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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen-40Th Annual Reunion, 2001-09-05, Page 39At the site Roy Bennett of Wingham gets a little help from a young friend with his 1/4-scale Case steam engine in 1968. Learn the Back To School ABCs of Fireplace S A VI N G ! AWARD WINNING MODEL! irect Vent Gas Insert s allest4iscilace huge viewihg, BTU' will A. win rr You'll enjoy years of warm, cozy nights beside the YELLOW DANCING FLAMES® while knowing Napoleon has been the efficiency expert for 25 years. saving you money on your fuel bill. area. .and openings yet with (100 EMPXIESZl litula boasts SAVE! $2 0 0° 0 See store for detriOs NAPOLEON)actiONIV CENTRE OMEM% QUALITY FIREPLACES (519) 832-2026 (519) 357-4300 24 Hr. Emergency Pager 1-800-263-1420 1-888-357-4301 A different way of banking."" Wishes the Huron Pioneer Thresher and Hobby Association great success on the 40th Annual Reunion in Blyth. Ask about our competitive NISA rates for farmers Clinton 482-3466 Exeter 235-0640 Dashwood 237-3777 Clinton Community Credit Union Limited THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2001. PAGE A-7. 40th Huron Pioneer Thresher Reunion Man enjoys association with Association By Bonnie Gropp Citizen staff In his close to four-decade association with the Huron Pioneer Thresher and Hobby Association Reunion Roy Bennett of Wingham has seen a lot of change. The most significant has been the growth of this annual September event held in Blyth. Bennett recalls it was the second or third year of the Reunion that co-founder Simon Hallahan invited him to come be a part of this unassuming tribute to the thresher and steam era. Bennett said he was a boy when he first met Hallahan who had come to the his parents' farm to thresh. He contacted Bennett, an employee- of CKNX, to do the public address for the Reunion. "It was very small then. The. whole thing was just in the centre of the fairgrounds. It was nothing like it is today. We didn't have cord- less mikes like we do now, so I set the unit up in one spot and you could pretty well here it all over." Bennett recalls that at his first event there were probably about three or four steam engines at the show. "Now there be at least a dozen if not more. There were a lot last year." Antique tractors is another area where Bennett has noted sizeable growth. "Originally there were a half dozen or so. Now there are hundreds. And they come from far and wide. It's truly amazing." Once involved Bennett bought a small quar- ter scale steam engine which he showed for a few years. "I kept it for about 12 years. When it started to get to be work, that's when I got rid of it." When the adult events began, the mobile unit was moved over to where that location and the entertainment sound system was used from the stage. Bennett attributes much of the Reunion's growth with its ability to keep moving forward and changing. "I have heard people' say that the Reunion may look the same as other years, but there is always one new thing." One he remembers was a huge diesel engine that proved quite costly to the Association as they had the expense of moving it to and from the site. "But it was quite wonderful to see." The number of campers who attend the Reunion is also consistently growing. "And they don't just arrive for the show. They are often here a week prior." And where many organizations struggle to find members, the Association which puts together this monumental event also thrives. "I remember helping way back to prepare the grounds, usually on the holiday weekend. It you had a dozen people helping it was pret- ty good. Now there are dozens," said Bennett. "There is an auful lot of volunteer help. Everyone pitches in." Even Mother Nature helps to ensure the Reunion's success. "We have been very fortu- nate with the weather. It's hard to believe that there have been so few weekends since the Reunion began when it has rained." Bennett said he can't recall one ever being completely rained out. And now with the improvements made to the grounds by the Association "it takes a lot of rain to get things soggy," he said. "Those improvements came by way of a lot of time and energy from the volunteers." The 79-year-old Bennett, who continues to turn up each year to help set up fencing for the Reunion, said his involvement as been " a real- ly interesting thing. It's wonderful for the whole area, because it brings people from long distances." "It may not be the largest steam show but it's one of the largest. The Association has really built it up and I've been very pleased to have been a small part of it. 1.• Jamming With fiddle, guitar, banjo, harmonica they come to play the music they love during the jam sessions at the Reunion.