Children clinging to their mothers, girls wearing their dates’ coats and huddling groups of friends all endured cold winds while they waited—sometimes for more than an hour—to get into the North Carolina State Fair Saturday.
Between Oct. 14 and 24, people will come to the Raleigh fairgrounds to “Celebrate What’s Great,” as the fair’s slogan heralds. Although people are attracted to the amusement park rides and the fatty foods from around the state, many said they come for the tradition.
Eric Browning and Stephanie Wells, a young couple from the Raleigh area, said they have come to the fair every year since high school.
“We come with our friends. It is a lot of fun, and we sure love it, but we come for the tradition,” Browning said. “It is pretty much the same every year—busy, but for us, I guess it’s culture not tourism.”
Others spoke of the importance of maintaining the tradition in times good and bad.
“People come to forget the still-recovering economy, the alarming crime rate and the prevalent poverty in North Carolina,” said Carlos Rodriguez, a father of three girls who were pulling him towards the livestock exhibit. “They come to be in the moment and take part [in] an event that has been a proud part of our history for as long as anyone can remember.”
First held in 1853, the North Carolina State Fair has grown to accommodate well over 800,000 attendees each year. The goal promotes intrastate fraternity and altruism, with specific days catering to senior citizens, commemorating men in the military and gathering food for donation to the needy. Even last year, when many fairgoers were feeling the effects of the recession, attendees still managed to donate 222,956 pounds of food as part of the Food Lion Hunger Relief Day.
The fair also aims to promote small family-owned businesses from within the state. People of all backgrounds and ethnicities come from all over the state to sell foods and goods.
The choices were culturally varied and ranged from “John the Greek’s” and “Tater Hut” to “Tacos and Burritos,” alongside eccentricities like deep-fried Snickers, Oreos and Reese’s.
The fair is also full of quirky games and activities. John Thompson mans a booth in which he attempts to guess a volunteer’s age within two years and his or her weight within three pounds. If he is wrong, he gives the participant a prize.
“It’s fun to meet a lot of people,” Thompson said. “I goof off at work all day, and that’s OK because this job is about having fun and making people happy.”
Thompson doled out a stuffed animal to a young boy after intentionally guessing his age wrong so that the child could take home a souvenir.
“There’s too much in life to take seriously. Sometimes we need to find an excuse to smile and celebrate. It’s the small stuff,” he added with a smile and a wink.
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