The 15th annual Neighbour's Day, held in conjunction with the 20th anniversary of the Sundre Petroleum Operators Group (SPOG), was more than just about milestones, or what is best in local business or the region's oil and gas industry.
Neighbour's Day was certainly another successful community celebration but this year organizers made a deliberate push to have services, organizations and people who are less noticed at the forefront. The theme in 2012 was “Behind the Scenes.”
With that in mind, Neighbour's Day 2012, held in near perfect weather conditions on Sept. 14, featured the addition of the Community A-Fair to go along with the Chamber of Commerce Trade Fair in the curling rink and the SPOG industry Trade Fair in the hockey arena.
The Community A-Fair, sponsored by Greenwood Neighbourhood Place and held across the street in the Sundre Community Centre, was an opportunity for locals to learn everything they wanted to know about support services in the town and region - from the RCMP and fire department, to the sporting sector, to youth groups, and family wellness workers from both Sundre schools. The A-Fair featured representatives from 39 community organizations, including non-profits and support services.
“This has been an incredible day,” said Cindy De Smit, program co-ordinator at Neighbourhood Place. “We have been very busy and we have received lots of amazing feedback. Representatives in the booths had an opportunity to speak to a lot of people.
“People are glad about the partnership with SPOG,” she said, adding the A-Fair also had support services booths from Calgary, Ponoka and Innisfail. “The information has been phenomenal.”
Across the street in the arena, SPOG's trade fair witnessed a steady large volume of locals who were not only interested in the latest trends of the petroleum industry but were also attracted to the services and people less known to the public but equally important to the oil and gas industry.
“Many people wanted to know who are the companies that support these companies, and the people who are working right in the field,” said Tracy McCrimmon, SPOG executive director, who noted the fair attracted a total of 83 booths. “The ‘Behind the Scenes' theme is one of the most successful we've ever had in addressing the questions from the community.”
Aside from the longstanding traditional players at the trade fair, this year's edition highlighted the contributions from tank and fracking firms, as well as trucking companies and organizations specializing in emissions and waste disposal.
“They've been here before but not like this year,” said McCrimmon, who noted the public enthusiasm for the fair was “huge” in the morning with the pancake breakfast, children's activities and later a barbecue that featured beef on a bun.
Geof Kerr is a district sales representative from Newalta, a Calgary-based waste management company. This was his fourth time at the SPOG fair but he said the emphasis put this year on the service sector makes his side of the industry more visible to the public. It also gave him extra attention to make more connections with the oil and gas companies in the area.
“It is a way for us to educate the public,” said Kerr. “This is a forum for everybody to get together and understand each other.”
Meanwhile, the chamber's trade fair attracted booths from 45 local businesses. Evelyn Mill, the fair's coordinator, said while the A-Fair across the street may have kept numbers down a bit at the curling rink she said the fine weather this year was a “bonus”.
“We've had rain before and it makes a mess. It puts a damper on everything. This year's weather was a bonus,” said Mill, who praised the hard work of the 45 volunteers who put the exhibition together. “If we had to hire people this event would not happen.”
Upstairs at the Art Show, co-ordinator Lila Weiss said there was a steady flow of people who enjoyed the exhibits from 10 artists who displayed a variety of paintings, wood works and pottery.
“We've had gusts of people all day. We even had a few sales,” she said.
The final attendance figures for this year's Neighbour's Day won't be released until close to the end of the year. In 2011, a report on Neighbour's Day wasn't released until November. It was estimated the 2011 event attracted about 1,500, which was lower than the previous year due to the farming community taking advantage of good weather.
