By NARELLE COULTER
JENNY Andrews possesses a showbag of memories from the Dandenong Agricultural Show.
One of 13 children, eight of them fostered, the show was an annual treat eagerly anticipated by Jenny and her siblings.
Later Jenny, who lives in Doveton, went to the show each year to watch her late husband, Albert, perform with his band, Country Pride.
On Saturday, Jenny was among the thousands who flocked to the 144th show.
“I always came as a child,“ said Jenny.
“I loved the cattle. I wasn’t a showbag kid. There were 13 kids so there wasn’t money for that sort of thing. Mum used to make a whole lot of food and we’d have a picnic just there,“ she said, pointing to the wire fence that separates Greaves Reserve from the railway line.
“We could see the horses from there.“
She remembers the pretty coloured fairy floss, the school dancing competitions and the grand parade “always held at 3pm“.
“It’s just a tradition to come to the show. Even though I’ve lost my hubby I still come.
“I feel I should come.“
In the animal pavilion Joyce Hanmer takes a break from her spinning wheel to show Greater Dandenong councillor Matthew Kirwan her knitted replica of the Dandy Pig.
Joyce can’t remember how long the toy took to make, but by far the hardest part was his blue top coat and tails the details of which she collected as mental notes over many visits to the Dandenong Market.
She loves Dandenong’s most famous symbol, remembering how the pig greeted people as they arrived in Dandenong from Gippsland, and said she was thrilled the pig was recently featured on an Australia Post stamp.
Joyce has spun wool for 30 years, and was a spinning and weaving steward on the weekend.
With a hat made of wool she spun herself perched on her head, Joyce showed fascinated children how raw wool is spun into yarn.
“Boys are interested in how it works and girls are interested in the end result,“ she smiled.
As a tribute to the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign, this year’s show included a special Anzac biscuit competition.
Fifteen entrants vied for the $200 prize judged by Dandenong-Cranbourne RSL president John Wells.
John, who is a Vietnam veteran, is no slouch when it comes to Anzac biscuits. In 1967 the girl who would later become his wife sent a tin of the iconic biscuits to John during his tour of duty.
He reckons he might be one of the last soldiers to eat Anzac biscuits in a war zone.
“The standard (as the show) was good, but many were too big,“ he said.
“Anzacs were traditionally square so they could be packed and shipped. And they should be hard, a lot of them today were soft. I like a more traditional Anzac biscuit.“
The winning Anzac, a well proportioned biscuit with a nice crunch, was baked by show committee member Jeff Tully.
Betty Bassett reckons she has been going to the Dandenong Show for 50 years, possibly more. At 88 she can be forgiven for not quite remembering her first visit.
Betty, a long time Journal reader, was a steward in the art and craft pavilion for many years and her brother-in-law Roy Bassett was show president. Her husband Norm used to give lapidary demonstrations and the couple always took their children to the show.
Betty even remembers “when the show was at the back of the market“.
“The art and craft is the best. I love looking at the cooking,“ Betty smiled as she hurried off towards the animal pavilion.
“It’s wonderful that it’s kept its agricultural roots.“
Hallam’s Eunice McMurray used to demonstrate wool spinning at the Dandenong show.
She had hoped to buy a fleece on Saturday after the shearing demonstration, so was disappointed to find out the shearing was scheduled for Sunday.
She thinks the show is an important part of Dandenong’s heritage.
“The heritage of this area was on the land. It’s important for kids to see chickens and ducks and all the other animals.
“I saw a little boy go up to an alpaca and say ’hello horsie’.
“It’s nice for people to get back to grass roots.“
