For as long as I can remember, I have participated in the Washita County fair in Cordell, OK.
Since moving abroad, I have missed attending the fair. In Moldova we don’t have the same type of event that brings the community together around merit based and hard earned projects.
Good clean fun, a little healthy competition, and a lot of volunteering is what the county fair is all about.
As I have said before, in Oklahoma, we know how important it is to build up our small communities.
For the past several years, we have made a tradition of going home to Oklahoma in the last weeks of August through labor day.
When the county fair is scheduled during this window, we make attending it a priority.
This year we were able to attend after our jet lag had worn off and enjoy the evening festivities. We brought our cousin too!
There are so many things to see when you enter the main exhibit building.
We enjoy going through each table examining the fair entries in the different categories, and also looking to see which of the families we know in other communities have submitted them.
We also enjoy looking at the flowers and the field crop exhibitions.
Not only does the fair showcase farm raised produce, but also handicrafts, art and entries from local schools.
This year we were able to come to Oklahoma and help my parents and brother and sister-in-law feed chickens and tend to the farm. My daughter was even able to enter Chickens into the fair!
It turns out that my parents and brother have been raising magic chickens because we left with a 100% blue ribbon result 4 out of 4 with one chicken receiving a grand champion ribbon.
While it is surprising enough to win a blue ribbon, receiving a grand champion prize for your chicken is extra exciting!
Nothing is possible without a teamwork. My brother and sister-in-law drove our chicken entries to the fair with their 3 week old daughter while we were sending my husband back to Moldova to harvest sunflowers. They even donated a bag of chicken feed to the fair just because they are great people.
The volunteer at the chicken exhibit gave us vouchers to collect our prize money.
The County fair coordinators took our vouchers and gave us $30 in prize money. As in traditional county fair fashion the prize money all came in crisp $2 bills.
I still have a collection of two dollar bills saved from my exhibits at the county fair when I was my daughters age.
After we finished the business side of the fair, now we got to have fun! The next stop was the petting zoo!
After chicken prizes and animal petting, we all needed a snack.
Although we always enjoy a carnival stand funnel cake, we try and support the local community clubs when we buy hamburgers and fries.
These are the groups that donate, volunteer and keep things moving. The carnival will move on in a matter of days.
Always support local groups when you are able.
A local musician/ band provided music.
The county fair is also a great way to meet with political candidates and learn more about their candidacy and political platforms. Grassroots democracy is still alive and well, and largely elected officials have a deep respect for their constituency beyond their party ties.
The midway 🙂
The warm up ride; lady bugs under a mushroom.
The scrambler was a hit!
$4 a dart, try and win a $0.50 prize!
After so much fun, everyone is thirsty! I love fair lemonade!
So as I get a little nostalgic, here are some poetic musings.
Americans make America great!
I would like to say a big thank you to all the volunteers that make county fairs and other community events possible.
We might be jaded by the overwhelming political jargon, but remember, not all places have the freedoms, the right to representation, and the luxury of a impartial law enforcement and juridical system like we do.
It’s good to be home. I don’t take it for granted.
No Comments