Melfort Communities in Bloom members receive their five-bloom ranking during the national ceremonies in Yarmouth, N.S. (Facebook/Melfort Communities in Bloom)

By Aaron Schulze

Communities in Bloom Results

High fives: Melfort and Kinistino shine at CiB national ceremonies

Sep 30, 2019 | 3:34 PM

Two Northeast Saskatchewan communities bloomed on a national stage.

The City of Melfort and the Town of Kinistino each received five blooms during the Communities in Bloom (CiB) National/International Symposium and Award Ceremonies on Sept. 28 in Yarmouth, N.S.

Melfort

Melfort participated in its first national CiB in the 2,501 to 7,500 population category after winning the over 5,000 population category provincially in 2018. The other communities involved were Bay Roberts, N.L., Madawaska Valley, Ont., Merrickville-Wolford Ont., Prescott, Ont., and Windsor, N.S.

“We didn’t know what to expect,” Melfort CiB Committee Member Shannon Marshall told northeastNOW. “We knew as committee that it was something we really wanted to go after just to see where we would stand amongst the rankings. Receiving a five-bloom rating… we’re more than excited and thrilled. We can’t thank the volunteers enough for all their hard work and the community for all their support, along with the city of Melfort. We all work together as a well-oiled machine and we couldn’t do it without all these people.”

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The five-bloom rating doesn’t Melfort won its category, as its 82.5 per cent grade just fell short of the 84 per cent needed for a bronze ranking. However, Melfort received an Outstanding Achievement Award for the landscape category and a special mention for the meditation garden at the cemetery.

Marshall said winter is when Melfort CiB takes its breather to fundraise, put finishing touches on projects such as Spruce Haven Park’s community garden, and see what can be worked on for 2020. She expects the judges’ entire report will be sent before their next committee meeting on Oct. 16.

“We get all that feedback of what could possibly be improved for us, and then we sit down as a committee, go through that, and see what we can tackle next year,” she said. “I think we’re looking at competing again. It’s a lot of fun.”

Kinistino

Kinistino received a bronze rating and a special mention for tidiness in the CiB Class of Champions’ Small Category. Other communities participating included Ashcroft, B.C., Hanna, Alta., and Indian Head, Sask.

The town moved up to the Class of Champions category, which features previous national winners, after it won the national small category in 2015.

Angie Bragg, Kinistino CiB’s chairperson, guessed the small category was a tight race, as the other three communities also received bronze ratings.

“Everybody is so proud of our community,” Bragg said. “Even though we didn’t win, it doesn’t really matter. We still made a big difference in Kinistino and that’s all that really matters in the end.”

Just like Melfort, Bragg said Kinistino CiB is also awaiting the judges’ full report to see what suggestions for improvement are doable.

In the meantime, Kinistino CiB will also take its breather to see what can be accomplished in 2020.

“We definitely decided at our last meeting that we’ll be competing next year,” Bragg said. “We’ll try and get this Class of Champions title so we are the champions eventually.”

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow