​Purple Grove news

Hope everyone is in high gear for the Kincardine Fall Fair this weekend. It should be a fun-filled event.

Best of luck to all the returning and new students who are heading back to school, and to all the teachers as well. Summer was hot and sunny, with lots of events to attend and we hope everyone is well-rested and happy to return to class.

The Purple Grove Women's Institute has been busy putting forth its program for the year 2025-26. We have some interesting speakers lined up, so here's an invite to come and find what we are all about, while learning more about the fabulous opportunities available through participation. Would love to have you come as a guest and go from there. Please feel free to reach out at anytime by contacting Bren de Leeuw by E-mail at purplegrovewi@gmail.com or call 519-396-6521.

Many folks are looking forward to the final Cruise Night on Friday; good luck to all the participants!

Happy Birthday to Michelle Liddle, and Brian Dewar, and belated birthday greetings to Lane Farrell who is now five, Danica and Paisley Farrell who are 11, and Charlie Smith who is 93, as well as Bev Fry, Shauna Lochhead, Ellen Waye, Linda Thacker and Sam Finnie.

Harvey and Brenda de Leeuw enjoyed attending a 60th birthday party for their friend, Pam Dobson, in Morestown this past weekend.

Happy Wedding Anniversary to Shane and Melissa Arnold, and Carmen and Jeff Knapp!

Congratulations to Jonas Schwarz and Charlene Romero who were married Aug. 16. Also to Courtney Stafford and Ryan Husk who were married Aug. 23. Attending that wedding were members of the Reid and Husk families, and family members from far and wide.

Sunday, Brian and Jo Reid and other Reid family members, attended a soccer game in St. Marys where Addison, daughter of Niki and Colin Syvret, was playing.

The Ripley Food, Art and Craft Festival was a busy spot with more than 500 visitors to the event!

Show season has begun and Teeswater 4-H Clubs had their Achievement Day, Aug. 16, on a very hot day. Congratulations to those club members and all the exhibitors. New to the Teeswater Fair was a sheep-shearing competition which was something to see!

The Bruce County Plowmen's Association hosted its annual plowing match, Friday, Aug. 22. Congratulations to Cassie Galbraith who is the 2025-26 Bruce County Queen of the Furrow. Another great day in the country for lots of people who enjoyed the beef dinner.

Jim and Fran Farrell have returned from almost two weeks of touring farms and cities in Ireland. They started out in Dublin, taking in the Tullamore Agricultural Show, through Kilkenny and down to Cork and Tralee along the Wild Atlantic Way - the highway along the west coast of Ireland. They visited the Macroon Buffalo farm where farmers milk water buffalo and process this milk into cheese, on to the Dingle Peninsula, Inch Beach, Cliffs of Mohr, and an oyster farm at Sligo - very interesting.
They were then onto Dongeal and Derry/Londonderry in North Ireland, enjoying history tours of the city, out to the Giants Causeway and Dunluce Castle, the crossing to Scotland. They went to another farm at Glenshane Country Farm where the owner/operator, James, has 200 sheep and also diversified the operation, adding Border Collie sheep dog demonstrations and country house stay-overs.
They were on to Belfast where they enjoyed city tours and the history of Northern Ireland and visited the Titanic Museum - a must-see! Another hobby farm stop where they learned to make soda bread, and back to Dublin where they enjoyed the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus around the city to tour historical buildings, the Jeannie Johnson ship, Epic Museum and St. Patrick's Cathedral. And since Air Canada went on strike, they got to stay another day in Dublin and took in the Viking Splash tour - another fun excursion.
Excellent food, great weather and a wonderful tour host, who got us home again, only one day off schedule. They made some more friends and enjoyed the country with a most excellent tour bus driver!

PURPLE GROVE W.I.

Nine members of the Purple Grove W.I. and two guests met in the Ripley-Huron Community Centre parking lot, Aug. 22, to car-pool on the annual August Mystery Tour. They were off to Wingham to have an early lunch at the Riverside Park in the gazebo, with a view of the river. The first point of interest was a visit to Sweets and Treats for a chocolate demonstration and tasting of homemade turtles and two kinds of barks. Simply scrumptious!

Onward to Bluevale to the Red Door Café and Mill, for a view of the mill where the company processes its locally-grown wheat, organically-sourced. The taste of the finished products was so fresh and light, much healthier than what we find in bread products from the store. The group learned a lot. Some of the flour goes into the pizza dough that is made at Lucknow's King Pizza. Can't wait to head there and try the delicious pizza.

The ladies enjoyed purchasing flour and other goodies before heading to Londesboro to visit Greyhaven Gardens and Nature's Best, and The Old Mill, once again discovering many interesting and wonderful treasures. The group ended the tour at The Blyth Inn where the ladies enjoyed a delicious supper, while reminiscing about the stops along the way, sharing their thoughts and visiting friends. Many thanks to Cheryl Bridge and Marilyn Reid for such a memorable day.

The Purple Grove W.I will hold its next meeting, Wednesday, Sept. 3, at 7 p.m., at the Purple Grove Community Centre. The ladies will hear from Ripley pharmacist Amgad (A.M.) Amer. It should be a very interesting session.

RIPLEY AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY

The agricultural society is looking forward to the return of the Stoneboat Pullers to the Ripley-Huron Fall Fair on the Friday night. Check out the event link: www.stoneboatpullers.com/.../2025/9/26/ripley-fair.

The Homecraft Exhibit Book and Entry Form is available on the website: ripleyfair.ca. Hard copies are available at Pollock Electric, Ripley Pharmacy, Country Depot and Lucknow Pharmasave.

Brianna Pointon-Yungblut was at the CNE on the weekend where Hannah MacDonald recapped her year as CNE Ambassador. Thank you for representing us so well! Congratulations to Lexi Johnson of the Listowel Agricultural Society who is the new CNE Ambassador!

Our volunteer sign-up account is now active for this year's fair. Sign up for the fairground set up and take down, gates crew and garbage maintenance crew. There are links on the website to join the mammoth parade. The parade is a great opportunity to showcase your community spirit. Everyone is welcome to join the fall fair celebrations.