OLDS — Alberta Culture Days, which will be held Sept. 17-19 in Olds, are packed with everything from a rodeo and a dog show to a teepee raising, storybook walk and a Paint The Barn Red art show.
The Olds Regional Exhibition (ORE) grounds and Cow Palace will be the site for the Oldstoberfest Bavarian rodeo Sept. 17-18.
The ORE’s Megadome will host the Calgary Kennel and Obedience Dog Show which takes place Sept. 17-19.
The Paint The Barn Red Art Show also takes place at the Evergreen Centre from Sept. 17-19.
On Saturday, Sept. 17, in addition to the Bavarian Rodeo and dog show, several events will occur at Centennial Park, including a teepee raising, cultural exhibits and cultural performances.
Also on Saturday, the Olds Municipal Library will host a storybook walk as well as youth crafts. In addition to the Paint the Barn Art Show, the Evergreen Centre will host a kids colouring station on that day.
The Mountain View Museum & Archives’ education centre will be open on Saturday and it will stage youth crafts that day.
On Sunday, Sept. 19, the Calgary Kennel and Obedience Club’s dog show winds up at the Megadome.
Also on that day, cultural family games and activities as well as a drumming circle will be held at Centennial Park.
Sunday will also be the last day for the Paint the Barn Red Art Show and the kids colouring station at the Evergreen Centre.
A wide variety of people and organizations are helping make Alberta Culture Days in Olds this year, including the Town of Olds, Mountain View Moccasin House, Oldstoberfest organizers, the Alberta government, Legacy Land Trust Society, Olds Municipal Library, Mountain View Museum & Archives, Kiwanis Club of Olds, and Fair Trade Olds.
During an interview, Michelle Jorgensen, heritage advisor for the Town of Olds, said organizers knew there was a good chance that surging COVID case counts could force changes to activities so they do have backup plans for some events if necessary.
“This darn COVID, it has put the kibosh on so much in our community and across the world,” she said.
"Planning culture days for September is just – it's really been a hopeful thing towards bringing the community together for something celebratory in such a long time of going without being able to get together.
"You’ve got to be positive and plan with a plan B in mind.
“When we know what the future looks like closer to the time, then we’ll absolutely need to take into consideration health and safety protocols at that time that are in place.
“But we’re just going to plan our best and then revise as we need to for safety at that time,” she added.
For details on start times for all Alberta Culture Days events in Olds, see the ad in the Sept. 7 edition of The Albertan.
