Sanders, 71, has been involved on and off for about 50 years and latterly provides about half of the sheep on display every year.
He says his life membership’s also a credit to his late wife Mary-Liz Ford-Sanders whose experience in A&P shows stretched back to her days in Australia where she was a life member in Ballarat.
He also donated a trophy in the wool tent in memory of his wife this year.
Hamilton says she’s proud of having moved the show on since Covid "by bringing on a fabulous crew, an events manager, having fresh ideas with the committee, bringing back showjumping, bringing in The Lake Hayes Larder and bringing in more sponsorship".
She says Patton, 83, has been "an absolute rock star".
"Now we’ve got to find people to step into that sheep role, otherwise we’ll lose that and it will be a devastating situation."
— PHILIP CHANDLER
