The Shawville Lions Club held the 11th annual Shawville Country Jamboree over the weekend, hosting 20 acts over three days on the stage set up at Armstrong Farms, just outside of Shawville.
Attendees, some on day passes, others camping at the farm for the duration of the festival, sat under the big white tents in front of the main stage to take in some of the Ottawa Valley’s best country music.
Lions Club president and Clarendon mayor Ed Walsh said the Lions spent the past week converting the farm into a festival ground.
“A week ago this was a hay field,” Walsh said to the crowd as he kicked off the weekend’s festivities on Friday afternoon.
“It’s been all hands on deck [ . . . ] getting the grass cut in the lots and getting them all marked out,” he said.
MRC Pontiac warden Jane Toller, Pontiac MP Sophie Chatel and Shawville mayor Bill McCleary joined Walsh on stage as they officially declared the 2024 Jamboree to be open.
This year’s edition of the festival was dedicated to longtime festival attendee and Lions friend Tony McKenzie, who passed away in the past year.
Walsh presented a plaque to the members of McKenzie’s family who were in attendance.
Then, Quyon-born musician Lorne Daley started the weekend’s music with a hearty repertoire of classics, ranging from Van Morrison’s Brown-Eyed Girl to songs by more modern country artists like Brad Paisley.
Walsh said all 20 acts were from the Ottawa Valley, both from the Pontiac and beyond. In addition to longtime fan favourites like Gail Gavan or The Plager Boys, the festival hosted up-and-coming artists like Ottawa’s Khloe B. Jamie Plager of the Plager Boys said he and his brother Jeff look forward to the jamboree every year.
Whether it’s playing one of their fan-favourite originals on stage, or going to Hursty’s for a club sandwich and a pint, Plager enjoys coming to Shawville.
“It’s a great family-oriented event. Both me and my brother have younger children, and we feel pretty safe there,” he said.
“It’s the kind of thing I look forward to all year [ . . . ] It’s a perfect summer event.”
As the weekend’s music continued, couples and friends alike could be spotted dancing in front of the stage to favourite songs.
Walsh said the festival used to be hosted by another community group, and was in danger of shutting down due to a lack of volunteers. The Lions took over the event 11 years ago and have been hosting it ever since.
He said the festival stopped for a few years due to the pandemic, but started back up two years ago. Since then, camping numbers have started to rise once again, and this year they reached 150 campers, the highest number since before the pandemic break.
He said it’s a lot of work, but at the end of the day it’s worth it.
“It’s a big undertaking but at the end of the weekend I think we make a lot of people happy,” he said.
“We have people that have been coming since the original one 21 years ago so you make some new friends, meet some old friends.”
