Baradine, Coonabarabran, Binnaway and Mendooran show committees are working together to develop a way of sharing volunteers across events so that the shows can go on and comply with COVID-safe regulations.

The NSW government announced an easing of CoVID restrictions in November, allowing 192 regional agricultural shows to go ahead in 2021, however, Lauren Harris, president of Baradine show committee, said there are bridges to cross first.

“We will need more volunteers than ever before,” Lauren said.

“We are putting the call out now for helpers to step up and give a hand.

“Regular policing of social distancing is going to be essential at each show; we have to adhere to COVID-safe regulations. The proposal is to muster enough helpers to share across our towns - that is our joint commitment, and we believe we can do it.

“All the shows are going to be a bit different and we all realise the importance of proceeding even if our events run at a loss. We are very excited about getting back to holding our show.”

Because of COVID requirements, show societies are having to look at different ways of running their program events compared to previous years.

Binnaway Show Society is in the process of finalising its plans for individual show sections, which may be slightly modified due to COVID-19.

“We are really pleased to be working with the other local show societies to help each other meet our COVID regulations and hold events for their community,” president, Harry Powell said.

“Given the Binnaway Multipurpose Arena has proven very popular, it made sense to manage the crowd numbers in the pavilion on Art Show night with a horse sports display in the arena.

“We are also looking to hold a smaller version of our Young Judges Day on the Tuesday before the show and the official opening of the arena on the Friday.”

Mendooran PA&H committee is also working on changes to how events will be run under COVID-19 safe rules and regulations.

“Our local show brings a huge social and economic benefit to our town; it encourages social interaction for the whole community and showcases what our rural community has to offer,” Mendooran Show Society secretary, Louise Monk said.

“Small agricultural shows are such an important part of our rural communities bringing people together in our towns and the surrounding districts.

Impact

“The changes will impact on us all as volunteers in getting our events up and running again, but working together with our neighboring shows in 2021 will allow us all to hold successful events that benefit our communities and the agricultural show movement.”

Coonabarabran show committee said because of COVID regulations, next year’s show will be reduced to a one-day event.

“It takes a lot of planning and organising to run a show and because of the uncertainty of our ability to run the show, we could not lock in events and entertainment earlier in the year,” president, Callen Thompson said.

“Next year’s show will require a lot more volunteer time and energy in order to run a CoVID-safe event, so we are seeking support from the community. We are grateful for our regular volunteers who work so hard every year to put on the show, but due to the increased workload we will need more help than ever before.

“The Coonabarabran Show committee is looking forward to working with the other show committees in our region to share the workload. We will beproviding volunteers to help other committees run their shows and, in turn, they will provide volunteers to help us run our show. I think this is a great way of pooling our resources and I look forward to working with the Binnaway, Baradine and Mendooran committees.”

Binnaway is the first show off the rank on Saturday, 27 February, followed by Coonabarabran on Saturday, 13 March, Mendooran on Saturday, 20 March, and Baradine on Saturday, 27 March.

To volunteer to help out at one or more of the four 2021 show events phone: Baradine 0401 238 374, Binnaway 6844 1605, Mendooran 0429 688 611, Coonabarabran 0428 125 906.