Jolliffe’s “Dream Big” Challenge Inspires IAFE to Raise 6 Million Pounds of Food
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Jolliffe’s Dream Big Challenge raised over 6 million pounds of food.
LEWISBURG, WV (12/16/2013)(readMedia)– Marlene Pierson-Jolliffe, CEO of the State Fair of West Virginia, wrapped up her term as the 2013 Chair for International Association of Fairs and Expositions, on December 9-12, at the Paris Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. While there, the IAFE celebrated the efforts of fairs worldwide for raising a total of 6,005,069 pounds of food.
At last year’s IAFE gathering, Jolliffe challenged IAFE members to “Dream Big” and showcase how agricultural fairs impact their community’s social issues by feeding the hungry through a food drive.
Of the 1,100 IAFE members, nearly 200 fairs answered that call and held a food drive during their own annual fairs, some during non-fair events and activities at their grounds, as well as during board meetings and other gatherings. All food and cash donations raised will benefit each respective fair’s local community, designated to one or more organizations feeding those who are food-insecure.
At the 2013 State Fair of West Virginia, fair officials joined with First Energy for “Magic Monday” and generated 20,000 pounds of food through a gate discount promotion. Employees of First Energy, The State Fair of West Virginia, and Reithoffer Shows, manned the entrance gates and coordinated the donations of nonperishable food items
“Serving as Chair of The International Association of Fairs and Expositions was an incredible opportunity that allowed me to share my vision of the importance of measuring the social impact of fairs, and I was honored to watch it come to life as fairs around the world joined together to feed the hungry!”, said Marlene Pierson-Jolliffe, CEO.
The International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE) is a voluntary, not-for-profit corporation, serving state, provincial, regional, and county agricultural fairs, shows, exhibitions, and expositions. Its associate members include state and provincial associations of fairs, non-agricultural expositions and festivals, associations, corporations, and individuals engaged in providing products and services to its members, all of whom are interested in the improvement of fairs and allied fields. For more information, visit www.fairsandexpos.com
The State Fair of West Virginia, with a $13.8 million dollar economic impact on West Virginia, is a 501 © 3 non-profit corporation committed to the traditions of agriculture, family entertainment, and education. The 2014 Fair themed “Blue Ribbon Traditions” is set for August 8-16.
State Fairgrounds Indoor Flea Market
LEWISBURG, WV (11/18/2013)(readMedia)– The fairgrounds flea market is now operating inside the heated West Virginia building for the winter season. Markets are held every Tuesday and Saturday with a special Christmas Open House set for Saturday, December 14th, 2013. One day setups for the Christmas Open House are by reservation only.
The indoor flea market provides shoppers an opportunity to “treasure hunt” and local vendors an affordable indoor retail location through the cold winter months! Look for a variety of antiques, collectibles, gently worn clothing, electronics and more. Tuesday markets are 7 am to 1 pm and Saturday markets are 7 am – 2:30 pm. Jim’s Drive In operates the food concession for the indoor flea markets.
Vendors interested in participating may phone 304-645-1090 or visit statefairofwv.com to download a vendor application and rules. Applications may also be obtained in the State Fair office, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. – 4 pm.
The State Fair Event Center is a 175 acre multi-purpose meeting and exposition facility providing a wide variety of event rental opportunities.
State Fair Scholarship Available Online
LEWISBURG, WV (11/14/2013)(readMedia)– Applications for the 2014 State Fair Scholarship program are now available online. In association with corporate, civic and individual contributors, and with support from the State Fair Endowment, five $1,000 (four year) scholarships will be awarded to individuals who have participated in one or more of the following areas at the State Fair:
1. State Fair Junior Show – market animals, purebred animals and dairy.
2. Equine Programs – State Fair’s Open Horse Show or Junior Horse and Pony Show.
3. 4-H and FFA Youth Exhibit Program – 4-H and FFA Underwood Youth Center.
Applicants must be pursuing a vocational trade, associate or bachelor degree, and must have participated in the junior livestock show, equine show or 4-H and FFA Youth Exhibit Program within the previous five (5) years.
“The State Fair takes great pride in recognizing the youth of our state for their hard work and for their contributions to agriculture and the Fair,” Agricultural Competitions Manager, Kelly Tuckwiller stated. “In 2014, we are going to celebrate the 90th State Fair of West Virginia. One of my goals is continue to grow the scholarship program so that we may keep supporting the next generation.”
New for 2014, all State Fair Scholarship applications and supporting documents must be filled out online and be emailed to scholarships@statefairofwv.com by January 15, 2014.
Applications are available online at www.statefairofwv.com or by contacting the State Fair office at 304-645-1090.
The State Fair of West Virginia, with a $13.8 million dollar economic impact on West Virginia, is a 501 © 3 non-profit corporation committed to the traditions of agriculture, family entertainment, and education. The 2014 Fair themed “Blue Ribbon Traditions” is set for August 8-16.
State Fairgrounds to Sponsor 3rd Annual Christmas Barn Decorating Contest
LEWISBURG, WV (11/04/2013)(readMedia)– Local civic groups and businesses are invited to participate in the Christmas Barn Decorating Contest at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea. Participants will have the opportunity to decorate one of ten harness racing barns located adjacent to Rt. 219 North. Marlene Pierson-Jolliffe, CEO, stated “The State Fair is all about traditions, and we are pleased to see the Christmas Barn Decoracting becoming a new tradition for the community.” The winning entry receives $300, with second and third place receiving $200 and $100 respectivley. Only the east end of the barns will be decorated and work must be completed by Monday, December 2nd, 2013. Phone 304-645-1090 or visit the State Fair office Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 4:00 pm to get an entry form
and details. Entry forms can can also be emailed or found on the fair’s web site at www.statefairofwv.com. Visit the State Fair’s Facebook page to cast your vote for the “People’s Choice” award and help the winning entry receive a selection of State Fair merchandise!
The State Fair of West Virginia, with an $13.8 million dollar statewide economic impact, is a 501 © 3 non-profit corporation committed to the traditions of agriculture, family entertainment, and education. The 90th annual State Fair of West Virginia is themed “Blue Ribbon Traditions” and is scheduled August 8-16, 2014. For more information, please visit www.statefairofwv.com.
State Fair of West Virginia Wraps up Successful Year
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LEWISBURG, WV (09/26/2013)(readMedia)– While the 2013 State Fair will be remembered as a very wet fair, many successes were achieved during the 89th Annual event. Chief Executive Officer, Marlene Jolliffe stated, “Obviously five days of rain is going to impact attendance. The 2013 fair saw between 170,000 and 175,000 visitors which was a decrease from prior years, however, we have so many positive results to celebrate. From an operational standpoint we enjoyed one of the smoothest fairs ever and in many areas our numbers were strong. In our post-fair online survey, 67% of fairgoers rated their experience at the fair as above average or excellent!” Additional highlights include:
- 20,000 pounds of food were collected on Magic Monday and the food and cash donations were distributed to six area Food Banks.
- 19,940 Concert Tickets were sold with Casting Crowns being the top seller
- $20,000 in funds will go to the State Fair Endowment as a result of volunteer efforts to sell cookies, the new Gold Lot parking project, Fun First Fundraiser, the sale of milk from the dairy milking parlor and corporate partners
- Since 2007, over $140,000 in college scholarships have been awarded to youth exhibitors
- 183,890 unique visitors used the website and had 676,250 page views
- Facebook likes grew 51% to 25,757
- Fair food, Family Fun and Tradition were listed as the top three reasons for attending
- Fair Food, Safety, Educational Opportunities, Competitive Exhibits, Cleanliness, Carnival Rides, Grounds Entertainment, Restrooms, Parking and Concerts were rated above average or excellent
- Over 2,000 exhibitors entered livestock, 4-H/FFA or home arts and garden competitions with an estimated 4,000 entries. $175,000 in award premiums were paid to winning exhibitors.
“Our 90th anniversary celebration will be August 8-16, 2014, and I can guarantee that fairgoers will be excited when they see the changes that are in store for next year!” said Marlene Pierson-Jolliffe, CEO.
The State Fair of West Virginia, with a $13.8 million dollar economic impact on the state of West Virginia, is a 501 © 3 non-profit corporation committed to the traditions of agriculture, family entertainment, and education. For more information, please visit www.statefairofwv.com, or follow fair events on Facebook and Twitter.
The Faces of a Fair
WOW! We’ve made it through the 89th Annual State Fair of WV. What an amazing ride it was. Now that the rides are gone, the animals have moved back to their homes and you can no longer smell the goodness of tasty, deep-fried treats, there is a feeling of sadness on the grounds.
We, the staff of the SFWV, work tirelessly year around to produce a Fair that is committed to our traditions of agriculture, education and family fun. To make that happen we create and value the partnerships that we have with our sponsors, commercial exhibitors, food concessionaires, exhibitors, carnival operator, volunteers and so many more!! You’ve likely heard the phrase, ‘It takes a village to raise a child’; well I say that ‘It takes a village to create a Fair’! Here are just a few of their stories.
The Cross family has been with the State Fair of WV as a food concessionaire since 1979. Starting with the Elephant Ear trailer, then adding Cowboy Dan’s in 1985 then Billy Bob’s in 1991. You can visit any one of their 3 food operations (Billy Bob’s, Cowboy Dan’s Meathouse or Elephant Ears) and find everything from italian sausage, to elephant ears, to sweet potato fries, to the infamous donut burger!! Beginning with their father, Dan Cross, and now with Becky, Danielle, Debbie, David and other family members, the traditions of deep fried dough, scrumptious burgers and sausages is set to continue. Coming right along to follow in the family business is baby Daniel, 3rd generation ‘Cowboy Dan’; pictured here with his mother, Danielle, at his very first State Fair of WV! Before you know it Daniel will likely be able to show us all a thing or two about life as a food concessionaire.
Celebrating 60 years of ice cream tradition in 2013 was the Hlay family, owners of Trudy’s Dairy World. Now 87 years old, David Hlay, remembers when the State Fair of WV was a much smaller affair and Mr. Tom Sydenstricker, was Fair Manager. David began his time with the State Fair in 1953 with a small ice cream truck, selling ice cream cones for a mere $0.10 a piece!! The Fair continued to grow and expand over the next several years. The growth of the grounds and indeed the growth of business lead Hlay to build a permanent structure in 1984 near the State Fair Cafeteria ~ considered to be a prime location within the Fair. Sons, David & Steve, carry on the traditions of Trudy’s Dairy World, year after year ~ fair after fair. Family patriarch, David, sums up 60 years of changes by saying, “The shows are better, the horses are bigger; we just love it.”
Reithoffer Shows has provided our Carnival Midway for over 20 years now. Over that time, the Fair’s midway has expanded to 50 rides that are suitable for all ages and appeal to even the most daring of Fairgoers. Reithoffer Shows has been a family owned and operated business since 1896 when Julius Reithoffer purchased a steam-driven carousel. Originally moving from town to town via railways, the show was able to expand their route when they took to the roads in 1918. By splitting the show into units and focusing on rides, Reithoffer was able to bring the business through the tough times of the Depression. Entering into the 60’s and 70’s, saw an upswing in excitement as super spectacular rides were brought into the midways. The 5th generation of Reithoffers are poised and ready to continue taking the Show into the future. We now offer Mega Passes & Big Passes that are good for unlimited carnival rides for any day of the Fair along with an assortment of games, food and more!
To make the State Fair of WV happen, we count on our employees and volunteers for execution of our programs, entertainment schedules, judging of exhibits/competitions, cleaning and just about anything else you can think of that might need to be done. Craig ~ Concessions Manager for Reithoffer Shows, Greg ~ owner of Miller & Co. Concessions and Phoebe ~ member of the SFWV Board of Directors came together to serve as judges for the ‘Next Big Fair Food’ competition while Nick ~ General Manager for Reithoffer Shows and Donna ~ from First Energy Corporation eagerly greeted Fairgoers as they brought canned goods (to be donated to area food banks) for Magic Monday. All though Randi ~ Special Events & Concessions Manager and Kelly ~ Agricultural Programs Manager, both have their hands full with their normal Fair responsibilities, however, it’s not unusual to find them collecting trash or shoveling out barns; in this photo they were able to steal a few moments to meet the members of Parmalee! Also pictured is Garret – WV Building Coordinator for 2013, posing for a ‘selfie’ with Randi as they were headed out to award some of our Concessionaires with medals for well decorated and represented booth spaces.
So you see, these are just a very few of the faces (and some of their stories) that make the State Fair of WV a ‘Tradition to Treasure’!
