CARSTAIRS - The Carstairs Horticultural and Craft Show was another success this year thanks largely to a big group of volunteers, said committee chair Paige Gil.
"I attribute the success of the show to the hard work of volunteers and the support of local businesses, as well as to the efforts and talents of the participants," said Gil.
The 2018 version of the show was the 73rd consecutive and featured 140 people competing in a number of categories, she said.
"We had a total of 140 people competing and they entered 890 items," she said. "The biggest increase we had again was juniors. Last year 54 juniors competed showing 386 items, and this year 64 juniors competed showing 450 items."
Top winning entries:
• Best in show for five and under was Paisley Sukhetsky.
• In juniors, Maleah Phillips won high points in show, as well as in handicrafts, hobby crafts, artwork and baking; Calista Phillips won high points in photography; and Baley Hildebrandt won high points in both flowers and vegetables.
• In the adult category, Kim Fischer won high points in show, as well as in vegetables, fruit, baking and preserves; Tracy Colosino won high points in flowers; Marlene Steingart won high points in handicrafts; Walter Steingart won high points in hobbycrafts and artwork; and Melissa Mador won high points in photography.
Maleah and Calista Phillips came all the way to Carstairs from Vancouver Island to participate in the horticultural and craft show along with their mother Lori Phillips. The girls are visiting their grandparents, Bill and Judy Snyder, at their farm near Carstairs.
For Judy Snyder, she has been attending the show for almost 50 years.
"Bill's mother always wanted to enter," said Snyder. "She used to organize the fair on Vancouver Island in the Saanich area (near Victoria). When she came here to the Prairies it was much different entries. Lots of fruit out there. Here she was a great gardener and a great sewer. She entered every year. After I entered the family, I became the one that transported her to the fairs."
Snyder said that when they had children, the children began to enter the horticultural show.
"We have all kinds of trophies," she said. "We would all enter and it became a family thing. Around the farm in the summer there was interest to raise and garden and do stuff for the fair when there was time. Now Lori lives out on the island and she plans on coming out here for these last two weeks. One year they even came out and planted a garden so they could enter their vegetables. But that's unrealistic."
"It's good," said Snyder's daughter Lori. "It's healthy competition. The girls do cross-stitch, sewing, artwork, photography, baking and more. It's worthwhile for many reasons. We live in the city now so it's nice to get out on the farm."
