HARRIS, Sask. – When construction costs for the community hall in Harris, Sask., exceeded what had been raised, the local district came to the rescue.
A committee of six residents has planned two new fundraisers, both of which are under way.
In a cropping project, residents donated labour and local businesses the seeds, fuel and chemicals. The harvest was held Aug. 30 and the group brought in 5,079 bushels of canola from a quarter section and 4,700 bu. of red lentils from an adjacent quarter. Committee member Barry Graham said the group hopes the lentils will rise in price this fall so that $50,000 can go to paying for the hall.
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The group plans to rent the same half section of land along Highway 7 north of Harris next year to plant again.
“We’ll keep our ear tuned to the market to see what would be the best crop for that,” said Graham.
The committee is also raffling off a 1978 Corvette, with the draw scheduled for June.
The harvest brought out eight combines that had been donated for the work. Grant Tyson took a lot of ribbing because his Massey Ferguson machine was the only red among the seven green John Deere combines. However, he said he gets the last laugh because a mural painted on the outside of one of the village’s buildings features his combine.
Graham said the district had approached the school division in 2001 about taking over space in the Harris school to create a community hall. The division agreed and the community raised the money and received a centennial grant to turn one decommissioned classroom into a kitchen and another into a meeting room and to build a separate entry to the gymnasium. When the construction was completed in September 2005, the bill was $140,000 more than what the community had raised.
Graham said this summer the community hall held a month-long dinner theatre using the local drama group. Various charities catered the event. The hall is also open to weddings, funerals and other rentals. He said a grand opening for the hall is planned for late October.
