Ah, the Show. The mere words evoke strong memories – fairground music and the chatter of fancy chooks, pavilions packed with sponges and scones, dusty heat and the tramp of feet.
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Most of us remember getting a Show holiday. It was a given – you’d get out of the classroom and spend a day trudging through the cattle exhibitions and dodging cow pats.
You’d file past rows of cakes and scones and jams and pickles, wondering whose mum or grandma bagged the prized blue ribbon and neighbourhood bragging rights.
If you were lucky, you’d be back the next day with your parents for a spin on the dodgem cars, a head of fairy floss, a turn on the laughing clowns and maybe, just maybe, one of the overpriced showbags.
You’d arrive home exhausted, with dirty feet and a toy, and know you’d had a good day.
The Hunter River Agricultural and Horticultural Association Show is part of our cultural memory. It’s the oldest of its kind on mainland Australia and has been an institution since 1861.
In recent years, the Show society has had a lot to deal with. Rising electricity prices. The end of the Friday night Maitland trots. The degradation of the grandstand, which has now stood unusable for five years.
This year the Show will operate at a shortfall of $10,000 unless the community rallies. The Mercury is again the 2015 Hunter River Super Show’s major sponsor and we are calling on other businesspeople to help keep the tradition alive.
If 10 Maitland businesses contribute $1000 each, the problem will be solved.
It’s time to step up.
If you can help, please email enesmith@fairfaxmedia.com.au