Farmerette documentary draws strong local crowd in Exeter

From left is Bonnie Sitter, Patricia Redshaw, Maureen Kole and director Colin Field.

By Meg Pearson

A strong turnout from the local community filled the South Huron Recreation Centre on Feb. 11 for a screening of “We Lend a Hand: The Forgotten Story of Ontario Farmerettes,” a documentary rooted in Ontario history and closely connected to the Exeter area.

As attendees filed into the seats they were welcomed by a moving photo slideshow projected across the big screen — a collection of images from the lives of the Farmerettes that, according to the film’s director Colin Field, did not make the final cut of the documentary. Paired with the slideshow was a carefully curated soundtrack: favourite songs from the 1940s and 1950s, each

one personally selected by the 20 former Farmerettes featured in the film. The documentary, based on the book “Onion Skins and Peach Fuzz: Memories of Ontario Farmerettes” by local

author Bonnie Sitter and Shirleyan English, a collaborator from London, tells the story of thousands of young women who worked on Ontario farms during the Second World War, helping sustain the country’s food supply. Since its publication, the story has evolved into a stage production and the full-length documentary that has toured communities across Ontario.

Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson addressed the audience before the screening, noting the significance of the timing as Canada approaches International Women’s Day in March and recognizes the International Year of the Woman Farmer. She also highlighted the film’s

growing reach and shared aspirations to one day present it at the Juno Beach Centre in France.

Among those in attendance were South Huron Mayor George Finch and West Coast Active Living’s Maureen Cole, who helped organize the screening. The evening sparked thoughtful discussion

and lively questions from the audience, including several attendees with direct family connections to the Farmerettes.

Teri Pearson, daughter-in-law of Phyllis (Herman) Thompson, shared that her relative worked as a Farmerette in 1941 on a peach and cherry farm in Niagara. Also present was Margaret Green, a 101-year-old Exeter resident. Though not part of an official Farmerette camp, Green spent part of the war years living with her grandmother in Exeter, working in a local canning factory before eventually joining the Royal Canadian Air Force as an air traffic controller managing flights that helped protect food convoys crossing the Atlantic Ocean.

“It was really interesting work,” said Green. “I loved it.”

For Sitter, bringing the documentary home to Exeter was especially meaningful.

“Oh my gosh, how many people get to do something like this? It’s a real blessing,”

she said.

The evening event marked the second screening of the day. Earlier that afternoon, about 50 students from South Huron District High School attended a special showing sponsored by West Coast Active Living.

For those who were unable to attend the February screenings, another showing is scheduled for May 31 at Thames Road United Church.

More information can be found at welendahand.ca.