It was a big payday for three southwestern-Saskatchewan communities this past Wednesday.

The three winners of this year's Small Town Showdown were awarded their winnings by Crop Production Services (CPS) for finishing on the podium in the inaugural contest.

Elrose was the first ever town to capture the grand prize of $5,000 for winning the competition, something that Jeff MacDonald - president of the Elrose Lions Club - said showcased their community support.

"It shows how much support this community gives," he explained. "They always go beyond what anyone thinks they can do."

MacDonald noted the money will go towards adding an addition to their community hall as well as building a new bathroom and kitchen inside the facility.

"It's kind of the centre," he said. "I mean if you don't have a hall, you can't have weddings, dances, and any functions as it's the heart of the community."

Mankota's strong showing this summer vaulted them into second place helping them secure vital funds to upgrade the Mankota Agricultural Hall.

"It's wonderful (the community support)," Marlene Selensky, a member of the Mankota Agricultural Hall Board, said. "People around here are so obliging, it was just wonderful."

The village of roughly 200 people was the smallest to compete in the contest and after adding a $3,000 cheque from CPS - it brought their total to $16,396. The money will go towards purchasing two new natural gas furnaces with air conditioning and repainting the galvanized steel inside the Mankota Agricultural Hall.

Claiming the last cash prize ($2,000) was the Town of Ponteix. Mayor David Scully was happy to see the community rally in support of building a new pool.

"It's big for us," he added. "It's nice to see everyone get behind a project in town and keep the town going."

The community of approximately 600 people added $22,000 to their pool fund and now sit at around $150,000 saved towards the pool that's pegged in the neighbourhood of $700,000.

CPS teamed up with Gowen Canada and Golden West Radio which travelled to 10 communities over July and August, helping raise money within each community for their respective projects.