Full Day of Fun at Benito Canada Day Celebration

Submitted by: Shirley Yaschyshyn |

Benito was bustling on Canada Day with a full day of activities for all ages to enjoy.

To start the festivities, the Benito Volunteer Firefighter’s hosted a Pancake Breakfast.

Pancakes, sausages, coffee and juice were served to approximately 420 people with all money raised going to the CZ Miller Trust Fund.

At 10:00am, seven teams took to the ball fields to compete in the annual slow-pitch games to the delight of the spectators that came out and braved the gale force winds to see their friends and relatives in action.

No doubt there will be some players realizing they have some muscles they forgot about. Thankfully the breeze kept everyone comfortable throughout the sun filled day. Looking forward to next year and another fun filled day of friendly competition.

The kids had a great time with a full day of activities that included face painting, bouncy castles, Three Sons Duck Race, tic-tac-toe, sand dig and the Cement Works train.

These kids’ activities were highlighted by the day time fireworks which delighted both the young and old. A big thank you to everyone who helped make the day enjoyable for the youth in attendance.

For the kids at heart and any of the automobile enthusiasts, this year’s version of Canada Day in Benito included a Show & Shine. Organizers were pleased with having 31 entries on display for the first, of what they hope, will be an annual event.

The Show & Shine featured 7 classifications, the Ford Classification sponsored by Atkinson Contracting went to Merle and John Dvorak with their 1950 Ford, the GM Classification sponsored by Rod Blosha Seeds went to Jim Pollock with his Nova SS, the Mopar classification sponsored by Schure Farms Ltd went to Lora Cole with her 1969 Road Runner, the Other classification sponsored by BASF Jon Bartel went to Ron and Cathy Lewicki for their Slingshot, the Custom classification sponsored by the Kenville Flyers went to Ted and Michelle Corbett for their ’30 Coupe, the Best Bike classification sponsored by Beehler Disc Golf Supply went to Carolyn Mago Taiux and the Pioneer classification sponsored by Cement Works went to Austin Homeniuk and the People Choice sponsored the Benito Recreation Centre went to Dwayne Stankewich.

Thanks to our participants, sponsors and CTT Metal Fab for making the trophies. Hope to see you next year.

Those who attended or were participating in events were fueled up by the tasty treats at the Benito Recreation Centre concession.

People were treated to a world of different flavours, from the Ukrainian Platter or Taco-in-a-Bag to rink favorites like cheese burgers and fries.

Even with all of the taste delights on the concession menu, many attendees held onto their hunger until the evening when the curly fries took over the deep fryer.

Those in the beer gardens were kept entertained by a number of musical acts that provided something for everyone’s musical tastes.

All these local artists show the level of talent in the Swan Valley and it was fantastic to have them showcased.

Prior to the finale of the fire works being set off at dusk, the ever-popular horse show tournament was on tap. Looking to repeat as champions, the Schneider / Kinaschuk duo were definitely the target team to beat. After qualifying games and some hopes being dashed the B-Side final had Shelley Jersack and Pat Martin take the bragging rights.

On the A-Side the hopes of Dale Jersack matching Shelley’s success in being able to take home bragging rights were snuffed by a come from behind repeat by Rick Kinaschuk and Scott Schneider, who were very humble in their victory.

As the day was becoming night the time came to pull the winning tickets in the progressive 50/50 draw. Congratulations to Buddy Leclaire who took home $648, Mike Shaw who took home $324 and Jody Lyons who took home $108.

With the sky darkening and the hope of rain on the horizon, the celebration moved to the old race track for the fire works display. With the wind settling down and the rain holding off for most of the fire works, those in attendance were thrilled by another fantastic show. Thanks to the Benito and District Fire Department for getting the show off before the downpour.

This event does not happen without a huge amount of support from the community. We are fortunate to have people who take the time to organize, plan and work to make this a successful event every year. We are also fortunate that this event has the attendance of residents from all areas of the Swan Valley and beyond.