Day 4 of Agribition welcomes 500 displaced Ukrainians

Some special guests are being welcomed to Western Canada’s largest farm show.

On Thursday, Canadian Western Agribition organizers — in partnership with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders — announced they had invited 500 displaced Ukrainians living in Saskatchewan to attend the show.

Agribition CEO Shaun Kindopp says Agribition and the Riders wanted to give the displaced Ukrainians a new and unique experience.

“It’s something that is very important to us. I can’t imagine what they’re going through, so we wanted to be able to do something and give them more of a welcome home,” he said.

Kindopp added it was an easy decision to arrange the visits.

“We wanted to do something impactful and not just put logos everywhere. This is something we both aligned on and it was a no-brainer,” he explained. “We want to be able to welcome them to Agribition as a thank you.

“There’s not a whole lot to do right now with all the weather going on, so right before Christmas, we wanted to give (the Ukrainians) the free option to have some fun.”

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February, Saskatchewan has welcomed nearly 3,000 Ukrainians.

As for Agribition itself, Kindopp mentioned organizers are pleased with what they’ve seen in terms of attendance.

“Last night was something else as (the rodeo) filled up,” he said. “We’re excited about that. At the moment, we’re above our 2019 numbers (through three full days), which we’re beyond proud of.

“Mother Nature keeps trying to throw us some curveballs, but we’re up for the challenge.”