Plans for Fudge snowplane in parade this summer
April 13, 2026, 12:08 pm
Donnie Matichuk
The Fudge Industry shop existed in Moosomin from 1929 until the early 70’s, and produced a type of vehicle called a snowplane, which has become a relic of Saskatchewan and prairie culture. A restored Fudge brand snowplane is planned be a central part of the Moosomin Chamber of Commerce Parade on July 11.
“The theme of it was declared to be Fudge Industry, so we just wanted to give some background on how we were preparing for that, and then make sure that the word was getting out to people that for the sake of being on theme, we are trying to attract as many snow planes to come to the parade as possible. They wouldn’t even have to be running necessarily, but they could be on a trailer or on transport or something like that. It’ll be a lot of fun to have as many winter vehicles out as possible at the parade,” said Lisl Gunderman, one of the owners of the restored snowplane.
“Over the last year, we saw around 14,000 people with the snow plane and the museum trailer. It was at around 20 events that we had, and we are pretty well booked solid already for 2026 with some big events. We’ve got new banners set up on the outside of the trailer from people from different museums now, so it’s all going really good on that part. We expect to see way more than 14,000 people this year. We are also going to be a feature attraction at the Edmonton Expo for their Western Canadian Sled Show.”
Darrell Hunter mentioned that the museum trailer that they also tour along with the snowplane is having some minor renovations ahead of the summer.
“We’re in the process right now changing up the trailer a little bit for more self-explanatory purposes, because we found we were doing a lot of the talking last year, and we were pointing people in the right direction. So obviously we had some improvement to do there. In the background, you’ll see two propellers sticking up above the trailer. Those are going to have motors on the top, so they’re going to be turning out of reach of anybody, but they’ll be turning slowly. There’s going to be a banner across the top, so a lot of new changes for 2026 going on.”
Hunter said that Moosomin was their very first stop on a series of events last summer, and that many of the events they attended were to help raise money for smaller local museums.
“When we had come to Moosomin last year, that was our very first event of setting up to show the restored snow plane and the museum trailer, and then from there, we went on to show it at 19 other events over the course of the summer. Some of the events were a community event, for example, Alameda, to raise money for their local museum, they set us up on Main Street, and they sold hamburgers by donation, and just in a 5 to 8pm time slot, they made over $2,000 for their museum, so that was a big help to them, and that’s really our chief aim is to promote the really interesting regional museums that there are in the area.”
“People did want to give donations to us, nothing tremendous for a donation, $20, $50, some people did donate a couple hundred, and then with the proceeds accumulating that way, with money that people had donated to us, we made a donation to the museum of $2,000 back in the fall. So in the background of promoting the snow plane story and sharing history, that is an aim of ours is to attract people to want to visit the regional museums that are in the area.”
“We had a setup day at Rocanville, for example. Sometimes if there was an existing event, we kind of piggybacked onto that event and increased their event, basically, or in some instances it was just the snow plane and museum trailer set up on its own,” said Hunter.
Gunderman noted that sharing the history of the snowplane has been a new part of their lives that has allowed them to connect with both older and younger generations.
“We had a really exciting summer, and it was really rewarding for us. The most rewarding thing of all actually, is we came to realize that our demographic of who’s really interested is older people. They’re really nostalgic about the snow planes and seeing the snow plane restored. Darryl, he certainly got lots of thank you’s for doing the restoration. The big connection to Moosomin is that the machine of my grandpa’s that we restored, it’s a Fudge Snowplane that was built at the Fudge Industry shop in Moosomin. That was a real thriving business that existed for decades, so it’s a real tribute to the community and the stories that are told in the museum about my grandpa’s Fudge Snowplane, the restoration of the snow planes, different types of them, they all tie together. Moosomin, the history of the business community, and Moosomin is a big part of the story. That’s such a big connection for us that we want to have the parade be a big success for you guys on July 11,” she said.
“What are we doing going forward for the Moosomin parade, we’ve got lots that isn’t finalized. We have ordered a 16-foot-wide banner for the front of the parade. It’s pretty fancy parade banner that two people can hold on either side, and it’ll be part of the central theme. It’s going to be a tribute to the pioneer’s of Moosomin like Fudge Industry.
“There are a few members of the Fudge family that may be able to attend, and another really important person in the Fudge Industry shop, the shop foreman for years, he’s got some descendants and relatives in the area that would be able to attend,” said Hunter.
After the parade finishes, the pair are hoping that a barbecue can be held on the Moosomin Regional Museum grounds with many of the winter vehicles there.
“Post-parade, I think we haven’t worked out the details with Dennis, but we had a loosely framed-in plan to have the winter-transportation vehicles from the parade head over to the Moosomin Museum grounds afterwards, and have a kind of snowplane, snow-vehicles Show and Shine thing over at the museum grounds. There’s a fellow that has offered bison burgers for us to be able to have a barbecue there at the museum grounds after the parade,” Gunderman said.
She explained that people from all over the region have interest in the machines, and that it could draw people from all over that either want to see them restored, or have a machine of their own and would display it.
“Some people that we hope will be coming, they’re coming from a pretty far distance away, and they’re really excited about it.
“There could be people coming from different regions of Saskatchewan for sure, and then there’s a couple of people in the states that have contacted us, they have the machines, and they’re excited about it. So it may not be in the minds of people in Moosomin from day-to-day, but there are people from all around who know Moosomin for being the home of these machines. There’s a real care for the history of the machines all across the prairies and in the United States as well,” she said.
“It’s been a lot of fun. I have to emphasize the most fun type of people there was for us to share the history with was people that are older. They have a lived experience of the snowplanes when they were running, and it’s in their memory. A lot of young people looked at the snowplanes, they would think that the vehicles are for recreation and for bombing around. But it’s the older generation people that really knew that the snowplanes were very practical. They were for getting jobs done and keeping people safe. It was really interesting to share it with lots of people,” said Hunter.
The Moosomin Chamber of Commerce Parade is on July 11, with the theme this year being Fudge Industry, and looking back at the culture and history of the area.
