WHITEWATER REGION (Cobden) — Over the past six years, Jamie Schultz has been a familiar figure at the Cobden Fair, where he has held the position of volunteer and Junior Director.
“I’ve been involved with the fair, I’ve been a junior director, I’ve cut the ribbon to open the fair,” he said.
This year for the Cobden Fair, which is operated by the Cobden Agricultural Society, he’s taking a different title – and getting paid for it – as the Summer Office Student.
While Janet Simmonds is the secretary/treasurer, she’s new to the position, he said. Along with helping her, he’s also ensuring the preparation and organization of the fair remain on track.
He’s making sure the sponsorships are coming in, that the fair book is ready for people to pick up, that social media remains active, and the entry tickets get to where they need to be.
“I’m doing the little jobs here and there, making sure everything gets done,” Mr. Schultz said.
Mr. Schultz is working on a new initiative to get the younger people actively involved in the fair again using a flyer he created – Summer Boredom Buster. Instead of having to peruse a booklet to find out what categories they can enter, those people 15 years and younger can pick up the flyer and begin working on projects for the fair.
But, that’s not his only job – he is working on the demolition and lawn tractor entries – which anyone can participate in.
Mr. Schultz is also busy taking two summer courses from Trent University, where he has been a student the past two years studying kinesiology. However, he has decided to change courses and will now study biology with a specialization in health care, eventually going into bio medical studies.
Mr. Schultz is also a 4H youth leader and is involved with the Junior Farmers.
“I’m super busy,” he said.
However, he wants to encourage everyone to come to the fair, which is Aug. 24, 25 and 26.
Summer Boredom Buster
“It’s an opportunity to bring youth back to the fair,” Mr. Schultz said of Summer Boredom Buster. “Like other f
airs, the numbers are dropping.”
He designed a flyer with the basic information required for the youth categories at the fair. The flyers were dropped off at various schools, including those in Cobden, Beachburg, Eganville and Killaloe.
He noted there are no entry fees for those 15 and younger.
Some of the things young people can enter into the fair include works of art, whether it be a drawing or painting; photographs; baking; and growing strange-shaped vegetables.
There are things for children from 15 years and younger to do. If you want more information on the projects children can do, pick up a poster at the fair office or check the fair website.
