA). The program has brought together those in both the private and public sectors in an effort to maximize their profits of course, but not at the risk of environmental sustainability. North Huron Publishing’s The Rural Voice has previously reported on a Continued on page A17

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Continued from page A13 something a little different though.” The barn will also feature a yearround home for a farmers’ market and a flower shop run by Terpstra. Morton’s project was mainly aimed at giving back to the community, something his children inspired him to do, but it was also

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A17.

Tree cover helps reduce county carbon footprint Continued from page A16 number of organizations that are now involved with the alliance, including J.H. Keeso and Sons Ltd. in Listowel, the Municipality of North Perth, Ideal Supply Co. Ltd., Dupont Pioneer and Molesworth Farm Supply Ltd., to name a few. Rachel White, Huron County’s stewardship co-ordinator, recently prepared a report for Huron County Council on the initiative and the potential for the county to be a part of it. She said that the county is already taking certain steps in the right direction and doing some of the things the Carbon Footprint Initiative calls for. Other projects, however, would take a bit more work and time, but they could be within reach. Being a card-carrying participant in the initiative means actively working to reduce carbon output and tracking things like energy usage and fleet travel. While working to reduce those carbon emitters, the county would also work on implementing significant offsets, like planting trees, which the county already does. White, in an interview with The Citizen, said that while being a full partner with the Carbon Footprint Initiative or taking it a step forward and attempting to be carbon-neutral may be lofty goals, even having those goals is a good thing. As someone whose job is directly tied to stewardship and conservation, much of it on the county’s farmland, White said that the county making the environment and sustainability a priority makes her happy. The Carbon Footprint Initiative – and the county’s potential participation – would be under White’s umbrella and she says it’s a great goal that the county should strive for. When she presented her findings to Huron County Council in December, she recommended that the county take part in the Carbon Footprint Initiative, but only subject to available staff resources and budget. One of the major concerns raised by councillors was tracking the county’s fleet, which some councillors felt was going a bit too far. “The Carbon Footprint Initiative members track their energy use and set annual targets for energy reduction,” White said in her report to council. “Examples of energysaving projects include training for staff, reducing fuel use of the fleet by changing travel practices or purchasing more fuel-efficient vehicles, including electric cars. The Carbon Footprint Initiative combats climate change by investing in tree planting or natural area restoration

use in county-owned buildings,” White said in her report. She said that while it’s not a requirement of the county’s current conservation and demand management plan to track fuel use of the county’s fleet, the county may wish to pursue that in the future. “From 2005-2017, the County of Huron has invested $4.1 million in private land stewardship projects that have a water quality benefit. The county is theoretically carbonneutral due to the reforestation component of the Clean Water Project,” White said. “For instance, the trees planted in 2013 through the Clean Water Project will, in their lifetime, sequester nine times the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by the county that year. There are additional carbon offsets, such as improved forest health as a result of the Clean Water Project incentive funding for forest management plans by professional foresters or the cover crop incentive, which builds organic soil matter.” While what the county is already doing is certainly a good start, White said that there would be more to it if the county wished to be a fullfledged member of the Carbon Footprint Initiative. “The county is currently

projects to compensate for fossil fuel use. The Carbon Footprint Initiative members have provided funding for two stewardship projects in the Listowel area, as well as other projects implemented on their own properties.” White said that with all of the treeplanting projects in the county, as well as all of the sustainablymanaged county forests, the county has a built-in offset for many projects that could make many Carbon Footprint Initiative goals attainable. The Huron Clean Water Project could also help with those offsets as well. The Clean Water Project, which is also done through White, provides county funds through incentives and grants to property owners and/or farmers who take on projects that aim to better the environment and/or water quality on their land through a number of avenues. Many of the current county projects are already aligning with the initiative’s goals and White said the county is already showing a 1.9 per cent reduction in energy use when comparing 2016 to 2013. “This has primarily been achieved by implementing projects such as building renovations or replacing outdated equipment to reduce energy

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PAGE A18. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

157th Brussels Fall Fair

“Tractors and Tailgates” September 18-19, 2018 After a very successful year at the International Plowing Match, the fair is returning home to the Brussels, Morris & Grey Community Centre

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Cummings begins third term as Ag. Society President

Third time around Dorothy Cummings, centre, has taken on the role of president of the Brussels Agricultural Society for a third time. She succeeded Matt Cardiff, a man with a great family history with the organization and also the youngest president in the society’s history. Cummings has been involved with the society for nearly 30 years and what keeps her coming back are the people alongside whom she volunteers and the great work that’s accomplished year after year with the 157-year history of the Brussels Fall Fair. Cummings is seen here with many of the society’s members donating its IPM proceeds to the Brussels, Morris and Grey Recreation Committee for capital upgrades to the centre. (File photo)

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen After almost 30 years as a member of the Brussels Agricultural Society, Dorothy Cummings is now serving as the organization’s president for the third time. Cummings was installed as president in January at the society’s annual general meeting and this time around she told members that she hopes to do things a little differently. At the meeting, Cummings delegated a number of special tasks to other members of the society. Whether it be renovations to the fair grounds or expanding the society’s online and social media presence, Cummings has colleagues on the case. This is in stark contrast to her first stint as society president, where she was a newly-installed member and said she found herself taking on too much. Although this time she was eager to take on the job once again,

in 2018 she knew the key to being successful would be to delegate among the eager and talented society members. Cummings first became a member of the society 28 years ago. A native of the area, Cummings left in her teens and got her post-secondary education in the Toronto area before living in Peterborough for a number of years. It was then in the late 1980s that she made her way back to the area, living near Walton. When Cummings came back to the area, she was already familiar with the Brussels Agricultural Society. Her father, John Boneschansker, had been president of the organization and Jeff Cardiff, who has been involved with the society for decades, proved to be a great recruiter and brought Cummings on board. It wasn’t a hard sell, Cummings said. She already knew about the society and all the good work it did in the community and upon moving

back to the area she knew she wanted to be involved. Cummings said that when she made her way back to Huron County, she was already on the hunt for a volunteer opportunity so she could work to better her new community. “I was already looking for something to be involved with,” she said. “I can’t live somewhere without being a part of the community.” Cummings joined the society not longer after returning to the community and was immediately appointed as a director. Only two years later, in the early 1990s, she became its president for the first time. She took on a two-year term as the society’s highest member that would, due to a lack of other willing candidates, stretch to six years when she said she eventually put her foot down and insisted that someone else take on the position.

She would then serve as president again in the mid-2000s, but only for a year, splitting a two-year term with Jeff Cardiff. And now, in 2018, she’s beginning her third term as president, which she has already preemptively capped at the standard two years. What continues to amaze and captivate Cummings with the job and organization is the people and their willingness to work together to accomplish something great. This is the same takeaway she had after her first stint as president. Cummings said that when she was elected president and began to learn more about the inner workings of the Brussels Fall Fair and how it comes together year after year, she was astonished by the work that goes into it. She continues to feel this way. The members who come out and make an effort to work on the Brussels Fall Fair in the days leading up to the event are always impressive, she said. That was really multiplied last year as the fall fair was held at the International Plowing Match (IPM) in Walton. It was the first time an authentic fall fair had been held at the IPM and it was deemed to be a resounding

success that may even pave the way for it to happen at future matches. The level of dedication and hard work that helped the society pull off its biggest fair ever was unprecedented, Cummings said. The move involved weeks of planning and setting up that meant many of the directors were on-site day and night for days to ensure that different sections of the fair’s tent would be up in time for the IPM’s opening day. The work paid off, she said, but there were a number of factors that were beyond the society’s control that helped the fair have a great year. First, she said, the fair’s exhibitors really came through. Cummings said that the exhibitors always make the fair. If area residents don’t submit their work, there is no fair. And with the fair being moved to the IPM in 2017, many of the directors didn’t know how much would be brought it to be displayed. In addition, the adverse weather that robbed the IPM of a day actually served to help the Brussels Fall Fair for a number of reasons. Not only did it allow for a Continued on page A19

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A19.

Fall Fair to bring people back to Brussels in ’18 bringing regular exhibitors and vendors back to the Brussels Fall Fair. One of the major concerns in hosting the fair at the IPM was the challenge looming in 2018 in bringing people back to the fair in Brussels. Members of the society knew this going into 2017 and knew they would have a challenge ahead of them. Cummings and the society will be working over the course of the year to make the 2018 Brussels Fall Fair one of the best in recent memory and to continue its legacy, which spans nearly 160 years. As for Cummings’ ongoing participation with the society, she says that it’s the people who keep

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Austin Bieman, in the foreground, was one of the many young people who must have been relieved when their 4-H sheep and beef shows were moved from the International Plowing Match grounds in Walton back to their annual home at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre grounds. This move, which was due to the heavy rain event experienced in the area on the first day of the match, meant that the young people had over four hours for their shows, compared to the 45 minutes allotted to them in Walton, which was beyond any of the organizers’ control. (File photo) Continued from page A18 homecoming of sorts when the 4-H Beef Club’s show and achievement day was moved back to the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre, but it also eased the event’s schedule considerably.

Because of the tight schedule at the IPM’s show ring, Cummings said that the 4-H shows, which often take over four hours to complete, were sandwiched between two paid performances and therefore were only allotted 45 minutes.

Fair at IPM put best foot forward: Cardiff Continued from page A9 hosting a ferris wheel at the site not coming to fruition. When the ferris wheel arrived, it wasn’t operational and couldn’t be fixed on-site in time for the match, so the fair had to go on without a ferris wheel. However, while Cardiff feels that both the Brussels Agricultural Society and the IPM benefitted from the relationship, he thinks that the one-time-only arrangement had an even deeper impact. “I think this was a good representation of something that’s very important to Huron County life,” Cardiff said. “I think it was a good thing to have that representation at the match site.” As for the future, members of the Brussels Agricultural Society are working diligently to bring visitors and exhibitors back to the fair. They

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her coming back year after year to serve in a voluntary capacity. She also said that being part of a continuum in the Brussels community is also crucial to the society’s work and why she wants to continue being involved. Being one of the major events on the Brussels calendar every year – alongside events like the Brussels Optimist Club’s spring dinner and auction and the Brussels Lions Club’s elimination draw – is very prestigious, she said, and it’s a tradition that’s important to preserve. For more information on the Brussels Agricultural Society or this year’s Brussels Fall Fair, visit brusselsfallfair.ca.

were aware, and concerned, about the 2018 Brussels Fall Fair returning to Brussels. After a venue change, fall fairs have been known to dry up and the Brussels group is determined not to let that happen to their event with its over-150-year history. And as for the future of another fall fair at the IPM, Cardiff said it was really unique circumstances that led to the Brussels Fall Fair being hosted in Walton. Both the overlapping of dates and the proximity of the two events led to the decision being a no-brainer. However, if someone wanted to try and connect the two events at a future IPM, Cardiff said he would be happy to help lay the groundwork for it to happen again. For more information on the Brussels Fall Fair, visit its website at brusselsfallfair.ca.

Cummings said there was nothing IPM Chair Jacquie Bishop or any other of the IPM organizers could do, it was just unfortunate scheduling that was going to put pressure on 4-H judges and participants. However, with Wednesday’s weather-related closure of the IPM grounds and the move back to Brussels, the show was able to be held in all its glory in front of a larger-than-average crowd. Now, Cummings and the rest of her directors face the challenge of

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PAGE A20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Haag family recognized for herd proficiency three times per day per animal. Some of the fresher animals are being milked four or five times a day and that’s really where the robot helps.” While the new barn and new technology are important in having a well-managed herd, Haag said there are two more important factors: genetics and family. The two factors are linked, he said, as his brother Erwin and father Viktor worked for years to improve the herd. Both Erwin and Viktor have passed away, leaving the farm

and herd in Haag’s hands. “They dedicated much of their lives to improving the herd year over year and we have always been driven to have healthier, higher-producing animals,” he said. Haag and his family emigrated from Switzerland in 1990 when he was seven years old. Erwin and Viktor worked on the family farm until Erwin passed away in 2008 after fighting illness for several years. Viktor passed away in 2015 as the new barn was being built, Continued on page A21

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Competing against himself While being recognized by CanWest DHI as having the best managed herd in Ontario and best robotically-milked dairy herd in Canada was an honour for local farmer Roger Haag, he said the designation is more about competing with himself. Each year, he tries to do better than the one before and that led to his recent accolades. (Photo submitted)

By Denny Scott The Citizen Roger Haag and his family have the best dairy herd in Ontario, and the best robotically-milked dairy herd in Canada according to CanWest Dairy Herd Improvement (DHI)/Valacta. The secret to the family’s success is just that: family. At the beginning of February, Haag, who runs Haag Farms near Brussels, received word that CanWest DHI had recognized his farm as having the top-managed herd in Ontario and the top-managed robotically-milked herd in Canada. While the recognition is welcome, Haag said in an interview with The Citizen, it’s not so much a competition against other producers as it is a benchmarking tool to try and continually improve the farm. “This lets you see how your herd is doing year over year and month over month,” Haag said. “It’s a point system, and the biggest bulk of the points is in milk value so you need high-producing cows, obviously. The rest of the points are made of somatic cell score, herd efficiency, longevity, age at first calving and calving interval and udder health.” The recognition comes two years after Haag and his family moved their herd into a new barn, which he believes has helped a lot. He is quick to say, however, that the robotic milking is only one

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“The barn is a more spacious environment with wider alleys and fresher air,” he said. “We use sand bedding, which the herd prefers, and all these things come into play. On top of that, the robotics have definitely helped.” Likely the biggest impact the robotic system has had is an increase in the number of times each cow is milked daily. “We were milking twice a day before the new barn,” Haag said. “Now, we’re averaging just over

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Family an important part of success; Haag farm business, but in making sure his family wanted to continue to be a part of it. “I was always interested in farming and that was because of my father,” Haag said. “He kept things interesting and optimistic to encourage the next generation of farmers.” Currently, the farm has Haag, his wife Karen, one full-time and one

three-quarter time employee, which Haag says lets him focus on his family as well as other projects. As stated, family is very important to Haag, not just in how it created a family farm business he could be proud of, but also because it’s now his family that is allowing him to pursue a future in the dairy industry. “We basically do the best we can

on a daily basis, no different than most farmers,” he said. “I have the support of my family, and that lets us try our best to look after our animals in a way that’s profitable, healthy for the animals and healthy for us as far as having a family life. “We have a nice team of people that help us on management and it’s good that way,” he said.

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PAGE A22. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

White’s work means commitment to stewardship turning it into a successful career. She would get that chance when she graduated and found a job with the Ministry of Natural Resources in Clinton. However, before she made her way to Clinton, her true career path was revealed to her on a trip to Kenya where she was able to connect her two passions together. Not only has White been

interested in biology and ecology since she was very young, but she was also interested in stewardship and how the science manifested itself in a community setting; how better stewardship and better science results in better health and a better living situation. When she studied the ecosystem in a region of Kenya, White’s area of

focus would be a freshwater lake and how pressures on it were affecting the community. The community had been struggling with an unemployment rate of over 40 per cent and was in dire need of industry. A flora producer then sprung up and, because of the immense amount of Continued on page A23

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By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Late last year, Huron County promoted Stewardship Co-ordinator Rachel White to a full-time position, which continues on a path many see as progressive. White has been working in the county for a number of years. A native of the Markham area, just north of Toronto, White made her

way to London for her postsecondary education before coming to Huron County. After earning her Bachelor of Science in Biology with a focus on ecology in London, White obtained her Master’s Degree in Biology, focusing on community ecology and botany. White said she had been interested in biology for as long as she could remember and it was great to be able to study it in hopes of

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White able to marry biology, social well-being in role hundreds of thousands of dollars to the program for nearly the last 15 years, providing grants and incentives to farmers looking to take on projects that will not only improve their land, but also better the community at large through improving water quality. Projects available through the Clean Water Project include erosion control, livestock fencing, rural stormwater management, forest management plans and woodlot enhancement, fragile land retirement and wetland restoration, among others. That program, she said, and Huron County Council’s support of it, has become the envy of many other communities. What the program has done over the last 14 years has worked wonders for the county and

Continued from page A22 water being taken from the lake, threw the ecosystem out of balance. Not only did she study the lake’s connection to sustainability for the community and its people, but the project aimed to educate the people of the community and arm them with the knowledge to know how to keep their home community in order, while supporting business, and make informed decisions about their future. It was that project that connected White’s passions of biology and ecology with many societal issues and she saw that one could greatly influence the other. She said that was the first merging of the two she had seen and she hoped to continue practicing community stewardship in her next job. She now gets to do that work in Huron County as its stewardship coordinator. However, her path to being a county employee wasn’t always as clear as it is now. White began her time in Huron County as a Ministry of Natural Resources employee in Clinton, working as a stewardship coordinator. She provided local links to over 40 different areas of stewardship services; everything from tree-planting to stream restoration. In 2012, however, the province ended the program and it was very possible that White would end up looking for another job. However, she said that thanks to Huron County’s progressive nature and environmental priorities, the county saw fit to keep White on in the same capacity, but as a contract employee with the county. Soon after White was officially brought on, Huron County formed a new partnership with the Ontario Land Stewardship Council. She would go on to serve in a number of other capacities within the county. Right now, White is the chair of the Lower Maitland Stewardship Group and treasurer of the Huron-Perth chapter of the Ontario Woodlot Association, which is the biggest in the province. Working with those groups, she said, has really connected her to what she calls the “working

landscape” of Huron County, a community in which the people who live in it are connected to the health of the land whether they like it or not. Whether it’s the Maitland River, Lake Huron or the trees and land within Huron County, the vast majority of county residents benefit when the county’s ecosystem is in good health. Her work with the Lower Maitland Stewardship Group, for example, has really shown her the amazing resource that the river provides for the county and how connected it is to everything else. She said that the goal of the group is to show residents the amazing features of the river, the resources available and how it needs to be cared for. Furthermore, White said that the county has made an active and ongoing commitment to stewardship through many avenues with the Huron County Clean Water Project, with which she is also involved. The county has been contributing

2014, however, Huron County Council rented the property to the association in order to allow the group to demonstrate sustainability measures in a real-life setting. The project has proven to be a success in recent years and it has brought people from far and wide to view and study all that it demonstrates for the potential of sustainability measures. After years of working on contract for the county, White was hired fulltime late last year to continue her efforts as the county’s stewardship co-ordinator. For more information on the county’s many stewardship initiatives and groups, visit Huron County’s stewardship portal online at huronstewardship.ca.

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Quite a discovery Rachel White, the county’s stewardship co-ordinator, has been working on a number of initiatives since she was scooped up by the county after the Ministry of Natural Resources discontinued funding for her position. Recently she’s been helping to nurture the discovery of the Eastern Hog-nosed snake that was discovered in post-tornado Goderich in 2011, seen here inching along her right hand, an interesting discovery for a biologist. (Photo submitted)

its conservation efforts, many of which are on farms. In neighbouring counties and across the province, many communities aren’t so lucky. “The county really has a reputation of being a leader in stewardship. With my job, that’s very cool for me,” White said. One of the other projects White has been working on in recent years has been the Huronview Farm demonstration project thanks to a partnership with the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association. The county took 50 acres of undulating land, sloping down towards the Bayfield River, that had been property of the county since 1895 and worked to enhance the property by planting trees and creating berms and waterways. In

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PAGE A24. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Freedom Syrup continues donations to charity families. It’s been a remarkable nine years, Rowe said. He didn’t know what he was in for when the group first started making syrup nearly a decade ago. “The idea when we started was to

make a bit of syrup just for fun, for the experience,” he said. “We just wanted to give away what we made to family and friends and it was going to be free. We just wanted to Continued on page A26

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An annual tradition Freedom Syrup, a maple syrup company that donates funds to a military charity, has been making syrup, as well as a difference in the lives of many, for a decade now. This year, organizer Bob Rowe said the syrup should be flowing well and is looking forward to annual dedication celebration held in May, just like last year’s which is shown above. (File photo)

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By Denny Scott The Citizen Freedom Syrup, a special maple syrup production company near Walton that donates the proceeds from its sales to a fund benefiting families of fallen soldiers, has raised approximately $70,000 over the past nine years. Located on Jeff and Shannon McGavin’s farm just southeast of Walton, Freedom Syrup donated $16,000 to the fund last year, matching the amount the company donated the year before. When the company first started nearly a decade ago, it was able to donate $1,500 to the fund from the first sale of syrup products. Since then, however, the annual donation has continued to grow until 2016, when it hit its $16,000 high, which it maintained in 2017. The work is done by nearly a dozen core volunteers as well as

visitors to the bush, according to organizer Bob Rowe. What started as a 275-tap effort has expanded to 715 taps and 150 pails for younger visitors to see how syrup is made. Each year the organizers anticipate between 150 and 175 gallons of syrup. While some warm spells have had an impact on this year’s harvest, Rowe is confident the harvest will improve in the coming weeks. “We’ve tapped, and been tapped for a couple weeks, and it’s been slow,” he said in mid-March. “I think we’ll have lots of good products with the weather expected for the rest of month. We’re looking at lows of -3°C and -4°C degrees at night, and highs of 4°C or 5°C during the day.” He said the trees surrounding the sugar shack are always a little slow in the beginning of the season, which may actually provide a bit of

protection against early thaws. While the shack has been modernized and the grounds around it improved significantly over the past decade, the Freedom Syrup site has a rich history in syrup production. “It was built by Gordon McGavin, but they quit making syrup there in 1945,” Rowe said. “Sixtyfive years later, we started it up again.” The project was supported by Neil McGavin, Gordon’s son, as well as Neil’s sons Jeff and Brian and their

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A25.

Local safety association focuses on child safety

Focusing on safety Huron County Farm and Home Safety Association president Merv Bauer, left, says the organization is encouraging farmers to keep children off of farm equipment, including lawn tractors like the one with Bauer and his wife Donna above. (File photo)

By Denny Scott The Citizen The Huron County Farm and Home Safety Association is maintaining its focus on youth safety, both in rural and urban areas. President Merv Bauer explained that one of the current key focuses of the organization is lawnmowers, both riding and push mowers, and the danger faced by children when around or on them. The group, which has previously focused on more farm-centric safety

concerns, has looked to this according to Bauer because it’s a problem throughout Huron County. “We’re looking more to the children with the Farm and Home Safety Association and looking primarily at riding lawnmowers,” he said in an interview with The Citizen. “The number of children riding on lawnmowers is getting worse every year.” Bauer said the problem was discovered when the association previously looked to try and encourage people to not have

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children on farm equipment. While the message was appreciated, a lot of people seemed to draw a line of distinction between a lawn tractor and farm equipment. “Children should be kept off both,” he said. “We hear a lot of stories about the damage that either one can cause.” Keeping children away from lawnmowers, both riding and push mowers, is only part of the problem presented by these machines, prevalent through both built-up settlements and agricultural properties, Bauer said. “With lawnmowers, we can’t seem to convince people to keep the grass shield on the machine,” he said, referring to the chute that guides grass and debris down and away from the machines. “With those off, a lawnmower can actually throw stones and debris up to 50 metres away and sometimes as high as five or six feet off the ground. “If you get hit with something like that, it can hurt pretty bad,” he said. Bauer said the distance that debris can be thrown, as well as the momentum behind it, is no more visible to people than when they drive past individuals mowing their lawn and hear things hitting their vehicle. “That means the shield’s not on,” he said. “That debris should be thrown down and to the side but it isn’t. We stress strongly the importance of putting the shields in place.” Bauer says he is sure the messages

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PAGE A26. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Safety association looks to start PTO education Continued from page A25 doesn’t mean that’s the way it should still be done.” Bauer said those issues are some of the primary concerns for the association this year, and the numerous programs and events they attend, including Safety Days events, touch the truck events and rural-focused events throughout the community. “We were at the International Plowing Match last fall and that was a good week,” he said. “We were in the children’s education tent, which was an ideal place and you wouldn’t

believe the horror stories we were told about children getting run over by riding lawnmowers or push mowers.” One of the important lessons he took away from that week, Bauer said, was that children shouldn’t be around a lawnmower, let alone operating them. Push mowers are dangerous, he said, because children can find themselves pushing them up hills and having the machines roll back on them. “If you don’t have proper shoes, being leather and closed-toed, it

can get pretty graphic,” he said. He also heard tales that reinforced his position that children shouldn’t be anywhere near a riding lawnmower, including playing in a yard while the grass is being mowed. “You have to make sure there are no children anywhere near the mower,” he said. “They can get hit by things thrown by the mower or can get behind the mower without the operator being aware of the situation.” Bauer said that when operating lawnmowers or any loud machinery, earplugs are a necessity.

Volunteer syrup operation grows Continued from page A24 say we have had the experience of making the syrup and being in the bush.” In that first year, however, tapping just over one-quarter of what Freedom Syrup’s volunteers do now, there was more syrup than could be given away. “We made more syrup than we would be able to eat and give away,” Rowe said. While looking for something to do with the excess, Rowe made a connection between a practice at his job at the Hensall Co-op and the excess product. He explained that, over the years, he and others at the Co-op have always worn red on Fridays to support the troops. Both an organized charity and practice, Red Friday encourages people to don the colour to support those in the military service. “It’s a personal thing and I’ve done it for years,” Rowe said. “I thought maybe we could do more for the troops so we talked about it in the bush and that’s how we got started.” Freedom Syrup chose to benefit

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the fund because it represents all the stages of military service. “It recognizes those who are serving, those who have served and those who have already paid the ultimate sacrifice,” Rowe said. From that first year, the volunteer base grew, there were capital investments and the number of trees tapped grew to its current count. “It’s a big volunteer organization,” Rowe said. “It’s a forum that allows people to support the cause and feel good about what they’re doing.” While many of the volunteers come out to the bush with the intent of helping, others find themselves conscripted the moment they set foot into the clearing where the sugar shack is situated. “The rule is that if you visit the bush and you’re there for longer than a half hour, we will put you to work,” Rowe said. The exception to that rule is the Victoria Day long weekend when Freedom Syrup holds its annual dedication service. The event is held at the sugar

shack and welcomes volunteers, local veterans and their families and anyone looking to support the organization. Each year, those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice are remembered and a guest speaker is brought in to lead the ceremony. This year the event will be held on May 20. Rowe said the event is a welcome one because, while none of the volunteers work for recognition, it’s always good to have the effort noticed. “We’re not out there for the fanfare, but it’s nice the community knows we’re still doing our thing,” he said. “We have to thank everyone who volunteers. They know who they are and they come because they see the need for what we do. They show up, boil and have some fun. That’s what we do.” Syrup can be purchased at McGavin’s Farm Equipment and more information on the dedication service and Freedom Syrup is available there as well.

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“Everyone should be using them,” Bauer said. “Whether it’s a tractor or a lawnmower, earplugs are needed. Some lawnmowers can have a very shrill squeal to them.” The association is operated by Bauer and other volunteers and operates on municipal donations and through other funding. Bauer said that municipalities like Huron East, Central Huron and Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh have provided the group the support it needs to run while other municipalities have stopped participating. He said that decision is unfortunate because safety is a very important issue, especially in a place

like Huron County where people are working on farms, at home and at workplaces. Looking to the future, Bauer said the group is considering a safety program for Power Take Off (PTO) shafts to show the dangers of the devices. “We’re working on that,” he said. “We need to get equipment made to show those dangers. That’s still in the making and something we’re looking at in the future.” Bauer said the group is always looking for more volunteers to help with programming. To get involved with the association, contact him at 519-887-6493.

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THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018. PAGE A27.

Huron club paves way for future 4-H/IPM partnerships organization’s life skills groups focus on skills like cooking, sewing, etc., so the members had to make sure that aspect of the 4-H experience was represented as well. In addition, another balance also had to be struck. With 19 children in their teens or even younger making suggestions for the tent, it was up to Oudshoorn and some other leaders like her mother Marita Oudshoorn, Reg Vinnicombe, Monique Baan and Don Dodds, to decide which suggestions were achievable, which ones weren’t and which ones could be adapted slightly into something that could fit in the club’s display. In addition, the club also held the

Looking towards the future The International Plowing Match (IPM) 4-H Club, a rare county-wide initiative, really impressed visitors to this year’s match and, through the club’s leader, Jolande Oudshoorn, has laid the foundation for future partnerships between the storied match and the integral organization. Through further development by Oudshoorn, for which she has received a special credit at the University of Guelph, future participants will know exactly how to pull off what Huron County did in 2017. (File photo)

By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen At last September’s International Plowing Match (IPM) in Walton, a special county-wide 4-H project captured the hearts and minds of just under 20 of the county’s brightest minds. The project saw members of the 4-H County Plowers create a tent dedicated to 4-H in Huron County from the ground up. The enthusiasm and intelligence that went into the project, that was completed by a group of children and a young leader not so far removed from 4-H herself, was noticed by many associated with the IPM. Club Leader Jolande Oudshoorn said that she and the members of the club all felt like they had really accomplished something by the time the IPM closed its doors. She is now designing a plan for future 4-H programs that matches up area 4-H

clubs with the host county of the IPM every fall. The University of Guelph student said that her first change proposed to the program – for which she will be getting a specially-crafted university credit – is that it should be two different six-meeting spans under the same project arc. The first set of six meetings should cover the logistics of creating an event tent like the one the group spawned for the IPM, including planning and scheduling volunteers. The second, however, will deal with the more practical aspects of the process, like building displays and preparing for the physical tent. Oudshoorn said that members were stretched for time and effort having to squeeze both of those tasks into one six-meeting 4-H club. They pulled it off, however, and were the talk of the match with an authentic rural 4-H experience that translated to a location at the IPM,

one of the storied agricultural experiences in the province. Oudshoorn said that one of the most difficult aspects of the process was to strike a balance between all different aspects of 4-H. Many 4-H clubs involve livestock, many examples of which were on display in the tent. However, many of the

regional 4-H Go for the Gold trivia challenge in the Brussels Fall Fair tent on its stage. However, with her leadership, advice from seasoned 4-H leaders and the imagination and enthusiasm of so many young members, Oudshoorn thinks it was a great experience for the members, as well as those who visited the tent, over the course of the match. “I think it went really well, especially when you consider that most of the planning and work was done by a bunch of young people,” she said. Oudshoorn, who is only in her Continued on page A28

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PAGE A28. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.

Oudshoorn hopes to blaze trail for future 4-H Clubs

Leading the way Jolande Oudshoorn, right, has been a dedicated member of local 4-H clubs for years and now she’s served as a leader of a number of projects, including the ambitious, county-wide IPM project. She is seen here in late 2016 receiving the Murray Cardiff 4-H Citizenship Award from Cardiff’s grandson Matt. (Photo submitted) Continued from page A27 early 20s herself, said that leading the group was difficult at times. She began the process with just under 30 members and, by the time the IPM rolled around, she had 19. Many had to leave due to other commitments, but it left more work for the remaining members, she said. In addition to their work on the tent, members were also asked to participate in either the IPM Auctioneer’s Challenge, the Brussels

Fall Fair or the Beautification Committee. Oudshoorn – who has been honoured by Huron County 4-H on numerous occasions and with various awards – and fellow leader Vinnicombe spent much of the week leading up to the match at the IPM grounds setting up the 4-H tent and preparing for the week to come. Members would join later and help over the course of the match as their schedules allowed.

Oudshoorn wasn’t the only member of the club who came away with a positive experience. As a goodbye to the project, she had members of the club, as well as leaders, pen their favourite memories of the IPM. “My favourite memory of the IPM was taking my sheep and chicken [to the IPM] and having a chance to care for them and do demonstrations showing people how to show 4-H animals, plus I got to miss school,” said Jessalyn Hendriks, a member of the club. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience since it was close by and I got to be part of it. I will also remember having the chance to walk around with my friends to see the size of the IPM and I’ll always remember how hot it was and showing my sheep in the 4-H sheep show....” One of the members of the club, the president in fact, was Brooklyn Hendriks, who led the club into the IPM, but then also hit another milestone at the match. Hendriks became the province’s first Princess of the Furrow. Hendriks won the inaugural competition, which was created in Huron County for younger girls as a precursor to the Queen of the Furrow competition, held in her home county. “My favourite memory of the IPM was participating in the Ontario Princess of the Furrow competition, representing Huron County and then becoming the first Ontario Princess of the Furrow. I made new friendships that I will always cherish and will always remember the experience,” Brooklyn said. Oudshoorn contributed to this part

exactly what it used to be either. As the program struggles to attract members, the more important projects that could bring in area young people, the healthier the program will be going forward. For more information on the Huron County 4-H Leaders’ Association, find it on Facebook.

of the IPM 4-H Club project as well. “My favourite memory would be getting to experience and be involved in such a large event. It’s opened a lot of doors for me, including even getting a university credit,” Oudshoorn said. “It was a lot of fun being there all week and seeing people from our community and meeting visitors from far away.” Oudshoorn said she’s happy that it appears as though the club’s legacy will live on and serve as an example for future 4-H Club/IPM partnerships. The marriage of the local 4-H program and a provincial agricultural institution like the IPM, she said, is important in this day and age and she feels like it’s getting more important. With people, many of them living in urban areas, farther removed from the production of their food than ever, she feels that agricultural showcases such as the IPM serve an important purpose in Ontario. Furthermore, she said, 4-H isn’t

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