AUGUST 12, 2010 ISSUE
55th Annual Farm City Celebration at Blair Farm Sunday
Event Includes Mini-Country Fair, Awards, Dinner
The 55th annual Farm City Celebration will take place this Sunday, August 15, from 1:00 to 6:00 p.m. on the grounds of Blair Farm, located on Deerfield Road across from Boone Golf Course. This year’s theme is “Celebrating our Agriculture and the Blue Ridge Parkway 75th Anniversary.”
Each year, Watauga County Cooperative Extension partners with the Town of Boone, Watauga County, ASU and the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce in a common effort to celebrate the historic and present ties between those who grow local food and those that consume it during the Farm City Celebration. While the event features all the makings of a mini-country fair, the underlying goal is to grow a healthy community, and that’s why organizers hope all local residents will attend and take part.
From 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. on August 15, all are invited free of charge to attend a mini-country fair that will include live animals, demonstrations and exhibits. Alpacas, miniature goats, chickens, ducks and rabbits will be some of the animals present. Demonstrations will include weaving and spinning by the Blue Ridge Fiber Guild, a water cycle demo, beehive demo, farmers’ market exhibit, Christmas tree exhibit and a 4-H exhibit.
Information booths will be available from the Audubon Society, Elk Knob State Park, Watauga Wood Carvers Club and New River Winery, along with display of old-time toys by Mast General Store and an exhibit by the Boone/Blowing Rock Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Members of the Watauga Historical Society will conduct a house tour of the Blair Farm. Live traditional music will be continuous during the event. Kids can create instruments for the BREMCO Kazoo Band, and free ice cream will be provided by 4-H. Also, free Boone Gothic photos will be provided to those who wish to smile for the camera.
From 4:00 to 5:00 p.m., the Farm City Awards will be announced. Honors this year include the Youth in Agriculture Award, the Women in Agriculture Award, the Youth and Adult Volunteer Award, the Agri-Tourism Award, the Urban Gardening Award, the Farm and Food Steward Award that will be presented by the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, the L.E Tuckwiller Award that recognizes towns or communities for outstanding community development and is sponsored by the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce, along with awards for Growing Healthy Communities, Friend of Agriculture and the Active at Work Award, which is presented by the Be Active Appalachian Partnership.
From 5:00 to 6:00 p.m., an old-fashioned country-style dinner will be served featuring locally grown food catered by Bandana’s.
Tickets to the event are $12 for adults and $6 for children ages 12 and under and can be purchased at the Watauga County Cooperative Extension office at 971 West King Street in downtown Boone. To purchase tickets over the phone, call 828-264-3061 before this Friday, August 13. For more information, call 828-264-3061.
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