The Citizen, 2008-08-28, Page 6Walton was again the centre of
attention this past week with the
hosting of the Huron County
Plowing Match at the farm of Henry
and MaryAnn Grobbink on Walton
Road. It was a beautiful day with a
great attendance for all of the
venues.
Our local plowmen did very well.
Brian McGavin was named
champion senior plowman with Paul
Dodds named reserved champion.
Jacob McGavin was named junior
plowman with Brandon McGavin,
only a half point behind, named
reserved champion.
The Huron County Queen of the
Furrow title was won by Melissa
Sparling of Varna, with other local
girls including Jennifer Eedy,
Rosanna Grobbink and Sara Baker
doing very well. Sara Baker was the
winner of the plowing portion of the
competition.
The Plow Princess was Michele
Studhalter of the Walton/Blyth area.
Other local girls vying for the title
were Kristen Grobbink, Morgan
Deitner, Ursina Studhalter, Shannon
Jared and Ashleigh Shaw.
Congrats to all of the local folks
on your achievements and a great
experience.
Returning from a great experience
and holiday were Neil and Marie
Mitchell and family, Sean, Emily,
Sarah and Claire. They were off for a
two-week journey to the western
United States and Canada. They
headed west to North and South
Dakota to see some of the world’s
greatest natural and man-made sites.
They journeyed to see the Badlands,
where centuries of erosion have
created unique rock formations.
After a visit to Mount Rushmore
to view the faces of the presidents,
then it was off to a unique monument
that is still a work in progress. They
went to see Crazy Horse, a very
large statue memorial to Native
Americans. It is a 3D memorial
being carved into a mountain that
began in the 1950s by an artist. The
artist has passed away, but many of
his children have taken up the
project and it’s still being worked on.
While in the area they stayed at
bed and breakfasts and at one had an
amazing experience. A member of
the host family caught a rattlesnake
and brought it in for them to see. An
interesting fact for them to learn was
that even when the snake was
beheaded, the head was still able to
shoot the poisonous venom from its
fangs. Quite a neat experience,
reports Emily.
They also saw lots of wild donkeys
in the area.
The family then headed north into
Canada to visit many Mitchell
relatives in Saskatchewan. They
were around the Saskatoon area,
such as Calfield, as well as other
towns. They also travelled to
Wainwright, Alberta to visit as well.
Returning home they travelled
through the States and Duluth,
Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan
to cross the Mackinac Bridge. The
kids report a great trip.
Home for a special occasion were
Bryan and Heather Kelso and family
from North Bay. They were
attending the O’Shea/Ross wedding
in Lucan. Seven-year-old Jessica
Kelso was the flowergirl for her
former babysitter Miss O’Shea.
They managed to catch up with
members of the McGavin family
while home.A very surprised Mabel Glanvillewas the guest of honour at theWinthrop pavilion on Saturday.Mabel celebrated her 65th birthdayand her retirement from 35 years ofemployment at Spinrite of Listowel.Many family and friends gathered tohelp her celebrate with an afternoonof visiting and eating. There wereover 75 in attendance. Many arrived
at her home later in the evening to
enjoy music around the campfire.
Murray Mills, Brantford, formerly
of Walton and childhood friend,
stopped in to see Howard Hackwell
last week. He had Allen Craig, a
University friend with him and the
three had a great visit over the timesand changes of the last 70 years.Our family gathered on Sundayafternoon at the Seaforth Lions parkfor a family reunion. Familymembers of the late Ernie andAlberta Stevens, held a nice socialafternoon and picnic at the park.Leona McDonald with Rick and Jo-Ann, and LeeAnn and JasonKonarski attended, as well as Marg
Rogerson of Clinton.
The family of the late Doris
(Stevens) Criche were well
represented with Murray and Betty
Criche, Sandra and family, Pat and
family and Sharon and family all
able to attend. Members of the late
Robert Stevens family were unableto attend on this day. A nice time was had with theyounger children taking advantageof the Seaforth swimming pool.The Mitchell family were busywith another great adventure toenjoy. Marie and children attendedthe Kincardine Summer Festival.They all took part in learning to playinstruments with Marie and Emily
learning the clarinet, Sean and Sara
learning violin and young Claire
learning the recorder and xylophone.
Claire participated in the concert
by the younger attendees for the
families and the rest of the family
were part of the very full house
concert held at the Kincardine High
School on Saturday. Enjoying the
concert was the children’s
grandmother, Grandma Barbour.
Neil Mitchell stayed at home to be
the host for their bed and breakfast
company for motocross.
There were three couples from our
area who were part of a group of 27
that attended a four-week cruise
overseas. Bob and Rene Richmond,
Fred and Teuni Smith and Neil and
Marie McGavin were on the World’s
Plowing Match trip. They flew into
Munich, Germany where they
boarded the 124-passenger cruise
ship that was to be their home for
eight nights. They cruised the
Danube River, where they
experienced a totally different type
of beautiful scenery and relaxing
time.
They were off the ship every day
to visit different places and sites.
Rene reports that biking is one of
the most popular modes of
transportation for the local people.
They made five stops in Germany
as they continued to their destinationof Krems, Austria where the WorldPlowing Match was being held.Arriving there on Wednesday, theysettled in for five-day stay in thearea. The men went to view theplowing on Thursday, and all tookpart in cheering on the Canadiancompetitors on the other days. KenFerguson from Ontario and a youngman from British Columbia were
representing Canada at the Match.
They attended the banquet on
Saturday evening, then it was time to
fly home on Sunday morning. They
had wonderful weather for most of
PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2008.
Your princess
Michele Studhalter of Blyth took home the Princess crown
at last week’s Huron County Plowing Match, taking over
from Brussels-area’s Kabrina Bishop. Studhalter beat out
11 other girls who were vying for the crown. The daughter
of Josef and Susanne Studhalter is going into Grade 9 at
F.E. Madill Secondary School. She enjoys skiing, biking
and working on the farm. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
Graduation
AMANDA COOK
Congratulations on graduating
from Georgian College in the
Massage Therapy Program in
April 2008. Good luck on your
registration exams. Love,
Mom, Dad, Tasha, Chris,
Ashlee and Jon.
By Jo-AnnMcDonaldCall 887-6570PEOPLE AROUNDWALTON
Continued on page 7