The Grenfell Centennial proved to be an overwhelming success, bringing in guests from far and wide and showing them just what Grenfell is all about. Despite poor weather for weeks preceding the centennial, the weekend was met with lots of sunshine, huge crowds and plenty of laughter and cheers.
Grenfell Recreation and Economic Development Manager Danean Karlunchuck had just one word to describe the end result of many, many months of planning.
“Awesome - I can’t say anything short of awesome.”
A total of around 950 people registered for the Centennial, but Karlunchuck estimates that there were about 800 additional unregistered guests in attendance throughout the festivities.
There were some concerns for everyone involved leading up to the big weekend, particularly regarding the weather. On top of excess rain in the weeks leading up to the weekend, a vicious wind storm had blown through Grenfell the day before the Centennial events began, leaving a mess of broken branches and other debris in its wake.
“But people in the community, the town men especially, got out there in the morning on Thursday, got it all cleaned up, and everything looked fantastic for the weekend,” Karlunchuck said.
The celebrations, which went on from June 30 to July 3, featured a huge array of events, including fireworks, a parade, bed races, art shows, hay rides, a cabaret, a concert, a street hockey tournament, slo pitch and tons more.
“All of the events were very well attended and profitable for the organizations putting them on,” Karlunchuck added.
The curling rink held a pancake breakfast attended by 480 people, the golf club served 385 at their breakfast and around 800 people were registered for supper on Friday.
The cabaret saw an
extraordinary turnout,
with over 1,000 people
in attendance.
The Grenfell Lions bed races also turned out to be a huge success, with hundreds of spectators cheering on the outrageously-dressed competitors, who raced down Desmond Street in specially designed rolling beds. The bed races were followed by the Co-op shopping cart races, which also went over extremely well.
Everything went very well, thanks to all the volunteers. - Danean Karlunchuck
The Grenfell Fire Department held a demonstration, featuring a game that pitted firefighters against Grenfell citizens to determine the best firehose-sprayer in town.
Also featured was a remote-controlled airplane demonstration and a horseback-riding demonstration.
The encore presentation of the Centennial concert, featuring a choir as well as solo performances from local musicians, was an even bigger success than the first show, packing the Grenfell Community Hall to full capacity.
“Everything went very well, thanks to all the volunteers,” Karlunchuck said.
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