MILTON, ONT. – There comes a time when the status quo is no longer acceptable; that taking the safe and prudent road is untenable; and doing what is right instead of being the popular kid on the block takes the courage and strength of conviction in both values and attitude.
So it is for the Board of Country Heritage Agricultural Society (CHAS) and its make-up, a reflection of the use of the facility and the diversity that this small organization has become renowned for in both Halton Region and beyond. There was no rhetoric, no hesitation as the membership put in place a new board, and with the dust settling, the actions reflect the on-going and continuing renewal of the once Ontario Agricultural Museum into a more community-based, community-driven organization that brings together everyone into an inclusive tent – long an aspiration for many groups.
“It speaks to the needs of finding a societal balance,” said returning President Liz Lambrick. “Our board felt the time had come to shed its past and work towards a future that reflects the changing dynamics at Country Heritage Park, where we are going, and more importantly, placing individuals of strength and character into roles that will lead well after this pandemic has ended.
“We know that there is no returning or going backwards after this passes,” she continued. “Our new reality will need to be our society working together, towards achieving fairness, shedding our fears and instead, embracing hope to each other.”
Lambrick, an area farmer with her husband, Peter, is a former Milton Citizen of the Year winner, and is leading CHAS into her third term – all mostly during a pandemic that shut down businesses throughout the province and destroyed many facilities operated through public means, which should have included this one. Instead, the board and its on-site management team drastically cut expenses and found ways to eke out more than just an existence – posting ever so slightly into the black for the fourth time in the facility’s history while still building upon the almost social enterprise of a food and farm educational operation.
Source : Country Heritage Park