Ex Parham Fair Treasurer Charged With Theft After over $18,000 Goes Missing

Jeff Green | Feb 27, 2025

In a bizarre turn of events that is eerily similar to a case involving Bonnie Palmer, the treasurer of the Maberly Fair back in 2018, Courtney Pare of Verona has been charged with “Theft over $5,000” for allegedly stealing money from the Parham Agricultural Society, which organises the Parham Fair each August. Haley Rose, the Ag Society president, said that she became concerned in January of this year, as the Society's AGM was approaching, when financial information was not forthcoming from the treasurer.

She said that when she went to the bank, she found the account had been depleted. “When I heard what the balance was I asked to see the monitor, and I saw a lot of $500 withdrawals, going back to October.” Rose reported the theft, and after an investigation, Pare was arrested, charged with theft over $5000, and released pending an initial court date of April 1st.

“I then contacted the other board members and long time friends of the fair. We decided to put something out to let the public know what has happened,” said Rose. The Parham Fair board went public about the situation in a social media post on Thursday, February 20th, without naming Pare. The post outlined how the situation has impacted the fair board and others who are close to the fair. “This hit hard. As a local organisation and a registered charity, we are a group that welcomes everyone, especially those who want to join us in preserving our agricultural heritage and supporting our community. Our meetings are filled with laughter, cooperation, and support. As a result, we trust each other - because we are also neighbours, friends, colleagues, and sometimes family.”

While the post acknowledges the financial stress the fair is facing, it ends on a defiant, hopeful note. “But one thing is certain - we will prevail. More than ever, we need our community, and after 132 years - we won’t let this be the end of the Parham Fair, the last fair in Frontenac County.” A Gofundme campaign has been started by Jessica Peters, a fair supporter, under the banner “Save the Parham Fair”, seeking $30,000, and the Ag Society board is accepting direct donations as well. The board is insured, but the insurance company indicated the upper limit in the policy is $5,000, with a $1,000 deductible.

The board is looking closely at the policy to confirm that.

An OPP report on the arrest was released on Monday (February 24). The OPP are reporting there are “approximately $20,000 in funds missing from accounts registered to the charity non-profit group”. (See fulll report on page 8)

Haley Rose has pegged the confirmed loss at $18,300. Money began being withdrawn from the account about 6 weeks later. The Ag Society has been concerned about a lack of volunteers for over a decade. No one on the board or within the fair community was willing to serve as treasurer last year. “That is the amount that was taken from the account,” she said, “although there may be some cash as well, but I don't have any way to account for that.” The $30,000 ask in the Gofundme campaign repre sents the loss from theft, plus sponsor money required to run the 2025 fair Rose said that Pare, who had been well regarded by the AG Society board for the job she had been doing as treasurer since coming at the beginning of year, deposited about $8,500 into the account just after the fair took place in August.

While that was a lower deposit than the cash deposit in 2024, the fair had lower attendance this year because of rainy weather. “It is a big job. People had done it before, or were busy with other things. When Courtney Pare came forward, we checked out her credentials and they were fine, but no one really knew her that well. Still, we were very happy with the work she was doing throughout the summer and fall. It was in December, and especially in January when it became harder to find out what was going on,” said Haley Rose While finances are obviously a real concern in the wake of this incident, the board is still concerned about a lack of  volunteers to serve on the board, and oversee the ongo ing work to keep the fair running each year. “The fair always runs at a loss, in the sense that we don't bring in enough money from entry fees and canteen sales, to cover all the costs. We need sponsors to cover the rest of it, and we will go to our sponsors for help now as well,” she said. “But our biggest need is for volunteers to run the fair, to join the board.” A person has stepped forward to take on the treasurer role at this time, subject to the approval of the board. The Parham Fair can look to the example of their clos est sister fair, in Maberly. Six years after suffering a simi lar loss, the Maberly Fair celebrated its 142 year anni versary last August. The Parham Agricultural Society is determined to put on its 133rd edition this August, and continue on for years to come. For further information, go to Parhamfair.ca or check the Parham Fair Facebook page.