It was the first time, and Grace Lutheran Church members were apprehensive about hosting a pancake breakfast and Four Corners Fair Trade Sale open to everyone at the Blindman Valley Ag Centre in Bentley on Remembrance Day Nov. 11, but it proved to be popular.
It was a chance to attend a morning of fun, visiting, and a good breakfast in contrast to the more solemn service usually associated with Remembrance Day.
About 120 paying customers were served up pancakes, ham and scrambled eggs. Small children and volunteer workers ate free so about 160 probably actually ate.
Twenty-five volunteers came from throughout the area and all ages were involved.
The event closed down around 10:30 in respect for and to give the public the chance to attend the community Remembrance Day service at the Bentley Community Church and reopened the Four Corners Fair Trade Sale after noon after the community service was over.
Grace Lutheran Church had agreed to cover all the expenses so all monies raised went directly to the Canadian Lutheran World Relief Fund.
The pancake breakfast raised around $600 and there was a $500 matching grant from Faith Life Financial. The Four Corners Fair Trade Sale took in another $1,100.
Four Corners purchases craft items, linens, jewelry, chocolate and coffee from vendors from all over the world at a fair market value and then resells the items. The church had requested the unique items for their event and offered them for sale, returning all money made and any leftover items not sold.
Add the pancake breakfast and the sale together and about $2,200 was raised from the event for Canadian Lutheran World Relief.
There is a good chance it will continue next year organizers indicate, and it is hoped even more will come.
Horseshoe club names award winners
The Bentley Horseshoe Club met November 24 at the home of Allan and Pearl Boettger for a meal together and to hold their awards presentations to mark the end of another season.
Both the ladies and men’s champions receive a Bill and Rose Martin Memorial club trophy that is presented annually to keep for the year.
Club lady’s champion for 2008 was Patti Paterson, and in second place was Hazel Heistad.
Heistad also received the club Most Improved award with a 5.3 per cent improvement.
New member Ken Miller was named the Men’s Club Champion with the most points earned over the season. He was tied with Allan Boettger but had beaten Boettger three of the four times they had played making Allan Boettger second. Miller also had been voted the club Player of the Year, earned the club High Game Over Average with a 21.9 per cent game over his average, and earned his 20 per cent ringer crest.
Boettger also received the club’s High Average award with a 33.7 per cent ringer average.
League play ran from May 15 until Sept. 18 with a few misses due to inclement weather. With 158 games recorded in regular league play that means 6,320 shoes were pitched in regulation games, not counting the fun and challenge games, doubles games, or practices, or tournament play.
Horseshoes in Bentley was first played at the old grain elevators after the war. Shoes hung on nails on the elevator walls and were available for anyone who stopped by to use.
Games were later played at the Bentley Lion’s trailer park that had been located where the Bentley Community Church is now, and later the courts were relocated to the town office area. When the playground went in, the courts had to be moved again and were rebuilt at the Westview area, and later again moved to where they are presently.
A formal executive and club were formed in about 1979 and have been running ever since.
The club wishes everyone a good winter and hopes to see new and returning faces at the courts in the spring.