Last fall the Princeton Exhibition Association (PXA) with the guidance of town liaison Councillor Jason Earle, created and presented a five-year plan for the Princeton Exhibition Grounds to the Council of the Town of Princeton.
The Princeton Exhibition Grounds are a town-owned facility leased to the PXA.
The plan consists of regular maintenance duties as well as dedicated improvement plans over the next five years.
Over the past year, the grounds have received many improvements.
With thanks to the efforts of Area H director Brad Hope, the PXA received grant funding to improve the lighting on the grounds, making it more energy efficient and lighter on the PXA pocket book. Hayes Creek Electric performed the replacements and upgrades.
Grandstand work is underway via Mike Grgich Contracting and the board is hopeful it will be completed soon. Jody Woodford has done barn repair, All Purpose Roofing has replaced two roofs and members of Princeton Rodeo, Princeton Racing Days and the Agricultural Fair boards have spent numerous hours on smaller projects throughout the grounds.
Special mention must be made of the Bernard and Crucil families as well as of Walt Halipchuck, Paul Bedard and Danny Kastor—these folks have truly dedicated themselves to the improvements of the grounds over the past year.
Most recently, two new young and fresh faces have joined the PXA.
Chloe Littlejohn and her friend Melissa Birchard share common interests and when they met, became “instant besties,” they said.
The two young ladies are horse people, they ride and compete in various events like team roping, cutting and team penning. Littlejohn also served as Princeton’s Rodeo Queen in 2006/07.
Both use the PXA grounds for riding and boarding their beloved horses.
PXA president, Paul Bedard hired Littlejohn, who included her bestie in the package to work on the grounds performing basic clean-up duties. The girls got into doing much more. They are currently putting a face-lift on the American Barns, scraping, cleaning and painting.
“We want to see it used and enjoyed more,” said Littlejohn. “Its a nice facility.”
The pair is excited and working hard, planning to continue with indoor projects throughout the winter. They would like to see Princeton host more events: like cutting, bull-o-rama, horse shows and gymkhana just to name a few.
When extended the invitation to join the PXA, the girls were, “totally in.”
“Someone needs to represent the younger generation,” said Littlejohn. “Getting involved also means meeting more good people,” said Birchard, “and there are some really good people here too.”