Man proposes, God disposes. Speaking at the association’s last agm in November 2019, show president Nick Barker said: ‘The Association’s remit has become increasingly difficult to carry out, mainly because dairy farmers are busy people who have little time and do not benefit from showing cattle on such a small stage. As with so many organisations, we have found it extremely difficult to find enough people to help with the running of such events.’
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The whole idea for the show is to provide something for everybody - and then, before they get fed up with looking at it, to change the spectacle for something new.
And so the West Show will be no more. But it does have money in the bank totalling some £22,000 and the committee wishes to donate to registered charities which, like them, are interested in the preservation of Jersey’s rural heritage in some form. Applicants are welcome to contact the association’s secretary, Lesley Curgenven (lesleycurgenven@gmail. com) by 25 May 2020 to receive a form asking for details of how they would spend any grant. A decision will be taken by July as to how he funds should be distributed. The Royal Court will then be asked to approve the distribution or distributions.
In this way, perhaps, at least efforts to preserve something of Jersey’s traditional rural heritage can be continued in some form, even though the West Show is handing on the baton and, perforce, retiring from the struggle.
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