It brings back memories': Shediac Lobster Festival marks 75th year. For many longtime visitors, the annual event brings a dose of nostalgia

.For many longtime visitors, the annual event brings a dose of nostalgia. It's not every day you can eat a lobster poutine, listen to local musicians and try to keep your cool on thrilling rides all in one place. That's exactly what people from all over New Brunswick and beyond have been doing at the Shediac Lobster Festival since July 5. And this year, it's a big one. The annual festival, which highlights the region's historical ties to lobster fisheries, is celebrating 75 years. Claude Frenette is a Shediac resident who has been involved behind the scenes since the festival's very first iteration when he was only three years old. "It brings back memories of when we were young, it was such a wonderful time," he said. The event was so important to the community growing up that even the local church asked its congregation to pray for good weather for the festival, Frenette said. "It's their culture," he said. "You learn that at an early stage in your life and your grandparents have a story, your parents have a story, your neighbour has a story." Frenette spent the week sharing the stories behind archival photos and artifacts that staff put up in a tent so that visitors could take a trip down memory lane. The festival began in 1949, he said, as a simple lobster supper to raise money to build a local Royal Canadian Legion centre after the end of the Second World War. "My father was a volunteer and my mother was a volunteer for the lobster supper," he said. "The following year, they said, 'Let's have another lobster supper but this time we'll create a carnival around it.'" Thanks to new generations with new ideas, the festival has snowballed into a 10-day event that draws 30,000 people each year, Frenette said. Even more are expected to attend this year's festivities, according to organizers. Among them is a familiar face who has seen generations grow up in the beloved — and notorious — ride he managed for decades.