55th annual pro rodeo remembers a legend
Come check out all of our exhibits at the NV Fall Fair. We are located just past the rodeo grounds on Lindley Creek Road.
FLOWERS Extravaganza of Colour
WINE FORAGE & CROPS leadership, he was chosen by the Merritt and District Chamber of Commerce as ‘Citizen of the Year’ in 1983. “Al was the driving force behind the whole project,” said longtime rodeo association member Elaine Gill. “His vision and determination were an inspiration to everyone who worked alongside him.” The high regard in which Al was held throughout the community was evidenced by the amazing amount of ‘work-in-kind’ he was able to garner from generous local companies and businesses, which in turn would allow for successful grant requests from several different levels of government.
STUDENTS Elementary and Secondary
PHOTOGRAPHY Time Held by a Photo
HOMECRAFTS Handcrafted Ideas
HOBBIES For the Hobby Enthusiasts
PET SHOW Smallest, Best Dressed, Unique, Best Trick, & more!
DA I RY G OATS, SH EEP & SW I N E P O U LT RY & P IG EON S R A BBI TS, C AV I E S & H A MS T ER S For Animal Lovers
Come out to the Fall Fair Building and help us wrap up the 2013 Nicola Valley Fall Fair and Rodeo Weekend NICOLA VALLEY FALL FAIR
COUNTRY DANCE Sunday, Sept. 1, 2013 : 9 pm to 1 am
DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY
J Ro b W ig io ns
Support your Cents!
The Freshness of the garden o in a jar.
Baking Contest, Commercial Booths, Tractor, Old Car & Farm Equipment Displays.
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Bring the whole family for Pancakes, Eggs & Sausage.
CANNING
Come down and check out all the exhibits on August 31st & September 1st
ith
(by the NV Memorial Arena)
A Show of Great Gardening
A Picturesque Group of Artists
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in the Aquatic Centre Parking Lot
An Aromatic Group
FINE ARTS
A Hayday of Farm Products
See ‘Byer’s legacy’ Page 4
Saturday, August 31: 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.
BAKING
FRUITS & VEGETABLES
4H CLUB C
Chemistry in a bottle
Weekend Don’t Miss Rodeo Merritt Centennials Pancake Breakfast
Adults $7 Kids/Seniors $5
Saturday: noon to 8 pm & Sunday: 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
o om t y e our hi gh boo -p ts ow on er d pa ow rty n in ’!
On March 8 of this year, the Nicola Valley Rodeo Association lost one of its founding members — a man much-loved, respected and revered by all those who had the privilege and good fortune of meeting and getting to know him. Joseph Allen Byer, or Al as everybody knew him, was born in Princeton on July 9, 1930, and raised in the nearby mining community of Copper Mountain. His love for the outdoors, for horses and for cowboying began early, and resulted in him working on a ranch outside of Princeton for several years. He often told people that he was “born in the wrong era, a few generations too late,” and that he should have been born during the time that the horse and buggy reigned supreme and before the invention of modern machines. It was during his time in the Princeton area that Al met a pretty gal by the name of Vera Dinsdale. They married on Aug. 15, 1953. In 1957, Al and Vera moved to Merritt and raised a family that would include one son, Wayne, and three lovely daughters, Connie, Debbie and Linda. For the next 35 years, Al worked as the owner/operator of Mountain Trucking Ltd. and was also employed
summer of 1983, and the existence of these magnificent facilities to this day. In honour of this achievement and Al’s incredible
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sports@merrittherald.com
by Weyerhaeuser as a bush foreman and with the Department of Highways. During those years, Al was never very far away from the range, from cowboying and from rodeo. He loved to spend time in the saddle at the many ranches around Merritt, and very quickly became involved in the Nicola Valley Rodeo Association. When his two youngest daughters, Debbie and Linda, joined high school rodeo, Al wasted little time before he, too, was an integral part of the organization. He would go on to serve as president of B.C. High School Rodeo for a number of years, and as the B.C. director to the National High School Rodeo Association. Al and Vera loved nothing more than hauling their girls round to rodeos all over the province and watching them compete. And when grandchildren started arriving a few years later, it was just another opportunity for the two of them to jump back into rodeo with both feet. In 1981, Al became the president of the Nicola Valley Rodeo Association, a position he would hold for the next 19 years. It was Al’s vision, perseverance and tenacity that led to the total re-construction of the Nicola Valley rodeo grounds in the memorable
SATURDAY, AUG. 31 & SUNDAY, SEPT. 1, 2013
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THE HERALD
38th ANNUAL FALL FAIR
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By Ian Webster
Nicola Valley Fall Fair Association presents the
FOR MORE INFORMATION PHONE 250-378-7270 OR 250-378-9929