June 10, 2018 BRANDON, MB – The 136th Manitoba Summer Fair is over for another year with just under 100,000 visits over the five days.   “Moving back to our historic Dome building in time for the fair was incredible.” Said Ron Kristjansson, general manager at the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba. “We had a lot of visitors take the time to wander through and see the work that has been done. Moving our offices back to where our events take place was a particular goal for our organization.”   The fair organizers made extra effort this year to add elements that would attract a wide range of ages. ‘The Seniors Tea and Dance was a big success.” Said Ellen Murray, Co-Chair of the Manitoba Summer Fair planning committee. ”We had close to 200 guests attend the afternoon event and interest has already been expressed for a similar event in the future.” Dayle Hughson, Co-Chair of the Manitoba Summer Fair planning committee stated that the newly added Homecraft Competition brought out some of the most talented artists from Brandon and surrounding area. “We were thrilled by the response to the Homecraft competition. “ Said Hughson. “The talent featured in this year’s show was incredible and we expect this competition to continue to grow next year.”   The annual pancake breakfast was welcomed back to the Dome Building this year in the newly renovated space with over 1000 visitors on Sunday morning. “The breakfast is always a fair favourite.” Said Brent Miller, president of the Provincial Exhibition. “We intend to make good use of the space in this building and are already looking at new opportunities for the coming year.”   Next up for the Provincial Exhibition is Manitoba AG EX, home of the Manitoba Finals Rodeo October 24 - 27. Visit the website for more details at www.provincialexhibition.com.

The 63rd annual Brandon Traveller's Day Parade starts at at 11 am on Saturday, June the 9th.  The parade begins at the corner 6th Street and Rosser Avenue and makes its way through downtown, ending at the gates of the fair.  Annually, the parade attracts 60 - 70 entries and is free to the public to attend.

Brandon, MB – The City of Brandon’s Community Development Section is excited to announce the rebranding of its popular Summer Lights concert series and artist workshop program as the City of Brandon 100th Meridian Concerts, a new moniker that pays homage to Brandon’s place on the map and its small, but important place within Canadian rock ‘n’ roll lore. Formerly dubbed the Summer Lights Concert Series, the newly minted City of Brandon 100th Meridian Concerts program will offer three advance registration artist workshops and two FREE concert performances in the community this summer in collaboration with Brandon Pride and the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba. The name change will allow the Summer Lights Music Festival, a one-day music event that takes place annually in September on the grounds of the Keystone Centre, to further establish itself as a separate community not-for-profit event. The concert series and workshop program’s new name also seeks to reflect the fact that the 100th Meridian West line of longitude cuts across the western fringe of Brandon, a geographical location galvanized in Canadian music history by The Tragically Hip. “What better way to honour Brandon’s Prairie geographical and cultural association for many Canadians than to name our already-popular community concert series after it,” says City of Brandon Community Development Coordinator Richard Greer. “We see the City of Brandon 100th Meridian Concert Series as one that works with different community organizations to present events at all times during the year, not just the summer months, and so we’re excited for its first season and see what future partnerships can look like.” The first of two 100th Meridian Concert evening events this summer will be held on Thursday, July 12th on the grounds of the East End Community Centre, located at 405 Park Street. A partnership with the Brandon Pride committee, the event will feature headlining act, Yes We Mystic, an indie-alternative band from Winnipeg. They’ll be joined by opening act, The Young Pixels, a husband-and-wife garage pop duo from Western Manitoba. Plans are also well underway for the second City of Brandon 100th Meridian Concert event on Thursday, August 9th, to be held in downtown Brandon in conjunction with the launch of the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba’s continuing Billboard art series. Confirmed as the event’s headliner is Manitoba-born Indigenous singer and recent Juno nominee Iskwé, while opening the concert will be Sonia Eidse, an Indigenous singer-songwriter from Winnipeg. Staff in the City of Brandon’s Community Development Section is also working hard to plan artist workshops under the 100th Meridian program umbrella in June, July and August. More information on these workshops and the two upcoming concert events can be found at www.brandon.ca/100thmeridian. “One of the City of Brandon 100th Meridian Concerts program’s main goals is to provide the community with exposure to emerging and ‘on-the-rise’ artists they might not otherwise get the chance to see in their own backyard, and to provide that opportunity at no cost to the public,” added Greer. “We are so excited about the eclectic mix of artists we’ve been able to secure for this year’s programming and know they will put on amazing performances in our community.”

The Brandon Folk, Music & Art Festival will be held on Saturday, July 21st, 2018 in Princess Park.  Some of the musical acts listed to be performing include Sweet Alibi, Romi Mayes, Slow Leaves, Mitchell Mozdzen, and the Caitlin Baker Duo.  Other listed activities include workshops,  community groups, and craft and art displays and demonstrations. The event starts at noon and runs through to dark.  Admission is free.

Rockstar Energy Drink and McNabb Valley MX in Minnedosa present the MX Tour Motocross Tour on Saturday June 16th. The races will be held 1 mile west of the intersection of Highway 10 & 16.  40 Racers per class (250 and 450) Tickets and Information: Saturday June 16th Practice starts at 8am and racing starts at noon General Admission – $28.00 each Kids 4 – 12 years old - $20.00 each Buy 3 get one free Children under 3 years old are free! Tickets online by clicking this link - https://jetwerx.webconnex.com/mcnabbtickets  Sunday June 17th Amateur Day $15.00 for adults $5.00 for 12 and under  Joe Beeverz will be on site, selling food and drinks, as will be Busters Ice Cream. Event Websites http://www.rockstartriplecrown.com/events.html http://www.mbmotox.com/schedule/ https://www.facebook.com/McnabbValleyMx/