The Rural Voice, 1996-11, Page 54People
It didn't rain on parade of local
contestants at Queen of Furrow
There wasn't much pleasure for
most people attending the mud -
slogged 1996 International
Plowing Match in Haldimand-
Norfolk this year but for two
Western Ontario contestants in the
Queen of the Furrow competition,
the sun couldn't have shone much
brighter.
Perth County's Pamela Smelski
was crowned Ontario Queen of
the Furrow at the rain -soaked
IPM. She is the daughter of
Richard and Jean Smelski of
R.R.1, Shakespeare, well known
for their work with Perth County's
pork producers and the Ontario
Pork Congress. As well as being
the reigning Queen of the Furrow
for Perth, Pamela is also a 4-H
member. She will represent the
Ontario Plowmen's Association as
an ambassador in a public
relations capacity until her
successor is chosen at the 1997
IPM in Simcoe County.
It's a role she won't mind in the
least since the University of
Guelph student plans to work in
public relations, especially
improving agricultural awareness.
She credits her farm background
and 4-H experience with her
appreciation of agriculture. Her
speech dealt with mental barriers
in agriculture.
Charlene Townsend, R.R.4,
Seaforth, Huron County's Queen
of the Furrow, was first runnerup
at the competition in Selkirk.
Charlene, the daughter of
George and Ruth Townsend, was
also chosen Miss Friendship by
her fellow contestants.°
Mildmay farmer's Holstein places
well at World Dairy Expo
Once again this year Ontario took
home the trophy in the State Herd
Competition at the World Dairy Expo
in Madison, Wisconsin, October 4-5
and a Mildmay -area farmer helped
bring home the ribbon.
Leslie Weber, R.R.5, Mildmay took
fifth place in a class of 54 with his
five-year-old Holstein Elandec Chief
Mark OMI. She was named best bred
and owned five-year-old and she also
received the award for best overall
bred and owned.
Weber has been showing his prize
cow for three years and told the
Walkerton Herald -Times that "she
should be good for another three or
four years yet. She has good
confirmation."
In August, the same cow was Grand
Champion of the county show in
Walkerton and was Honourable
Mention for Grand Champion at the
show in Stratford. She was Reserve
Champion of the Ontario Dairy
Discovery Show in Brampton and next
will go to the Royal Winter Fair in
Toronto in November.°
Oops, wrong champion
Last month's People page
contained incorrect information in a
story entitled "Port Albert rider begins
competition with galloping start".
Although Melissa Daer did win
several awards at the competition,
Erin Judges of Queensville, a student
at Ravenwood Stable at Goderich won
the gold medal in the championship for
14 -18-year-olds at the Canadian
National Exhibition. There was a tie
between Judges and Daer for first
place in the American Saddle Horse
Association of Ontario High Point
Youth CNE and Classic combined
rather than Daer solely winning the
event. Judges is instructed by Dianne
Foster, owner of Ravenwood.0
After 45 years of
snow and sleet
Atwood rural mail
carriers retire
We take it for granted that the
mail will be in the mailbox on time
each day, but behind the efficient
delivery is a rural mail carrier bent
on getting the mail through no matter
what the conditions. An Atwood
couple recently retired after nearly 46
years of delivering the mail to
residents of R.R.1, Atwood.
Ross and Eleanor Coulter called
a quit to the job that was supposed to
only last a couple of days.
"The man who had been doing the
route died and the post office asked if
Ross would take it for a day or two,"
Eleanor told the Listowel Banner.
"And I'm still taking it; it's been a
long day," joked Ross.
Though it was Ross that signed on
for the route, Eleanor did much of
the delivery since Ross also ran a
fuel -oil business and a back -hoe
business. For several years she took
her young children to the post office
and around the route with her. When
they were babies, before seat belts
came along, they often travelled the
route in a basket in the back seat.
The couple started out delivering
using a Hudson, then later bought an
Austin. "You sure couldn't get the
mail into an Austin today," Ross said
referring to one of the biggest
changes over the years — the volume
of mail.
"Flyers make the biggest
difference, but there are an awful lot
more letters, too," Eleanor said.
Another change is the condition of
the concession roads, especially in
winter. "We spent one winter day on
the sixth (of Elma Township) with
the mantainer(snowplow)," she
remembered. "He was stuck too. And
we never got in 'til after supper. We
don't get those kinds of winters now.
"There have been so many
changes with farms being sold. We
only have five of the people of our
original route, with the third gener-
ation of one family on the farm."0