by Betty Bardswich
MINDEMOYA—The beginning of school is always an exciting time for kids but this is especially true for students who attend Central Manitoulin Public School (CMPS) in Mindemoya. The start of September marks the annual Fall Fair and this year is the 102nd anniversary of the event. Held in the arena, the occasion showcases vegetables, flowers, apples, scarecrows, rock collections, baked goods and an enormous display of artwork, which the students and their parents put up the day before the fair.
As organizer Julie Byers explained, the students create artwork and projects such as dioramas throughout the year and these are then entered into the fair by their teachers. All the other crafts, hobbies, flowers and baking are done on a student’s own time.
Ms. Byers, Marie Kirk and Doreen Duncanson have been organizing the Fall Fair for many years and they are grateful for the support they get from the teachers and parents as well as others from the community who donate their time and expertise to act as judges and talliers. “This is such an exciting way to start the school year,” Ms. Duncanson observed. “I’ve seen older students helping the younger ones and teachers helping groups other than their own.”
CMPS Principal Tracey Chapman is also grateful for everyone who participates in making the Fall Fair an outstanding event every year. “I would like to commend the dedicated teachers and volunteers who helped organize the event, our sponsors, and the hard working students and families who participate in the exhibits each year. Without them, the fair would not be possible,” she remarked as she went on to explain that the event was started in 1912 and is, to her knowledge, the only remaining school fair in Ontario.
Rainbow District School Board Trustee Larry Killens always enjoys the fair and this year was no exception. “The fair, in true fashion, did not disappoint,” he told The Expositor as he praised CMPS, the work of Ms. Chapman, her staff, volunteers and parent councils. “The exhibits allowed our kids to express through arts and crafts, personal memorabilia, what is important to them and, in turn, share with those who attend.” Mr. Killens enjoyed talking with other parents at the fair and pointed out that Glenn Hallett has a framed Certificate of Honour hanging in his family room that shows that his father, Lloyd, scored the most points in the fair at the age of 9 in 1932. Mr. Duncanson had also talked with a past fair entrant who remembered winning second prize for sewing on a button when he was eight.
The CMPS student council was also heavily involved in the fair by not only submitting entries, but also by raising money for the Northern Ontario Families of Children with Cancer (NOFCC). As council vice-president Amber Wahl pointed out, September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and it was decided to have a bake sale in aid of this organization with goodies donated by student council families and other students as well as Foodland.
The fair would not be complete without animals and Mr. Killens remarked that he had talked to people who rode the horses they were entering to the fairgrounds and that one gentleman, Cliff Tann, remembers driving oxen to the event. There were no oxen this year, but there were lots of dogs as well as two sheep, a horse, cats, chickens and a rooster with Ben Dewar of Providence Bay showing his two hens, Rennie and Breanna. Mindemoya veterinarian Doctor Mary Yett Rachel was on hand to judge the cats and the fowl and Rachel Sheppard and her dog Lily and Sydney Hallett with her West Highland white terrier Betty explained some of the rules for the dog show. “Your dog has to do tricks, the most tricks for the judges. To see how well behaved they are,” Rachel explained, “and there are different categories like classy groomed, short hair, long hair and small dog.” Kathy Grant was once again on hand to judge the dogs while Kyla Jansen from Honora Bay Riding Stable put Morgan Wall-Varey and her horse through their paces.
The CMPS Fall Fair always includes a parade with Community Services Officer Al Boyd leading the way with the student council members close behind on a decorated float supplied by Sharon and Lyle Dewar and towed by Elwin Shaw with his truck. All the students and teachers participate in the parade along with Perry Keller in the township’s fire truck to add to the festivities. The exhibit of all the animals entered in the fair then takes place along with the judging. The students then return to CMPS, as always, to a delicious Fall Feast thanks to their teachers and parents.
