West Kings Community Fair August 30

By Lawrence Powell

The Spectator

NovaNewsNow.com

Celebrating and promoting agriculture and getting people to think about and support local farmers is the reason a large group of volunteers works year after year to pull off one of the best little community fairs in the Annapolis Valley.

In fact they’ve been doing it now for 71 years and there’s no sign the West Kings Community Fair is going to pack up anytime soon. Also known as the Tremont World’s Fair, the 71st edition August 30 is packed with fun events, judging, entertainment, and food from early in the morning until the last crumb is gone at the 6 p.m. supper.

Spokesperson Laurine Baker has been involved for years and she always hears the comments that the fair is the best around.

“They come the night before and stay in their trailers across the road there,” she said. She recalls that the event used to be held on the base at Greenwood under a big tent. School children used to enter the competitive events. Today there are still lots of kids involved but individually, not through the schools.

This year’s event starts off with cattle judging and light horse classes at 9:30 a.m. Nearby the children’s parade starts at 10 a.m. and pet judging at 10:30 a.m. Horse and ox pulls go on all day – both at the same time. And this year the ox pulls could take awhile because as of a week ago there were 40 teams entered – almost as many as at the recent Annapolis Valley Exhibition.

“The horse and ox pulls are the most popular events,” said Baker. “When it’s a good sunny day spectators fill the side of the bank there.”

It usually is a good sunny day. Baker believes the fair has been rained out only three or four times in its long history.

All day visitors will be invited to guess the weight of a steer. The person who guessed closest to the actual weight will find out they won via a 4:30 p.m. announcement.

For the famished, there’s food available all day at the concession stands, but for more formal meals there’s a breakfast down at the little church and cost is a freewill offering. From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. there’s dinner that costs just $8 for adults and $4 for children under 12. The same prices apply to supper from 4:30 to 6 p.m. And if it does rain, there is an enclosed area with tables and chairs where visitors can stay dry.

The afternoon also includes the ladies’ horse pull, entertainment from 1 to 4 p.m. and ladie’s and men’s cross cut competition at 4 p.m. after which the entertainment resumes. For the kids, there’s the Bounce Kingdom, games, and more, Baker said.

Admission to the grounds is $4, but some lucky visitors could recoup that through gate prizes. To get to the Tremont World’s Fair, take the road across from Avery’s in Greenwood and follow it to the crossroads where parking attendants will guide you to one of several parking lots.

“It’s a great day for families,” said Baker.