Even with the rainy and cool summer we have been having, I see wonderful flower and vegetable gardens all over the valley. I’d like to encourage people to think of getting into the fair - Deerfield Valley Farmers’ Day, August 27 through 30! Although we may have fewer farms than when the fair started, we have so many people who grow, make, bake, or build fantastic things and the fair is the time to show off a little.
Exhibiting your items is a wonderful thing to do as a family and it makes the fair that much more exciting when you peek into the exhibit halls to see what color ribbon you’ve gotten.
Also, did you know that there are small cash prizes that go along with the ribbons? If children enter their artwork or baking or flower arrangements they can earn money to take those rides instead of always tugging at your sleeve - and they will have tremendous pride in their accomplishments as well! I know adults who use their prize money to buy their seeds and starter plants for next year’s garden. And the fair will continue to flourish as the exhibit halls are filled with your hard work.
So, are you interested? You need to know that you must fill out an entry form and send it in by Friday, August 21. Items have to be brought in during certain times and picked up late Saturday. If you didn’t get the booklet/application in the mail (if you enter this year, you’ll be sent a booklet next year), you can get it by going to www.DVFAIR.com or by stopping by your town clerk’s office.
We are so lucky to have such a wonderful long-lived community tradition as the fair and it’s easy to be a part of it. Yes, it takes some time but the rewards for all of us are great when we each do our part to keep it alive and growing. And, although you may pull your hair out as you race down to get your just-baked chewie brownies to the King Arthur baking contest early Friday morning, I bet, when it’s all over, you will be back to enter even more things next year!
Nicki Steel
Wilmington
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