The Citizen, 2009-07-09, Page 6They came, they saw, they...
.. ate S’mores.
The campfire treat is one of
several new experiences for
two women visiting from
England.
Young farmers from around
the world are in the middle of
a 13 week tour of Ontario as
part of an exchange program.
Among them are Katy Heady,
26, of Buckinghamshire,
England, and Angela
Kirkwood, 25, of Yorkshire,
England, who spent seven
days near Brussels with the
Kevin and Jacquie Bishop
family.
After a long hiatus Junior
Farmers in Huron has been
revived, and with it the
exchange program. Jacquie
said her three daughters, who
are members, were interested
in hosting an exchange, and
have enjoyed entertaining
their house guests.
Buckinghamshire, said
Heady, is an area of rolling
hills and “quite a lot of arable
land,” located about one hour
from London. “It’s one of the
home counties that surround
London.”
This is her first time on a
Young Farmers (the name of
the organization in England),
though she has done a rural
exchange in Australia.
“It’s a great way to travel
and get to see a way of life,
not just as a tourist.”
Kirkwood said Yorkshire,
the country’s biggest county,
has a diverse agricultural
industry with food production,
as well as all types of
livestock. “There is really
good farmland, then hilly land
for sheep.”
Besides growing up with a
rural background, both
women work in the industry
as well. Kirkwood is
employed as a promoter of the
country’s food industry and
also works on her father’s
farm diversification business.
“He has a butcher shop and
sells to McDonald’s,” said
Bishop.
Heady, who has a degree in
agriculture and environment,
works on a farm and tree
nursery.
Having arrived in Ontario
May 23 the visitors, including
people from Scotland,
Australia, Switzerland and
Northern Ireland have
followed a busy itinerary,
which wasn’t all about
agriculture. In addition to
farm tours, they have seen the
typical tourist highlights such
as Toronto, a Jays game and
Wonderland. They also visited
the Farm Smart Expo in Elora,
the Bruce Peninsula, went
horseback riding and stopped
by a winery.
Fun activities have included
a boat cruise, the beach and
mud volleyball. They also
tried their hand at baseball
which neither have played
before.
For their week in Huron,
they attended a 4-H meeting,
visited a sheep-milking
operation, the Hensall Co-op,
Ice Culture and the Goderich
museum and historic gaol.
“Every day has been jam-
packed,” said Kirkwood.
To take part in the exchange
the girls went through an
application and interview
process. “There is sponsorship
by the National Farmers
Union because they feel it’s
educational. We can bring
information back to the U.K,”
said Kirkwood.
Heady explained that the
Young Farmers and the county
also offer sponsorships. “All
on the condition that we dotalks when asked.”The pair are keepingjournals of their trip to makesure they can provide anyinterested clubs or groups
with all of the details of their
experiences here.
Besides the exchange
component, both women are
adding some extended
sightseeing into the trip.
Kirkwood is going to Fiji,
Thailand, New Zealand and
Vietnam at the end of the
exchange tour. Heady is going
to explore the Rockies for a
month.
After the week in Huron,
the group was off to the
Calgary Stampeded and some
time ‘off’, before coming
back to finish the trip inOntario. By the middle of the trip,however, the two had alreadyformed strong impressions ofCanada.
“I’m impressed by the
diversity of the farms,” said
Kirkwood. “They go from run
of the mill to the top farms.”
“It has been good meeting
and chatting with farmers,”
adds Heady. “Hopefully they
are learning things from us as
well.”
Kirkwood says she’s
enjoyed staying “with normal
Canadians and doing normal
Canadian things.”
Which has involved a few
discoveries that normal
Canadians take for granted.
“I’ve never seen TimHorton’s, or an LCBO or drivethrough cash machines,”smiles Heady. “And we wentto a drive-in movie. I thoughtwe were in Grease.”
And country music has
some new fans too. “We don’t
have country music in
England. We learned how to
line dance and just want to do
it all the time, now,” said
Kirkwood. “And we went to a
square dance. I love it.”
And while the firepit and
S’mores were a hit, there was
one normal Canadian
experience, however, they’ll
be happy to leave behind.
“The mosquitoes and black
flies are terrible,” they
agreed.
PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2009.Young Farmers from England visit county
Visiting
Angela Kirkwood, left, of Yorkshire, England, and Katy Heady, right, of
Buckinghamshire spent a week at the Bluevale-area home of Jacquie
Bishop and her family as part of the Junior Farmers exchange program.
(Bonnie Gropp photo)
The Blyth Grade 8s
receiving awards at the
graduation were:
Peacemaker, Jessica Fraser;
public speaking - Grade 8,
Kathryn Peach; public
speaking - intermediate,
Kathryn Peach; design and
technology, Lucas
Nicholson; English, Clara
Montgomery; English
improvement, Rebecca
Chalmers; French, Ashley
Walden; science, Kelsey
Kerr; history, Sarah Steele,
geography, Ronnie
Vercruyssen; Gauss math -
certificates of participation,
Kelsey Kerr, Lucas
Nicholson, Josh Raynard,
Sarah Steele, Ashley Walden,
Bryce Wheeler; certificates
of distinction - top 25 per
cent of AMDSB contestants,
Josh Raynard; outstanding
achievement - top score in
Grade 8 at BPS, Josh
Raynard; mathematics, Josh
Raynard; mathematics
improvement, Nathan
Plunkett; music, Kathryn
Peach; art, Ashley Walden;
drama, Sadie Chalmers;
citizenship, Jessica Tyler;
most improved academic
student in Morris Ward,
Jessica Fraser; most
improved academic student
in Blyth or East Wawanosh
Ward, Bryce Wheeler; Tyler
Wilson memorial awards for
most improved female
student - academic, Lauren
Cronin and most improved
male student - academic,
Kennan MacDonald; top
male athlete, Joel Pizzati; top
female athlete, Sarah Steele;
track and field - male, Nathan
Plunkett; track and field -
male runner-up, Joel Pizzati;
track and field - female,
Morgan Gregory and Kathryn
Peach; track and field -
female runner-up, Christina
Eckert; student leadership,
Rebecca Chalmers; computer
technology, Tyler O’Rourke;
general proficiency, Kathryn
Peach.
Blyth Grade 8s get awards
By Bonnie Gropp
The Citizen