Last weekend the Pelican Lake Ag Society hosted their 70th Ninette Fair with success every which way you could look at it; with beautiful weather to an amazing number of attendees, participants and even about 50 volunteers who dedicated their time to helping the two-day fair be a hit!
"We had two really big surprises during the event," shares Bryan Podwarny, Ag Society President. "The first was the overwhelming success of our Friday night beef dinner. We had planned for 200 people and expected the dinner to last about two hours. Naturally, we were hoping not to have too much food left over—but to our surprise, we sold out in just over an hour!"
"While it was tough having to turn people away, it was also incredibly rewarding to see such a strong turnout," he adds. "The atmosphere was fantastic, and watching the long line of people waiting for dinner was a great sight. It’s clear we’ll need to prepare for more than 200 guests next year. At one time, this dinner used to serve 400 people, and while we may not hit that number again, 300 definitely seems within reach," he adds.
Podwarny says the second big surprise was the success of their first-ever Ag Olympics.
"This event was a fun revival of the old “King and Queen Farmer” competitions. We included activities like tire flipping, bale challenges, and even hobby horse races—which turned out to be absolutely hilarious and a crowd favorite!"
"The turnout for the Ag Olympics was incredible," he adds. "We had four teams—two all-female and two all-male—and the spectator area was packed. In fact, we could have used twice the number of stands to accommodate everyone. The energy and enthusiasm were amazing."
"Looking ahead, we’re confident the Ag Olympics will grow even more. Based on this year’s response, we could easily see the number of teams triple next year. It was heartening to see such strong community engagement and support—it really made the event special."
Please listen to more with Bryan Podwarny below on last weekend's Ninette Fair!