CARNDUFF — It was a weekend that was 10 years in the making.
Carnduff’s previous homecoming weekend took place in 2015, when the town used its 110th birthday as an opportunity to bring the current and past residents together. Now that the town is 120 years old, it was time to do it again.
Over 650 people registered for the three-day event, held July 4 to 6. Registering came with its benefits – a swag bag, a Saturday-night dinner and entrance into the cabaret which followed the supper.
The events officially kicked off with the opening ceremony on Friday night. MCed by administrator Tara Beck and her son Brandon, the crowd heard from several speakers, including Mayor Ross Apperley, Saskatchewan’s Minister of Agriculture Daryl Harrison, Chad Baglole (the reeve of the RM of Mount Pleasant) and a few Carnduff council members. Apperley recognized Carnduff area’s oldest residents, Doreen Verity and Charlie Thompson, as well as the Carnduff and Preston families. He noted that, although the community has changed, its heart hasn’t.
Kieran Carley, a young adult who addressed the audience, introduced a senior, Jim Carnduff, who had the honour of lighting the homecoming lantern. Greg Wall, one of the town’s councillors, gave a brief overview of the town’s highs and lows since the last homecoming, concluding that the future looks very bright.
Todd and Marcia Greenwood, a married, musical couple, sang a song that they had written especially for the occasion – Our Town. That was the second of three songs that were sung that evening. The first was O Canada, sung by Marianne Avenido, who had become a Canadian citizen the previous week. The third was Happy Birthday, led by Brandon Beck.
Rhonda Wilmot Stadnick, a teacher at the Carnduff Education Complex, gave a word about the art on stage. It was the product of an art contest, which resulted in 75 entries. All were on display throughout the weekend in the arena.
Just before Happy Birthday was sung by everyone, two members of the Preston family, ancestors of previous town administrators, came onstage to cut the birthday cake.
Saturday was a full day. A parade slowly progressed down Broadway, tossing various treats to the watching children. A kids’ foot rodeo, a District 41 4-H achievement day, a Birdie Bonanza and a show featuring the Truco Trick Riders made the Ag Grounds a busy place to be in the afternoon.
Ross Douglas especially enjoyed the afternoon, finding great delight in “chicken poop.” Colleen Goertz, who ran the Birdie Bonanza, introduced a game as a fundraiser for the Ag Society. A large card was laid on the ground, with 60 numbered squares on it. Each square could be purchased for $2. Sybil – a chicken – was then brought out of its cage, placed on the card, and waltzed around until it could no longer contain its chicken feed. The square that it made its “deposit” on was the winning square and brought its purchaser half the proceeds of the card’s sales — $60. Douglas likely will never look at chicken droppings the same way.
Another interesting feature of the afternoon was the various class reunions. Carnduff graduating classes going back as far as 1975 got together and reminisced as they shared memories and pored over yearbooks.
As supper time approached, all the registrants met in the arena and enjoyed a supper catered by Weir’s. That was followed by the cabaret, where people mingled as they listened to the music provided by the live band 43 Collective.
The celebrations came to a close on Sunday. A pancake breakfast supplied by the RM #2 & Carnduff Fire and Rescue team launched the day. A few hours later, an interdenominational service, led by the four churches of Carnduff, took place in the park. Mayor Apperley followed that by taking the stage and gave some closing comments. Former resident Marty Yaskow and a few members of his family provided some additional music and that was it for the homecoming.
People came from near and far to take in the weekend. For example, June Rice Conner, who moved away from Carnduff in 1959, drove up from Scurry, Texas, with her husband, Butch, to be a part of the weekend. That’s a pretty impressive trip for a couple who are in their early 80s.
Many other things took place over the weekend – public swimming, a beer garden, movies at the theatre, etc. All of this combined to make a memorable weekend – one that left people looking forward to the next homecoming.
