The province on Friday confirmed amendments to regulation 16, attached to its Agricultural and Horticultural Organizations Act, kick in effective Sunday (Jan. 1, 2023). That’s the regulation laying out the membership levels an ag or hort society must maintain to be eligible for various operating grants.

The new rules take effect “amid some societies reporting a drop in membership levels partly due to the pandemic,” the province said Friday.

For agricultural societies, the new rule cuts the minimum threshold from 60 to 40 members. For horticultural societies, the rule cuts the threshold from 50 down to 25 members, except in territorial districts where it’s reduced to 15 members, down from 25.

Covering costs

The province’s 483 ag and hort societies “educate citizens about agriculture, beautify downtowns, and host fall fairs and exhibitions,” the province said Friday.

The grants available to Ontario ag societies under regulation 16 include covering a portion of prize costs, judges’ fees and other costs incurred in hosting ag and food exhibitions, demonstrations and competitions. Those grants cover a third of such costs (two-thirds in northern Ontario) to a maximum $3,000 per year.

Qualifying ag societies can also get grants for improvements to their land and buildings, and separate grants to help defray costs in years where wet weather causes declines in event ticket revenue.

Qualifying ag societies can also get centennial grants of $1,500 for their 100th anniversaries, if the society is setting up a “permanent commemorative structure” to mark the occasion.

Qualifying horticultural societies, meanwhile, can get grants of up to 50 per cent of their annual expenses, to a maximum of $1,000 (or $1,500 if it had 200 or more members in the previous year). — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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Don’t even try to figure out how much beer has been served at all the socials.

Now, on the eve of reaching a milestone of its own, the Woodlands Community Hall’s volunteers are getting a present of their own — a Volunteer Service Award presented last week by Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger at a gala Volunteer Service Award Dinner. Honourees are recognized for individual, youth, community categories.

Woodlands Community Hall volunteers were recipients of a community award for a century of service maintaining this focal point of their municipality.

“It’s quite an honour to receive it,” said Bob Brad, a past president and now longest-serving member on a committee of 15.

Hosted fairs

Built in 1915, the building is a legacy of the Argyle, Woodlands, Woonona (AWW) Agricultural Society, that began hosting fairs that same year.

In its earliest days, Woodlands hall was where farmers came for short courses in livestock care and production and to participate in other farm programs offered by the AWW Agricultural Society.

Over 100 years the hall has been the site of countless community gatherings, said Lana Cowling-Mason, the RM of Woodlands community economic development officer.

Everyone living in the area has a memory tied to it, whether it’s where they had their bridal shower or went to “one of those wild socials we went to as kids,” she said.

“It’s the backdrop to pretty much every milestone in most community members’ lives,” she said.

But the modest wooden building might have closed long ago if not for generation after generation of community caretakers stepping forward to keep it going.

Fittingly, the original foundation of the building still supports the well-kept facility that has seen several additions over the years, said Cowling-Mason, noting the hall board has done an exceptional job at succession planning. People serving on this board are following in the footsteps of parents, grandparents and even great-grandparents.

“The successful operation of a community hall for 100 years is the definition of perseverance,” she said, adding that years of service by the current board ranges anywhere from two to 50 years. These are people who have been passionate about this work all their lives, she said.

“That just deserves so much respect.”

From the Alberta Farmer Express website: Community pride the true legacy of Hockeyville win

Interested

Bob Brad recalls how they got guys like him involved. He joined the board in 1967 and remembers being told how pleased the committee was to see a young lad like himself “taking an interest in the hall.”

“I wasn’t really all that interested at the time,” he said with a chuckle. “But since then I’ve seen all the different things it gets used for, and I’d like to see it keep on going.

“And it’s a good bunch to work with.”

Younger members like Lisa Lillies, the committee’s newest member agrees.

“I’ve been with it two years,” she said, adding that her own memories of the hall are of all the weddings, showers, and socials she’s been at over the years.

“I felt that a lot of younger members needed to come out and help support our hall,” she said. “It’s a very important part of our community.”

The volunteer committee members look after all the hall upkeep themselves, with ongoing rentals, plus another long-standing community tradition — a weekly bingo — helping to pay the bills.

Theirs is one of the few remaining weekly bingos in the area since video lottery terminals became popular.

“When the VLTs came in, it really did change the demand for those things,” noted Cowling-Mason. But there’s another reason volunteers keep hosting these weekly bingos.

“They said, ‘We think it’s still important to have that gathering time,” she said.

“They said, ‘If we were doing it for the money we’d have stopped years ago.”

Community engagement party

On the subject of money, they’ve tried to attach a dollar value to what volunteer time contributed in their community adds up to, said Cowling-Mason. It’s easily $100,000.

That valuation is part of an ongoing effort in this municipality to make sure all community volunteers know how important their contributions are. RM of Woodlands Community Development Corporation annually organizes a volunteer recognition evening of its own, said Cowling-Mason. Everyone connected to a voluntary organization is invited and it’s an evening when the community honours outstanding voluntary contributions.

“We call it our ‘community engagement party,’” she said, adding that it both highlights these volunteer contributions and links people together across the four small centres within the municipality.

Incidentally, no one has to volunteer that night to host the dinner either.

That’s because the CDC co-hosts the event with the Warren Collegiate student body, said Cowling-Mason.

About 40 to 50 students do all the meal planning, preparation and help MC the evening to to make sure all those volunteers “get the night off,” said Cowling-Mason.

Involving local youth this way has been “a phenomenal way” to link the school to what’s going on in the rest of the community, she said. And it’s done wonders to link community groups into the pool of volunteer energy and talent among local youth.

“It has been such a tremendous eye-opener in our community to see what the capacity of our kids is too,” she said.

One of three

Woodlands Community Hall was one of three community groups receiving the Premier’s Award last week. Others were the Churchill Ladies Club and a volunteer team with Ten Thousand Villages.

Other rural Manitobans receiving individual awards included Bernice Enstrom for her lifelong commitment to St. Phillip’s Anglican Church and the Women’s Institute in Stonewall. Richard (Dick) Walker of Swan was also honoured for long-service volunteering with the Rotary Club of Canada, the Swan River Valley Agricultural Society, and for founding the Ducks Unlimited Canada Swan River Valley fundraising banquet.

National Volunteer Week is held April 6 to 12 to recognize, celebrate and thank Canada’s 13.3 million volunteers. A 2010 National Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating indicates that close to 53 per cent of Manitobans over the age of 15 volunteer, contributing approximately 74 million hours annually.

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June 30-July 1:Glenboro Fair. Contact Geraldine Kovar at 204-827-2661.

June 30-July 2:Dauphin Agricultural Society 120th annual Fair, DMCC fairgrounds, Dauphin. Call 204-638-4428 or visit www.tourismdauphin.ca.

June 30-July 3:Dauphin’s Countryfest. Visit http://countryfest.ca.

July 2-3:Great Western Harness Racing, Holland. Contact Joyce Elder at 204-526-2005.

July 2-3:Carberry Fair and Races. Contact Alex Christison at 204-834-3772 or email carberryagsociety@hotmail.com.

July 5:Rivers Fair. Contact Allison Hamm at 204-328-5304 or allisonjhamm@yahoo.com.

July 6-10:Winnipeg Folk Festival, Birds Hill Provincial Park. Visit www.winnipegfolkfestival.ca.

July 7-9:Carman Country Fair. Call 204-745-2226 or visit www.carmanfair.ca.

July 8-9:Crystal City (Clearwater) Fair. Contact Dean Buchanan at 204-873-2661 or deankb@mts.net.

July 8-10:Souris/Glenwood Fair. Contact Kim Stewart at 204-483-2968 or kimstew@mts.net.

July 8-10:Montmartre Folk Festival, Montmartre, Sask. Visit www.allfolkedup.ca.

July 9:Manitou Fair. Contact Brad McDonald at 204-242- 2990 or bnmshopngo@hotmail.com.

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June 24-25:Killarney Agricultural Society Fair. Visit www.killarneyagriculturalsociety.ca or contact Gladys Mason at 204-523-8495 or gbmason@mymts.net.

June 25:McGregor/North Norfolk Fair. Free admission. Contact Karen Klywak at 204- 274-2273 or mcgregorfair@hotmail.com.

June 25-26:Treherne Fair. Contact Josie Robinson at 204- 723-2275 or fax 204-723-2144.

June 30-July 1:Glenboro Fair. Contact Geraldine Kovar at 204-827-2661.

June 30-July 2:Dauphin Agricultural Society 120th annual Fair, DMCC fairgrounds, Dauphin. Call 204-638-4428 or visit www.tourismdauphin.ca.

June 30-July 3:Dauphin’s Countryfest. Visit http://countryfest.ca.

July 2-3:Great Western Harness Racing, Holland. Contact Joyce Elder at 204-526-2005.

July 2-3:Carberry Fair and Races. Contact Alex Christison at 204-834-3772 or email carberryagsociety@hotmail.com.

July 5:Rivers Fair. Contact Allison Hamm at 204-328-5304 or allisonjhamm@yahoo.com.

July 6-10:Winnipeg Folk Festival, Birds Hill Provincial Park. Visit www.winnipegfolkfestival.ca.

July 7-9:Carman Country Fair. Call 204-745-2226 or visit www.carmanfair.ca.

July 8-9:Crystal City (Clearwater) Fair. Contact Dean Buchanan at 204-873-2661 or deankb@mts.net.

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The downtown business section consisted of a failing store and an insurance office. There wasn’t even a place to have coffee.

No one expected new people would move to town, much less build a house. No one thought new businesses would set up shop in Mortlach.

But now they do and they’re not quite what you’d expect.

Walk up Mortlach’s main street and you’ll find some of the most unusual enterprises for a small rural Saskatchewan community.

There’s the Thunder Creek Trading Post and Rock Shop, a family-owned business operating out of a 100-year-old former general store.

On the other side of the street stands Photo Art Canada, a gallery owned by a freelance photographer forNational Geographic.

Just off to the right is the Hollyhock Market Natural Foods store offering fresh produce and specialty products, including unique blends of ice cream.

SMALL BUSINESS

A little farther up the street, you come to the Country Garden Tea House &Cafe operated by Mike and Sue Franklin, a couple from Wales.

Next comes Nowhere: Your Confection Connection, where Tiffany Olson markets candy imported from 10 different countries.

Don’t forget to visit Crocus Ridge Gallery, a 100-year-old renovated Anglican Church where Marilyn Forbes sells Saskatchewan-made art, pottery and woodwork.

If you don’t want to spend money, you can sample free native fruits and berries at the nearby community orchard.

Such attractions seem so odd for this flyspeck on the map just off the Trans-Canada Highway west of Moose Jaw that you wonder: what kind of place is this?

The answer is simple. It’s a village that decided not to die, said Rhonda Haukaas, treasurer of the Mortlach Community Development Association and Agricultural Society.

MCDAS (or Mac-Dass, as locals call it) is a driving force behind the revitalization of a community on the bald Saskatchewan prairie that once appeared to have little future.

SHOTGUN APPROACH

When small towns try to restore their business and population, they sometimes look for a silver bullet – a large manufacturer bringing jobs and economic activity.

But MCDAS used a different approach, taking advantage of its location 25 minutes outside Moose Jaw and an hour and a half west of an international airport at Regina.

Because Mortlach is on the beaten track, organizers sought small businesses dealing in arts, crafts and specialty products to act as a drawing card for tourists and other visitors, Haukaas said.

There are other attractions for the curious, too.

Eight commemorat ive plaques on old buildings help trace the town’s historical roots. Another 10 are scheduled to go up eventually.

Locals celebrate Casey Jones, a former resident and amateur archeologist whose artifacts appear in museums in Regina and Calgary.

And, of course, there are the famous Mortlach Fiddlers, recording artists advertised on a sign as you drive into town.

YEAR-ROUND EVENTS

Not content just to provide different goods and services, Mortlach also offers year-round events to bring people to town, where they invariably leave money.

There’s the Saskatoon Berry Festival, held the first Saturday of July. It attracts over 3,000 people to partake in a pancake breakfast, watch a parade, patronize over 60 vendors and, yes, eat homemade saskatoon pie.

There’s a community garage sale in September, the Great Pumpkin Walk in October, the Youth Winter Carnival/Family Day in February, an annual Christmas gathering and monthly concerts at the local hall.

Not only do people visit Mortlach, they also come to stay. The last census recorded a population of 256. The day a bus tour of farm writers from across Canada visited, a car with a U-Haul trailer appeared on the street and it didn’t look as if it was leaving town.

WORD TRAVELS

Word about Mortlach gets around. Haukaas said one Alberta couple heard about it and moved here so the husband could take a job at a nearby fertilizer plant. Another family from England bought a house in town which they discovered on the Internet. The woman works in the local grocery store. An investor moved in from Calgary and runs his business by Internet.

New arrivals help keep the local K-12 school enrolment steady at 76 students.

What at tracts people to Mortlach is a sense of potential and space to grow, said Haukaas.

“Here’s a community that isn’t totally developed, there’s room for new housing, there’s room for local businesses.”

It’s a huge amount of work for a relatively small band of boosters to keep a community active. Haukaas acknowledges there’s always the risk of burnout.

But such is the community spirit in Mortlach that volunteers invariably appear when needed, she said.

“People have said, we’re proud of where we live, we like to call Mortlach home, we want to keep it vibrant. And so people do get involved.”

More information is available at www.mortlach.ca. ron@fbcpublishing.com

———

“Weliketocall Mortlachhome, wewanttokeep itvibrant.”

– RHONDA HAUKAAS

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The Whetter home, yard and farming operation reflected Clint’s progressive agricultural practices. He was particularly proud of, and known for, his excellent herd of purebred Herefords. Clint’s interest in researching and adopting new farming methods resulted in the Whetter farm always being on the forefront of modern agricultural technology.

Clint was a project and club leader with the Dand 4-H Belles and Beaux and served on the provincial 4-H Council for three years. He believed it was important that young people became good public speakers and knowledgeable about meeting management and the democratic process.

Clint was made an honorary member of the Canadian 4-H Council in 1997. As a result of his 4-H leadership over 50 years, in 2002 Clint was recognized by the Canadian 4-H Council for his outstanding contributions to the youth of rural Manitoba. He was also a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Commemorative Medal.

Clint was also committed to conservation. He was one of the first in his district to plant shelter belts and practise strip farming to prevent soil erosion on his farm. He introduced a conservation project to the local 4-H club. Clint was one of the founders of the Turtle Mountain Conservation District and a longtime board member. He served as chairman of the Manitoba Conservation Districts Association for 10 years. In 1992, Clint was the first Manitoban to be inducted into the Canadian Conservation Hall of Fame in Ottawa.

For more than 20 years, Clint was a member of both the Deloraine Fair Board and the Agricultural Society. He served in various capacities as the director, secretary and chairman on the Dand local of Manitoba Pool Elevators (MPE). He spent five years on the province’s Extension Advisory Council, 10 years on MPE’s Advisory Committee and six years on the Hartney Credit Union.

As a veteran, Clint was a member of the Hartney Legion and a frequent leader of Remembrance Day services.

Besides serving on the local hospital board for 17 years, Clint was a volunteer ambulance driver and taught first aid and CPR courses. As faithful members of the Dand United Church, the Whetters taught Sunday School and led youth groups.

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