AUGUST 27, 2009 ISSUE
Avery A&H Fair Seeks Volunteers, Contestants and Exhibitors
The Avery Agricultural and Horticultural (A&H) Fair runs from Tuesday to Saturday, September 8 to 12, in Heritage Park in Newland, and it isn’t too late to get involved.
“We’re still looking for volunteers for Wednesday night and Saturday [of] all ages and all skill levels,” said Jerry Moody, Avery County extension director and Avery A&H Fair board of directors president.
Volunteers will likely sell tickets at the ticket booth or at the midway, he said. Volunteers can also sign up during the fair to help clean up. A fair info booth will be on site during the fair, Moody said.
Volunteers begin fair preparations August 31 and end October 1, he said. “It takes a while to put everything up and take everything down. It takes 120 to 140 man hours to raise all three tents. We try to get a bunch of people out there.
“We’re definitely in the not-for-profit realm of things,” Moody said. “We rely heavily on volunteers.”
Room is still left for groups interested in renting booths, Moody said.
All booths are 10-by-10 feet and prices vary by types of organizations. Nonprofit groups can rent a booth and receive four passes for $75, and educational booths receive two passes and are offered free of charge. Commercial booths cost $100 and are provided with four passes, while food booths and six passes are available for $300, with a $100 refundable clean up fee.
According to the official fair tabloid, the “Avery A&H Fair is a family-oriented mountain fair known for friendliness and preservation of the mountain heritage that has long been a part of the High Country.”
The fair opens at 5:00 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and opens at noon on Saturday.
Fair proceeds go toward funding next year’s fair, Moody said, with any excess going toward scholarships for high schoolers.
“This year we gave out two scholarships,” he said. “It’s a small scholarship, but it helps buy books for a semester.”
Since the fair is a state-sanctioned county fair, winners of exhibit categories are eligible to compete at the N.C. State Fair in Raleigh.
Exhibit categories include field crops, flowers, Christmas trees and wreaths, bees and honey, preserved foods, jams, jellies, juices and syrups, baked goods, amateur and professional photography, machine-crafted clothing, handcrafted clothing, all types of handicrafts and antique machines, among others.
If exhibitors need to bring their entries early, they can be taken to the Avery County Cooperative Extension Center, located beside the Avery Campus of Mayland Community College.
All entries except cut flowers and culinary perishables will be accepted at Heritage Park on Saturday, September 5, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on Sunday, September 6, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. All entries including cut flowers and culinary perishables will be accepted on Monday, September 7, from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Baked goods only will be accepted on Tuesday, September 9, from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m.
“If [exhibitors] want to enter livestock, we do send around a vet to look at all the animals to make sure they don’t have diseases,” Moody said.
For more information about entering livestock, call Adam Keener, N.C. Cooperative Extension livestock agent, at 828-733-8270.
A beauty pageant will be held on Monday, September 7, at 6:00 p.m. Beauty pageant entry forms are due Tuesday, September 1, and the fee for the beauty pageant is $25 and the photogenic fee is $10. For more information about the beauty pageant, call Darlene Carpenter at 828-733-8135.
The High Country Idol winner will be chosen on Thursday, September 10, at 6:00 p.m.
A youth talent showcase for ages 5 to 18, sponsored by Avery County 4-H, will be held on Saturday, September 12, at 6:00 p.m. The entry deadline is Wednesday, September 9.
Inners Shows will bring approximately 20 rides to the fair, and $15 ride bracelets will be available daily. Separate ride tickets will also be sold.
The fair also includes a petting zoo with barnyard, nursery and exotic animals, as well as numerous other musical performances and more.
Gate prices are $6 for adults and $3 for children ages 6 to 12. Admission is free for children ages 5 and under.
For more information about the fair, click to www.averyfair.com or call 828-387-6870 or 828-733-8270.
To download the free fair tabloid, which includes a full schedule of events and all entry forms, click to http://avery.ces.ncsu.edu.
Want To Go?
Date: Tuesday to Saturday, September 8 to 12
Time: opens 5:00 p.m. Tuesday to Friday/opens noon Saturday
Location: Heritage Park, Newland
Cost: $6 adults/$3 ages 6 to 12/free ages 5 and under
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