Generations gather for Carberry’s 140th fair weekend

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This article was published 06/07/2025 (265 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

CARBERRY — The Carberry Agricultural Society hosted generations over the weekend as it held the 140th edition of its beloved annual fair and races.

The event drew crowds from across the region for three days of rural celebration, competition and community connection.

From Friday through Sunday, the fairgrounds buzzed with activity — from the thundering hooves of chuckwagon and chariot races to the quiet focus of 4-H beef shows and heavy horse displays. Families soaked in the festivities, which included children’s entertainment, trade booths, horticulture displays, a parade, beer gardens, bingo and a newly added cornhole tournament.

The event has grown with the town and remains a vital part of Carberry’s identity, society’s vice-president Deanna Letkeman told the Sun.

“This is the 140th anniversary of the Carberry Ag Fair,” Letkeman said. “My family has been involved for decades — we’ve run the baby animal tent for about 40 years. It’s been a part of my life since I was born.”

Despite increasing costs and the ever-unpredictable prairie weather, the fair ran smoothly thanks to the efforts of dedicated volunteers. Letkeman noted that about 10 core board members each co-ordinate their section of the fair, recruiting volunteers to help run everything from the children’s zone to the horse rings.

“Without volunteers, this wouldn’t happen,” she said. “Every area of the fair needs people, and we’re lucky our community shows up every time.”

The weather was one of the few variables organizers couldn’t control. Fortunately, “aside from a light sprinkle Thursday night, the skies stayed clear for the weekend, a welcome break from the kind of rain that can turn the racetrack into mud.”

Among the weekend’s many highlights was the heavy horse show, where Charity Thevenot and her two-year-old filly, Karmall, took top honours. Karmall not only won her age category but was later crowned champion among all female classes — a proud moment for Thevenot and her family.

“She’s out of a mare my sister and I raised,” Thevenot explained. “We sold that mare to a friend, Dale at Lakeview Clydesdales, and he raised this filly. I later bought her back, so it’s kind of full circle.”

Thevenot, who hails from Strathclair, described the effort it takes to prepare even halter horses like Karmall for the show ring, though she noted hitch horses — which she and her family were also showing later in the weekend — require even more intensive training.

“It’s a lot of grooming and practice,” she said. “With hitches, it’s months of work at home to train them to drive together with style and strength.”

Meanwhile, younger participants also stepped into the spotlight. One of the weekend’s proudest moments came in the junior showmanship category, where a first-time competitor named Sawyer, a four-year-old boy, showed Boulder Bluff Nina, another horse from Thevenot’s extended family of equines.

“It’s great to see the next generation getting involved,” Letkeman said, pointing out how her children are following in her footsteps, helping in the animal tents and around the grounds.

Besides the heavy horse events, the weekend featured live music, fireworks, a car show, a clown performance at the grandstand, a pancake breakfast hosted by the Legion and a 4-H beef sale — a longtime fair staple. Saturday’s events saw especially large crowds, and many attendees stayed for the evening concert and fireworks.

Letkeman acknowledged that keeping the fair accessible while dealing with rising costs has been a balancing act.

“The price of everything — from bouncy castles to prize payouts — keeps going up,” she said. “But we’ve worked hard to keep things affordable for families while still putting on a full weekend of events.”

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