The Schomberg Agricultural Society crowns a new Fair Ambassador

June 3, 2015 · 0 Comments

Holly Dobson was crowned as the new Schomberg Fair Ambassador. She’s seen with last year’s winner Shelby Croft.
Photo by Caitlin Skerratt

By Caitlin Skerratt
The grey skies and downpour of rain at the 165th Schomberg Agricultural Spring Fair on Saturday couldn’t dampen the spirits of Holly Dobson, the newly crowned 2015-2016 Schomberg Fair Agricultural Ambassador.
Dobson, a long time resident in Schomberg, was all smiles as she walked across the main stage at the fair to receive her tiara, bouquet of roses and sash from 2014-2015 Ambassador Shelby Croft.
“It’s pretty cool. Just to have the experience is the most important thing to me right now. It was an awesome two days (at the fair), and (the contest) was well worth what I put into it,” said Dobson.
The four contestants in the ambassador contest spent the first few days of the fair volunteering at various events, from picking their favourite coloured car at the demolition derby to volunteering at different fair vendors alongside agricultural society members.
Dobson is excited for what the upcoming year as Ambassador has in store for her, particularly the competition at the CNE.
“I have to go to a lot of the Agricultural (Society) things, so like the Farm Tour and the bonfire here (at the fairgrounds) and different little things around town. Just getting involved, that’s mostly what I have to do. … I think the CNE is going to be really cool, I’ve never been there before.”
The Ambassador Competition has been run for the past five years by Cyndy Rowlands, a local resident and active member in the Schomberg community. Rowlands has been working to improve the competition by making it more of “an Ambassador contest, not a beauty contest.”
“Because of what the Agricultural Society represents, farming and that sort of thing, I think that’s where it should all come from. It should be about your home town,” said Rowlands.
One way in which Rowlands is improving and promoting the ambassador contest is by updating the prize package.
“It was (in previous years) geared towards girly things: the crown, makeup, a new housecoat, and I thought, ‘What boy would ever go on that?’ So I completely changed the prize package and as long as I’m running the contest it will continue to be the same package because it’s gender friendly.”
Anyone between the ages of 16 and 22 can run in the ambassador contest. Dobson encourages people to come out next year and take a chance at being the next representative of the Agricultural Society.
“Just do it, it’s a really good opportunity to get kids involved and open people up to a variety of different things around town.”
While the ambassador contest may be a lot of work to organize, Rowlands sees it all as being worth it.
“There’s a lot of work and effort not just from me but from the community that goes into the program. So I really want (the winner) to have heart and want to represent the town. And hopefully they’re not just there to grab a tiara … because it’s so much more than that.”
Rowlands and the Agricultural Society also sell tickets for a prearranged bus to take those interested in cheering on Dobson down to the CNE for the competition. The cost of the ticket covers both full-day entry into the CNE and transportation, and is cheaper than the cost of a regular ticket.
Rowlands is confident that the ambassador contest is a perfect way to raise awareness of the Agricultural Society and events happening in Schomberg, such as the local Farmers’ Market or A Main Street Christmas. She expresses that “there’s so many things here that I take for granted. As individuals we really should be promoting where we live.”