Seaway Intermediate School Graduation

Dundas Soil and Crop Imporvement Association of Dundas County hosted the annual  Seed, Forage and Agriculture Show March 6, at Matilda Hall.

Perrenial Premier Exhibitor award winner Francis Henderson of Terrdale Farms was once again awarded the title.

Terrdale Farms took home numerous awards including;  Premier Forage Exhibitor, Champion Forage Exhibit, Reserve Champion Forage Exhibit, Champion Haylage Exhibit, Champion Dry Hay Exhibit, Premier Seed Exhibitor, Champion Corn Silage, Champion Cereal Exhibit, First Place, Wheat in Field Crop Classes and Champion Special Shelled Corn Bin Classes.

Reserve premier exhibitor was Ian and Tracy Porteous of Ayrporte Farm. They were also Reserve Forage Exhibitor.

Tracy told The Leader, that they had a decent growing season last year, resulting in the produce submitted for judging at Friday’s show.

“For us, we grow IP (identity protected) beans so we had none of the mould problem that ocurred throughout much of Eastern Ontario.

“Hay, as always, it was a challenge to get it off dry,” she added.

For corn, she said they experienced a good season having adequate heat units.

“In the end, we got everything off in good time. We had a good fall. There was lots of opportunity to get the crops off in the fall, because the snow didn’t come until later.”

Tibben Farms Inc. picked up the Champion Shelled Corn and Champion Soybean Exhibit awards.

Dave Chambers of Riveredge Farms won the Champion Ear Corn Award.

Olivia Mudde was Premier 4-H Exhibitor.

This year’s baking contest featured apple pie.

Of the eight pies entered in the contest, that of Amy Tibben was selected the winner in a blind taste test by guest judges South Dundas mayor Evonne Delegarde, North Dundas mayor Eric Duncan and John Roosendaal of the Ottawa Valley Seed Growers Association.

Asked what’s so special about her apple pie, Amy said, “The crust – I think.” 

She went on to explain that she uses and old-fashioned shortcrust. “It’s an old recipe – butter, flour, sugar and water– the butter makes it better.”

The prize winning apple pie filling was half McIntosh apples and half empires. Amy explained that she really loves Macs but, at this time of year they are a little soft, so she chose to add the empires. She also baked the pie, immediately prior to the contest, so the filling was still warm when the judges had a taste.

The happy judges all agreed on the winner, though admitting that the competition was close, with only a few points separating the top pies.

[…]

“This is our second annual Bluegrass Festival,” said Geraldine Fitzsimmons, “and we’re very excited about building on the success of last year.”

This year’s Bluegrass Festival will be held on the weekend of June 15th, 16th, and 17th at the Iroquois Locks. 

“It’s so thoughtful that the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation allows us to go on their property,” said Fitzsimmons.

This year’s line-up includes: Dave Nichols & Spare Change; Grassland; Northwind; Hard Ryde; The Dusty Drifters; Grassy Fiddle Time; Concession 23; and Darwin & Gilles.

Asked how the idea for the Bluegrass Festival originated, Fitzsimmons said, “I’ve always wanted to do a festival and I thought it would be a good fundraiser for the Galop-Canal project.”

“So, I went to see Mike Anderson to see if he would help me with it.” Given the option between Country and Western versus Bluegrass, Fitzsimmons went with Bluegrass.

“He assured me that this festival will grow, but only if we can bring in bigger name bands.” As an example, she suggested Ricky Skaggs might be a future option.

Mike Anderson is the owner of the Bluegrass Connection in South Dundas.

The weekend event will be emceed by master of ceremonies, Terry Joe Banjo who, as Fitzsimmons pointed out, is “a young man with a lot of energy. He’s funny. He goes along to a lot of the festivals.”

The sound system will be professionally manned by Shawn Markell of MK Music Solutions.

In addition to Bluegrass music, the event also offers instructional workshops on Saturday in the art of playing the guitar, the madolin, the banjo, or the dobro. 

An assortment of vendors, organized by Sharon Piche, will be showcasing their wares while the Iroquois and Matilda Lions Club will provide sustenance in the form of a barbecue.

While camping out for the weekend isn’t necessary, it is an option and Fitzsimmons pointed out that the campers are “bluegrass followers from all over” and “all of them last year had never been to our area before and just loved it.” Barb and Jerry Gurnhill are in charge of the campground detail.

As the committee learns and grows year to year, Fitzsimmons said, “we’re still going through growing pains, but we have an outstanding committee.”

“We’re hoping the weather will be like last year,” she continued. “It’s just bringing lots of people into our community.” 

The Galop-Canal Revitalization project focuses on restoring the history of the area, keeping the shorelines clean, utilizing the beautiful waterfront, and welcoming tourists into the area. 

Located in Iroquois and complete with a marina, the Galop-Canal is a great place for locals and tourists, with or without boats, to enjoy the waterfront along the St. Lawrence River. 

[…]

The House of Lazarus Community Outreach Mission recently received a $3,764 cheque from Kraft Canada. 

The House of Lazarus, stationed in Mountain, was one of the few food banks Canada-wide invited to participate in the Kraft Food for Families Contest that began November 2011 and ended in February 2012.

 According to food bank coordinator Kim Merkley, there were only four food banks chosen to participate from Ontario. 

Merkley stumbled into the contest by accident when she filled out an online survey. She admitted that she had no idea that anything would come of completing the survey, but is now quite happy she did so.

The contest began on November 3, 2011 with an original completion date of January 31, 2012. For each online vote of support from their community, participating food banks received $1.

Due to the overwhelming response and success of the contest, a second phase was introduced on December 2, 2011. 

This second phase lasted for 10 weeks, ending on February 10, 2012. In addition to the $1 for each online vote, Kraft Canada donated $1,000 per week to the food bank with the most votes. Each week the totals were reset to zero.

The House of Lazarus was a recipient of one of these ten $1,000 bonus wins and, as Merkley pointed out, “we were competing against some pretty big cities.”

“It was very humbling. It was quite a coup for Dundas County,” added Pauline Pratt, executive director of The House of Lazarus. “We had 2,500 votes.”

“It shows the dedication and support we get from the community. It was a great campaign.”

Of the $3,764, there was $1,000 from a weekly bonus and $150 from a separate project with Kraft. The remainder consisted of dollars for votes.

While their reported goal is to serve North Dundas families, The House of Lazarus actually serves families in both North and South Dundas as well as families in the surrounding communities.

According to Kraft Canada’s contest website, “the response to the Kraft Food for Families initiative was truly inspiring.”

[…]