Every year the Canadian Association of Fairs & Exhibitions hosts a national convention allowing for the over 700 Fairs, Exhibitions and Agricultural societies across Canada to come together, network, learn, and grow. While the 2022 Convention was hosted in Ottawa, CAFE delegates invited their respective Members of Parliament to attend a meet and greet to advocate for the Fair's role in the vitality of our communities' heritage and culture.
ACE was joined by delegates from the Saint John Exhibition, Port Elgin Exhibition, and the New Brunswick Exhibition. Together, they also attended information sessions on topics like Creative ways to keep the family focus in programming; Engaging youth volunteers; Becoming a high-performance organization; and Diversifying your organization's revenue. All representatives look forward to bringing ideas back to their Fairs to deliver to their communities in the 2023 Fair season.

The Board of Directors gathered in celebration of a successful Fair on Nov.6th - Thank you to Broadleaf Guest Ranch for proving a great meal and great venue! 
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The Annual General meeting followed with members of the public present. The highlights of the 2022 ACE were reviewed and we would like to once again send a HUGE thank you to all of our sponsors, supporters, exhibitors, and guests. We are very pleased with our accomplishments this year, but have already set the mark for planning for 2023! ACE 2023 will mark 110 years for the Albert County Exhibition.

We would also like to announce a change at our executive level and welcome Fabian MacLeod as Vice President!

The public is invited to attend the Annual General Meeting for the Albert County Exhibition on November 6th hosted by Broadleaf Guest Ranch at 7:30pm. If you have been wondering about the inner workings of the Fair, decision making, future planning, and/or have ideas to share with the Board of Directors we would like to hear from you. All are welcome!

We are pleased to share that Laurie McNaught was nominated and voted in by her peers as President of the New Brunswick Fairs and Exhibitions Association during the Fall Meeting session on October 16, 2022. Laurie is the first woman President of the organization and is also joined by the first women Vice President, Melissa Player from the Queens County Exhibition. The pair bring a lot of energy and passion to the Fair industry and to the organization.
The NBFEA connects with and supports all member Fairs & Exhibitions throughout NB and advocates with Government bodies to ensure the future of our Agriculture sector's vitality through fairs and exhibitions. 
www.nbfairs.ca

Congratulations to Small Fry winner, Paityn MacLeod-Hudson; Junior winner, Sadie Hudson; and Senior co-winners, Tyson MacLeod-Hudson & Heidi Constantine.

In honour of Winston Steeves, we would like to recognize Kyle Steeves for his all-around sportsmanship both in the ring and in the barn. Kyle is always willing to give a hand or even lend a couple horses to complete a hitch so that everyone can fully participate and experience the pride in showing horses. He and his family have been  great friends to the Albert County Exhibition!

The Board of Directors of the Albert County Exhibition are pleased to introduce Miss Albert County '22, Catie Marcoux. Catie is joined by 1st Princess, Kenzie Dixon; 2nd Princess, Natalie Ward; and Miss Congeniality, Hannah Tingley.

The 2022 ACE Queen Pageant saw a slight change in format this year where interviews were conducted on Sunday before the Fair. Pageantry offers excellent experience in interviewing; social connections and networking; and building confidence. Assessment criteria included one's ability to be a good ambassador for Albert County and future leadership skills.
Beyond the title and the generous gifts donated by our sponsors, these young ladies will also gain experience as ambassadors; volunteer hours in the community; and participate in mentorship and skills & development opportunities in partnership with the Albert County Chamber of Commerce- all excellent experiences to contribute to their work and school development.
The ACE is proud to offer these opportunities to our young people and, in many ways, contribute to their futures.

We send our sincere thanks to all of our sponsors!

On behalf of the Board of Directors, we do wish to confirm that, unfortunately, there will be no carnival rides available to us for ACE 2022. Despite our BEST efforts over the last SEVERAL months, all three carnival companies cannot service our Fair. Two will be out of Province and the remaining, coming from NS, is citing a combination of staffing shortages and fuel prices resulting in them declining our Fair. It appears that there are still aspects of this industry needing to recover from the last two years and we wish this was not one of them.

Without the rides this year, we have kept families and the kids in mind when making other plans. We will have Playmania again this year, as well as Mad Science and the return of the School Program and Kid's Variety show. We are also excited about our plans on Sunday where kids can drive a VR tractor, make edible soil, and other fun interactive activities. We also thought it was important for the entire community to come together with all other programs running as normal including the Dining Hall, Exhibit Hall, Queen Pageant, concerts, 4-H, Light and Heavy Horse programs, etc.

The Board works very hard all year long to put the Fair together. We start planning early in the year for a Fair in September and we participate in Provincial and National industry events to network with other Fairs; service providers (including Carnival companies); vendors; and entertainment acts. Nevertheless, we are always open to suggestions and help and the public is always welcome to our Annual Meetings to learn more about the "behind the scenes". If you are wondering 'how' or 'why' some things are or are not at the Fair, please feel free to attend a meeting or talk with a Director. And we are always happy to have some volunteers!

We will continue to advocate for the ACE to have rides next year as the industry continues to recovers. Until then, we are asking for your support and camaraderie in the spirit of the Albert County Exhibition! See you at the Fair!

With Robin's Nest Hobby Farm, we are happy to introduce you to...
JELLYBEAN!

612 votes determined the name of this little one after 33 submitted names were narrowed down to five options. There will be a special announcement on Sunday during Family Day at the Fair. See Facebook for more info.

Covid restrictions lifted just in time for the 2021 ACE allowing us to plan a full fair!

We were honoured to be recognized as one of the leading Fairs & Exhibitions across Canada for the innovation we demonstrated in 2020.

Although we could not come together as a community for the 2020 ACE, we joined together in spirit online by sharing images, videos, and posts over the four days that would have been our Fair. We were still, indeed, Albert County Strong!