FARM2026: Listowel's Lexi Johnston reflects on life at the top
BY SCOTT STEPHENSON
Every year, the young person chosen through the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) Ambassador of the Fairs competition isn’t just handed a sash and showered with accolades - it’s a position that comes with great responsibility. Each winner goes from representing their own agricultural society to being the Ambassador’s Ambassador - tasked with representing not just all agricultural societies across Ontario while also working to educate the general public about the value of agriculture.
In an effort to learn a little more about what life is like as top dog of the Ambassador pile, The Citizen sought out the CNE’s 2025-2026 Ambassador - Listowel’s Lexi Johnston - for a wide-ranging conversation about farming, fairs and her special connection to the little village of Lucknow.
From the moment her name was announced at the CNE, Johnston’s calendar filled up and stayed that way, and she wasted no time getting to work, despite the fact that she hadn’t brought nearly enough clothes for an 18-day stay in Toronto. Suddenly, her unexpected new role placed Johnston squarely at the crossroads of agriculture, public life and youth leadership, with long days, packed weekends and constant interaction with volunteers, exhibitors and fairgoers.
Johnston stood on stage with six other finalists as the results were read. When her name was called, the moment moved fast. “It’s a feeling I’ll never feel again,” she confided in The Citizen. The crowd erupted, fellow ambassadors cheered, and her 18-day immersion in the wild environment of the CNE began.
She covered a lot of ground over those 18 days. One of the most meaningful moments from her time at the CNE came when Johnston attended a citizenship ceremony where 94 people from 39 countries all became Canadians. “That was incredibly powerful,” she recalled.
Johnston also spent time in the farm building, participating in milking demonstrations and handling lambs, cattle, goats, rabbits and horses. She also judged a chocolate sculpture competition, handed out youth basketball awards and moved from performance to performance, taking in an African circus one day, a Mumbai dance troupe the next. Then French breakdancers, and Ecuadorian folk dancers. She watched air shows, dog shows, acrobatic performances, ice skating demonstrations and even caught a Toronto Blue Jays game as part of the Exhibition lineup.
Then there was the obligatory food. Johnston sampled the CNE’s famous and infamous offerings, including deep-fried pizza, footlong French fries, charcoal ice cream, rainbow grilled cheese sandwiches, cheeseburger tacos and hashbrown ice cream sandwiches. She later took part in a ceremony where the rainbow grilled cheese sandwich was inducted into the CNE Hall of Fame.
The Ambassador also rode the gondola, decorated cupcakes, joined line dancing and attended goat yoga more than once. She loved the entire experience, but is willing to admit that living at a massive urban carnival can be a lot, even for her. “I am a very extroverted person,” she explained. “I love talking to people. I talk all day. Eighteen days of it was a lot!”
The CNE may have a little bit of everything happening all at once, but Johnston knows that, underneath all the glittery hot dogs and Ferris wheels, the fair still has agricultural roots that run deep as hers do.
“I was born and raised on a dairy farm in Listowel, so I’ve been part of agriculture my entire life,” she explained. “My passion for agriculture started in the dairy barn. I was milking cows before I could even reach the pipeline, and I spent many, many hours there.” Growing up on the family’s dairy and grain farm has shaped her understanding of work, responsibility and commitment, lessons that continue to guide her.
As a child, Johnston spent a lot of time in Lucknow, at the hardware store her mother, Laura, owns with her grandparents, Bill and Bev Hodgins. “Lucknow is pretty near and dear to my heart,” Lexi confessed. “I went to daycare there and grew up working around my family’s store when I wasn’t at the farm. Between the farm and the store, the definition of hard work, perseverance and kindness was really instilled in me.”
After her time at the CNE came to an end, Lexi hit the fall fair circuit hard. “I counted, and I was at 17 or 18 fairs between Labour Day and Thanksgiving weekend. It was insane,” she says. “I did a lot of driving, and a lot of Friday, Saturday, Sunday - three different fairs.” Stops included Erin, Elmvale, Fergus, Markham, Milverton, Brussels, Stratford, Glencoe, Ilderton, Rockton and multiple communities throughout Perth and Huron Counties.
At these fairs, Johnston judged ambassador competitions, handed out ribbons, took part in cake-decorating contests and officially opened events. She brought greetings from the CNE to local agricultural societies and met with other ambassadors and queens of the furrow. Despite the pace, she valued the chance to see how fairs function in different communities. “It was really cool to tour around and see how different fairs work. Everyone shares the same values - small-town traditions and rural roots - but each fair puts its own spin on it.”
Her travels brought her to Huron County repeatedly, including to judge the Howick-Turnberry Fall Fair ambassador competition and attend events in Lucknow and Brussels. Speaking at meetings and community gatherings gave her the chance to reconnect with people who knew her long before the title. “It’s pretty cool to come back and speak with people who know who I am,” she says.
Among all those many parades and openings across Ontario, it was the familiarity of the Lucknow Fall Fair that really stood out for Lexi. “My grandparents actually drove me through the parade in Lucknow as part of the Home Hardware float, so looking back on that now is really special,” she recalled. “Having my grandparents drive me through the parade in Lucknow was the biggest highlight of my fall.”
Lexi graduated from the University of Guelph in May of 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, majoring in animal science. “My whole life revolves around agriculture, and it’s a fantastic thing,” she says. While at Guelph, she immersed herself in student leadership, including serving as president of College Royal during its 100th anniversary year. Those experiences broadened her view of agriculture and connected her with students and industry leaders across North America.
After graduation, Johnston moved into agricultural lending with TD Agriculture Services, where she currently works as a credit analyst alongside a relationship manager, servicing clients in the Mount Forest area. She also remains involved in her family’s farm, something she considers essential to staying grounded.
Advocacy is central to the ambassador role, and Johnston doesn’t hedge when asked why agriculture matters. “We feed everybody,” she says. “Agriculture is so important to our local communities, but also to big cities and to the world.” She frequently speaks about the gap between consumers and producers, a divide she believes still exists. “The biggest challenge is still the gap between consumers and producers,” she says. “We’ve put initiatives in place to try to bridge that gap, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.”
She sees the CNE as part of that bridge. “Its roots are in agriculture, but it’s showcasing that to a more urban audience, while also highlighting industries like culinary arts, sports and the arts,” she says. Through the ambassador role, Johnston often found herself explaining agriculture to people far removed from farm life, while reinforcing its importance within rural communities.
Giving back remains a priority. Johnston credits programs like the Ambassador Program and 4-H with shaping her path. “[The 4-H program] was a huge part of my youth and really shaped my path to where I am today,” she says. During her ambassador year, she became a 4-H leader, a step she describes as especially meaningful.
One of her most hands-on projects was organizing an Agriculture Day for local youth in partnership with a day camp. “We organized an Agriculture Day with about 40 kids from local day camps, ages seven to 12,” she says. The children climbed into a combine and tractor, bottle-fed a calf, and learned where food comes from. “It was messy,” Johnston laughed. “They loved it.” The event is expected to continue, reflecting her belief that agricultural education starts close to home.
If the year reinforced one lesson above all others, it was the value of volunteers. “I’ve gained a much deeper appreciation for the board members and committee members who put on fairs and exhibitions,” she says. “There’s so much behind-the-scenes work that goes into putting on a fair that people don’t always see.” She speaks with particular respect for those who carried fairs through recent challenges. “Volunteers play an incredibly important role in the success of fairs and exhibitions,” she says.
As her term continues, Johnston remains focused on agriculture and community. “Farming is my whole world. It’s all I know,” she says. She plans to continue her career in agricultural lending, stay involved in her family’s farm, and remain active with agricultural societies and youth programs. Asked what advice she would offer future ambassadors, she doesn’t hesitate. “Be absolutely nobody but yourself,” she says. “You were chosen to represent your community for a reason - do it with pride.” The year, she adds, moves fast. “Make the most of the year. It will fly by. Ask questions. Learn about the past, the present and the future, and take it all in.”