Brussels Agricultural Society welcomes its 2024 Ambassadors at special event
BY SHAWN LOUGHLIN
Last Wednesday, the Brussels Agricultural Society bid farewell to three Ambassadors and introduced three new ones to the community as part of a special ceremony held at the Brussels Legion.
The evening was not an ambassador competition in the traditional sense of the word, but more of a passing of the torch from the 2023 Ambassadors to the 2024 Ambassadors, all of whom have a clear lineage to past representatives of the society.
Emily Bieman of Belgrave will take on the role of 2024 Brussels Fall Fair Ambassador, succeeding Loretta Higgins of Brussels, while Bridget McCallum will be the Junior Ambassador and Sophia Blake will be the Little Ambassador - the pair taking on the mantles of Paislee Ribey and Isla Fischer, respectively.
Maggie Speer, the 1992 Brussels Fall Fair Queen, the last before the title was changed to Ambassador, served as the emcee for the event. She is also known as the Ambassadors’ “Fair Mom” and has fulfilled that role for many years. She, alongside former Ambassadors Nicole Lowe (2002), Morgan Deitner (2010) and Hannah Hodgins (2011) - the latter two of whom were unable to be at the Legion that night - comprise the society’s Ambassador Committee.
Speer spoke about the connection this year’s three Ambassadors have to past representation and how that kind of returning allegiance says a lot about the Brussels Agricultural Society and the enduring importance of the Brussels Fall Fair. Incoming Little Ambassador Sophia Blake, for example, is the niece of former Ambassador Patti Blake (now Patti Scott), while Junior Ambassador Bridget McCallum’s sister Kaleigh was once the Little Ambassador and new Fall Fair Ambassador Emily Bieman served as the Junior Ambassador for the Brussels Agricultural Society back in 2017.
Before the Ambassadors, both new and old (though, as Ribey would remind those in attendance, “once an Ambassador, always an Ambassador”), took to the podium, Speer welcomed Morris-Turnberry Mayor Jamie Heffer and Huron East Councillor Justin Morrison to speak and bring greetings from their municipalities, which they did in the form of pins for the new Ambassadors to wear with pride and spread the good word about both Morris-Turnberry and Huron East. Speer also acknowledged the attendance of several other fall fair ambassadors who made the trip, including those from Teeswater, Howick-Turnberry and more.
To begin, Fischer bid farewell to her crown and spoke about her time as the Little Ambassador. She said she was extremely dedicated to the role and didn’t want to have to give up her crown.
She said the tiara and sash made her feel pretty and that being in the position helped to grow her confidence, thanking her fellow Ambassadors, the Ambassador committee and the members of the Brussels Agricultural Society for their support and for the experience.
Speer said that she thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Fischer and that an Ambassador not wanting to give up their crown means that the committee did its job.
Blake then came to the front of the Legion to read her submission, but was too nervous, so she stood as Speer read Blake’s piece about which farm animal she’d like to be. Her ultimate choice was a barn cat, though she said, if she had a second day, she could have been a horse on that second day.
Speer also told those in attendance more about Blake, saying that she is the third generation of her family to go to North Woods Elementary School, formerly Grey Central Public School, she likes making crafts and entering them into the Brussels Fall Fair and showing animals at fairs.
Next to the podium was Paislee Ribey, the outgoing Junior Ambassador, who detailed a fun year that she was sad was ending. She talked about the cake-decorating competition at the Brussels Fall Fair, the parades she attended and spreading the word about the Brussels Fall Fair throughout Huron County.
She said she was sad to be leaving her post, but then quoted Speer, saying, “Once an Ambassador, always an Ambassador.”
Speer then spoke, noting that Ribey was the first-ever Ambassador to give up one crown for another in back-to-back years, turning in her Little Ambassador title for Junior Ambassador last year, thanking her for her dedication and loyalty.
Bridget McCallum, the new Junior Ambassador, then took to the podium after an introduction from Speer, who said that McCallum will be entering Grade 8 at F.E. Madill in a few weeks and enjoys a number of sports, including track and field, volleyball and broomball.
As her introduction to the society, McCallum read her submission aloud, comparing the lives of pigs and hippopotamuses.
Next, Loretta Higgins reflected on her year as Brussels Fall Fair Ambassador, showing a video of some of her time spent in the position. She said that reconnecting with the community and the world of agriculture through the position led her to reconsider her career path. She has since quit her job and is pursuing a career in teaching, which she called her true passion.
Higgins will not be competing on behalf of Brussels at the Canadian National Exhibition’s Ambassador of the Fairs competition because she has a family wedding to attend, but she said she enjoyed her time as the Ambassador.
She then made way for Emily Bieman, the new Brussels Fall Fair Ambassador. Bieman is studying animal biology at the University of Guelph in the hopes of becoming a large animal veterinarian.
Bieman told those gathered that she has been part of the local 4-H organization since she was just nine years old, completing over 60 clubs in that time. On the home farm, Bieman says she’s been involved since she was about two years old, bottle-feeding her own calf, named Red, which she named herself.
She said that, for a time, she felt as though she took her community for granted, not knowing how special it is, but she knows that now and sees it as a place full of people who could inspire a Hallmark movie or a country music song.
The Brussels Fall Fair is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 17 and Wednesday, Sept. 18. For more information, visit the website at brusselsfallfair.ca.