SA country show futures at risk of discontinuation

Last month the Jamestown show committee held their annual general meeting where they were unable to fill the role of secretary which left the future of the 2024 show on-hold.

After many posts to social media and hundreds of phone calls the committee was able to appoint a secretary according to Jamestown Show president James Moore.

"Like a lot of country committees, we're just battling to find secretaries," he said.

"We've got a lot of general committee members, but we were just battling to find someone for the secretary role.

"It's such a huge role that you need that a person that's got that background or that drive to really succeed in it.

"So a huge amount of committees in country towns are battling to fill that role."

He said people were enjoying the quietness or spending more time with their families because of the changes experienced with COVID.

"There's always been a difference between the people that want all events to happen but not put any work in, and the people that will be on every committee they possibly can to make these events happen.

"The people that are willing to volunteer are just trying to do so much, they are getting burnt out.

He said the secretary role had been split up to lessen the workload and make the position more appetising.

But Jamestown show isn't the only one feeling the shortage of volunteers after Kimba Show struggled to obtain a president in February, recalling its AGM last month to fill the role.

Immediate past president Courtney Johnson said she wanted to step down and after a lack of committee members and a lack of interest to take on the president role they had to recall the AGM.

"We are always looking for new members but we do have enough to meet our quorum now as we have a new committee," she said.

"If people want to step up, that would always be great."

The Clare show also faced committee vacancies with changing the baton when their secretary stood down after two years.

President Sid Nicholls said the Clare Show now had a full committee and had changed a lot in the past five years.

"We just advertised for a new secretary and we received three applicants and interviewed two of them and found a new secretary," he said.

"We only just appointed her at our AGM a few weeks ago.

"The committee certainly decreased its average age from about 75 to 45 and changed its attitude towards working with other users of the showgrounds so we both benefit.

"Changing the philosophy of the show has helped attract more committee members to our committee."

He said its show focused on families and children with engagement from the three Clare schools.

"I was the convener of the shearing competition and a couple boys from the high school helped chip in and a few girls also from the high school came and did some roustabouting," he said.

"They really almost ran the sheep section for me - so there are some good skills to learn at the show."

Lucindale Show secretary Laura Rivertt said the committee would welcome more volunteers even if it was just for an hour to oversee the show rides.

"Finding volunteers is definitely hard and we were short on a few conveners so I found myself doing a few other jobs which I probably wasn't meant to be doing," she said.

"Some of it is quite easy and you don't have to be on the committee.

"If your town and community wants it and they want to support it, they have got to help make it happen and keep it going, otherwise, it probably won't."

SA Country Shows president Michael Scott said only one country show had reached out to the association to inform them its show may not continue as it was getting harder to get volunteers.

"We've got to look at the how we look after our volunteers once we get them in," he said.

"If the show is successful, and is welcoming of new ideas, and some innovative thoughts about how they run their sections, I think we will continue to have people.

"Although I do acknowledge that some of the towns are diminishing in size as the profile of farming changes and two or three farms are absorbed into one, there's a lot of big mechanical farming equipment used that only needs one or two people to run it, and therefore the population of some of the towns and the available volunteers is reducing.

"But in the main, I think that if we maintain or adopt a progressive way of running our shows, people will still be involved."

He said he was very keen to develop a group of people who would be prepared to help other shows.

"There are some people who do have available time, are very experienced and possibly prepared to help a neighbouring show," he said.

"The assistance for shows is best provided from the association level, which is the regional level.

"Nothing succeeds without success - it's important that our shows continue and provide that atmosphere of success and and a vision for going somewhere."

Mr Scott said the rural ambassador program was a successful way to get youth involved and after 25 years of the program - ex ambassadors were returning to help their local country show.

"We put the show promotion stand at the Royal Adelaide Show as half a million people come through the gates each year," he said.

"And it's also a part of the yellow brick road experience which 15,000 people visited our stand through last year."