By Kevin J. Sabo
For the Advance
The 2019 Castor Fair weekend is in the history books.
The popular event, a highlight of summer in the region, was held Aug. 9th and 10th and featured the fair, a parade, a car show, a roast beef supper at hall on Aug. 9th, and a free breakfast hosted by the Castor Ag Society on the morning of Aug. 10th.
The entries in the Castor Fair were down nearly 200 entries from 2018 totals, for a total of 785 entries total. Entries in the fair were varied, ranging from baking and produce to photography and art.
“For the flowers, the weather didn’t help this year,” said Donna Younger, one of the organizers.
“The colder weather slowed the growth.”
Younger also said that fewer young people are taking over from the seniors who have participated for years but are no long doing so.
“Fewer people are baking,” said Younger.
“Most of the young people work or have families, and as a result are not participating.”
The roast beef supper and the breakfast, however, continued to prove popular.
“We had 185 people come for the supper, and 212 came for breakfast,” said Younger.
The East Central Alberta All Autos club hosted the third annual Castor Cruise in conjunction with the fair weekend.
“We have 34 cars presenting this year,” said club member Lisa Long, of Castor.
“We are down, but we are competing with some other shows going on this weekend.”
The car show introduced a new element this year. In addition to the show, there was a ‘Matchbox’ car deal, carrying a selection of rare toy cars, and a hot dog vendor giving people venturing down a chance to check out the show and another dining option.
As usual for the fair weekend, a barbecue was held in the Home Hardware parking lot with funds raised this year going to the Castor Volunteer Fire Department.
For the kids there was a bounce house set up in front of the community hall on the morning of Aug. 10th, along with face-painting. The bounce house was sponsored by several of the main street Castor businesses and has been brought in for a number of years.
The Castor parade capped off the weekend, starting at Paintearth Lodge before venturing down to main street and back. A number of community groups were represented in the parade and there was plenty of candy to go around for the kids.
Planning for the 2020 Fair weekend will begin in earnest during the early part of the new year.
The Fair board is currently looking for members to fill some roles that have been left vacant with resignations over the last few years. Contact the Fair Board for more information about volunteer opportunities.
