The 43rd Williams Lake Harvest Fair will not go ahead in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We kept holding out hope, but we just don’t see it happening,” said Tammy Tugnum, president of the Williams Lake Harvest Fair board.
The fair brings together Cariboo-Chilcotin communities to celebrate the best of the season and generates collective memories that span generations, she added.
“We know people could really use the love the fair brings to this community, but following the directive of provincial health authorities, we want to do our part to contribute to hopefully turning the tide on the advancement of the virus. “
Even though things could change by September, she said the board acknowledged the planning and organization of the fair cannot be done at the last minute.
The board agreed it was unfair to seek sponsorship from local businesses and local citizens who have been hit hard by the pandemic.
“The fair depends heavily on the sponsorship of our community and while everyone hopes the restrictions will be lifted long before September, public safety and wellness have been and will always remain our priority.”
In the meantime, the board will continue to meet online to brainstorm for the future.
“As much as it hurts, it’s really the only choice we have,” added director Marg Bublitz.
“We are sad but we will just have to make 2021 a fair to remember.”
All of the board members look forward to celebrating with the community at a future event, and Tugnum said it will be a year to rebuild, work on themselves, focus on their own families and friends.
Tugnum has been part of the fair for about 30 years.
“Guy Cawley, Peter Fofonoff and a handful of others resurrected it 43 years ago. It was the Cariboo Fall Fair and then we changed it to the WL Harvest Fair,” she said.
Read more: Collaboration, love of community grows Williams Lake Harvest Fair
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