LEARN HOW FINLEY SHOW SHIFTED TO AN ONLINE FORMAT AND WHAT THEY DID TO SUCCEED: WATCH VIDEO HERE
At the beginning of the year, we had the pleasure of hosting The Land Showgirl Zone 7 Final, and all those in attendance will agree that it was a fantastic evening.
And then, of course, things took a bit of a turn with COVID-19…
Finley decided early on that we wanted to hold a show in some way, shape or form. During May and June, we felt confident at being able to stage a physical pavilion, with our livestock events to be held online. However, by the time our July meeting rolled around, we knew we couldn’t go ahead with the planned pavilion under the current restrictions, particularly since Victoria was dealing with a their second wave.
Thanks to a number of dedicated and passionate committee members, we were able to move our livestock AND pavilion events online, and it was a great success. We received 95 livestock exhibits and 395 pavilion exhibits, with the announcement of results taking place on Show Day, September 6. President Matt Mueller and Online Livestock Steward Scott Watkins even popped down to the Showgrounds for a Facebook Livestream to officially open the show and announce the supreme livestock exhibits. While it wasn’t a normal show experience, both exhibitors and spectators alike were grateful that we were able to do something that allowed people to still be part of the Finley Show during a time when most events had been cancelled outright.
Even being online and able to do everything from the comfort of our own homes, those involved behind the scenes we’re still just as busy as if it was a normal show year and we were all running around the showgrounds trying to get things done.
Unfortunately, our three other events – poultry auction, dog trials, and rose show – did not go ahead. We are ready to get back to normal, or whatever this new normal will look like, in 2021 and welcome everyone back to the showgrounds.
During October, we had two scarecrows on display for #NoShowScarecrow. One was located on the corner of our Showgrounds on the entrance to town, and the other at the local Catholic School. We received lots of great comments from the community about the scarecrows and were proud to be part of this initiative. One of our scarecrows has now found a home in the President’s veggie patch.
It’s sad the no one has been able to use our Showgrounds, because we’ve kept it looking pristine all year. In March, together with the Showgrounds & Sporting Complex Committee, a new boundary fence was erected at the Showgrounds. Recently, trees that were too close to shed were felled and the resulting wood will go towards our future Street Stalls & Wood Raffles. There are a few more maintenance jobs on the list once harvest and the holidays have been and gone.
Thanks to the Showgrounds Stimulus Funding, $21,000 was received to upgrade pathways around the refurbished rugby and touch football clubrooms. This building was long overdue for an update and can now be better utilised by all user-bodies of the Showgrounds, including the Show Society.
Early in the year, we applied for the $5,000 NSW Government grant and were successful. COVID-19 put a hold on receiving the funds, but we will be able to access them in the new year to go towards the 2021 Show. And like many shows, we applied for the Federal Government Shows Grants and are currently waiting to hear of our success (fingers crossed!).
Throughout all this, we’ve still been meeting every month, with only one month missed and two via Zoom. Our AGM will be November 28 before we break until January 27. We also managed to hold two out of our three allocated Street Stalls and Wood Raffles, both of which were greatly supported by the community.