East Lothian JAC has grown significantly over the past 85 years, to become the strong club it is today. This was recognised most recently at the east district AGM, where the club placed third for recruitment in the region - a testament to the committee’s hard work and effort over the past year.
Members have participated in a variety of events throughout the year, including country cooks, touch rugby, golf, stock judging, beef cattle dressing, clay pigeon shooting, and hockey, to name a few. Club success has been widespread, with members competing in events across the country from Kelso to Dundee to Ayr.
This year, members participated in every Lothian and Peebles district event, achieving a number of strong placings. Notably, Callum Cane won the L and P district gents junior stock judging trophy and Robert Kennedy was a joint winner of the senior L and P stock judging trophy.
The club also saw a significant increase in east region participation, placing second in the small club category at the regional rally in July, and achieving second place in the golf, held at Duns Golf Club. Additionally, the club also secured first place at the east mixed touch rugby event - a new event on the calendar, which features mixed teams of boys and girls from clubs across the district competing against each other.
Another popular event is the annual clay shoot, held in June on a local farm, with almost 100% attendance from club members. The theme continued when club members secured second place in the east clays event at Cluny Clays. After narrowly missing first place at east clays, the clubs team -consisting of Matthew Kinch, Rupert Kinch, and James Kennedy - were keen to make their mark at the national clays event. Scoring 144/180 on the day, they secured the national clay shooting title, rounding off an excellent year of east and national competitions for the club.
This year, the club set out to raise funds for a local charity, with the committee deciding on the East Lothian Foodbank. Club chair Robert Kennedy explained: “We chose the East Lothian Foodbank as we wanted to support a charity in the local area, which would really benefit from our donation. We felt it linked well with the farming industry due to the nature of what it does, ensuring no one in the local area goes hungry.”
With funds raised at their local agricultural show, Haddington Show, a raffle at their annual black-tie dinner dance, and several other small events throughout the year, members were thrilled to hand over a cheque for £750. The fundraising efforts this year wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of club members and the local community.
The club’s annual black tie dinner dance was one of the highlights of the year, held at the Stair Arms, Pathhead. It allowed members to reflect on the club’s achievements over the past year, with almost all club members attending, supported by clubs from neighbouring districts including Border Federation of Young Farmers, Lothian, and Peeblesshire District of Young Farmers. The highlight of the night was the lively ceilidh dance enjoyed by many members.
Looking forward to the year ahead, East Lothian JAC is celebrating its 85th anniversary with several exciting events planned, including welcoming back past members of the club with an anniversary farm walk at Wolfstar during the summer, as well as stock judging, and a dinner dance already in the planning stages.
The main aim for the year ahead is to involve East Lothian JAC’s past members as much as possible, celebrating and sharing their fond memories of the club in what promises to be an extremely busy and exciting year.
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