39th Annual Drayton Farm Show - North Wellington Community News

Kinsmen bringing Drayton Farm Show back to PMD arena next week

CHRIS ZIMMERMAN

CONTRIBUTOR

DRAYTON – After three years of cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Drayton Farm show will return to the PMD arena on April 12 (11am to 10pm) and 13 (11am

to 9pm).

In 1981 members of the Drayton Kinsmen Club came up with the idea of showcasing and promoting local farm businesses.

This year’s agribusiness showcase, the 39th event, is headed up by Kinsmen mem-

ber and farm show chairman Ray Kuper.

horsepower Case International 4894 was built from 1984 to 1987.

Only 872 were manufactured at the original price of $95,000.

“We have a customized tractor that we pick up and put our Drayton Kinsmen Farm Show stickers on,” Kuper said.

“We might add a light or paint it; it just depends on what we think will spruce it up.”

“I think everyone’s pretty excited that it’s coming back. I think we’ll probably have a record-breaking attendance year,” Kuper told the Community News Organizers of this year’s event are anticipating around 2,000 attendees during the twoday event, which raises money for cystic fibrosis research and local community improvement projects.

He added, “We usually have a John Deere but the odd time we step outside the box and go with Case International, or something by Ford.”

Tickets will be sold at the door and admission is $5 for adults and $2 for children; those aged 8 and under are

Fifty per cent of admission fees are donated to cystic fibrosis research, a cause the Kinsmen support at a national

“It’s a major fundraiser for the Drayton Kinsmen and it generates a lot of money that is usually put back into parks and recreation of some sort in the community,” Kuper said.

A long-standing tradition for the show is the sale of a unique toy tractor every year.

This year’s collectible tractor is the Case International 4894. The real eight wheel, 300

The event features the latest in agricultural technology and provides an opportunity for farmers and suppliers to talk shop.

It’s also a chance for community members to celebrate their rural roots.

“We’ll see what some of the tractor dealers have on site this year,” Kuper said.

“We could see a lot of new upgraded equipment, especially after three years of not having a show.

“There’s probably a dozen pieces of equipment that are going to be sitting in the parking lot.”

Tractor

Annual Drayton Farm Show model tractors more than just toys

CHRIS ZIMMERMAN

CONTRIBUTOR

MAPLETON – The organizers of the seventh annual Drayton Farm Show in 1988 decided to offer a collectible model tractor to attendees.

Thirty-five years later, the anticipation of adding to collections has become a timehonoured tradition.

Former Mapleton mayor Neil Driscoll has an extensive collection that was passed down to him by his father Stan.

It has grown to include every tractor available to date at the Drayton Farm Show.

Stan passed away in 2007 but was always a pillar of the community. He served as a Kinsmen member for many years, and his dedication to the farm show helped mould it to what it is today.

“We’ve (Hensall Co-op, formerly Driscoll Farms) had a booth at the farm show, probably for 15 years now,” Driscoll said.

Having attended dozens of shows since he was young, Driscoll’s booth is a means to

connect with the community. He pops fresh popcorn on site and will again be participating in this year’s event.

“The biggest reason we go is to meet up with local people and our customers,” he said.

“Life is so busy – we don’t have time, it seems, to visit anymore. This is one time of year we get to see everybody that comes to the show that we either deal with or know personally. It’s honestly just a great community event that gets businesses out to see people.”

After his father’s passing, Driscoll donated the original Cockshutt toy tractor from the 1988 show to the Kinsmen Club in Drayton.

“We actually put it on a plaque and donated it back to the club because they had sold out that first year and didn’t even keep a model for their own showcase,” Driscoll said.

When asked if he was happy with the variety of tractors made for the show, Driscoll said the Kinsmen have done a really good job of representing various brands.

While the model collection

is impressive, Driscoll’s assortment of around ten full scale pre-1980 tractors is also quite estimable.

His restored standard McCormick W-4 was on display at last year’s tractor tour in Palmerston and his farm property has been the venue for ploughing competitions and, more recently, snowmobile grass drag races.

Less than a ten-minute drive down the road, Moorefield resident and former Kinsmen Arden Mick has also been collecting the tractors since day one.

“I have them all,” Mick said. “I’ve got the first one through to the last one that was produced.”

This, of course, includes the tractor for the 2020 show that was cancelled at the start of the pandemic.

Because supplies of the models are limited, Mick was sure to get his order placed early for the upcoming show.

“This year’s tractor is preordered. That responsibility is my wife’s,” said Mick.

“Very early on it came up

that my birthday is about the same time of the year, so I’ve been able to get the tractors by calling it my birthday present.”

With a penchant for antique tractors, Mick would like to see more of the “old stuff, that a lot of people have never seen”. He’s always had a passion for the John Deere and McCormick machines and hopes to see some at the show this spring.

“I think the show is about connecting farmers and commercial people,” he said.

“It’s educational, and great for kids who don’t get a chance to look at agricultural things. All around it’s a nice little fundraiser for the community. The money all goes back into the community which helps down the road, so it’s multi-fold.”

Event organizers are hopeful this year’s show will return to pre-pandemic attendance.

“I was quite pleased to hear the [Kinsmen] are back at it again, and from many reports I’ve got, it’s been very well received in the farming and commercial communities,” Mick added. “Hopefully, it’s the best one yet.”

Old toy – Original Cockshutt tractor offered at the 1988 farm show on display by the Drayton Kinsmen Club. Submitted photo