By Wendy Oaks

Canned Food Drive, Junior Livestock Auction, Ag Mechanics Auction, and Treat Street all Benefit Nevada County

Beautiful weather, a successful canned food drive, more than $380,000 raised for Nevada County youth, and several community partnerships made the 2011 Nevada County Fair a success. Below are some fun Fair facts.

• On the Tuesday before the Fair, BloodSource and the Fair hosted a community blood drive at the Fairgrounds. As a result of this partnership, 78 pints of life saving blood were collected.
• At Sunday’s canned food drive, 1,000 pounds of food were collected for the Food Bank of Nevada County – enough to feed more than 100 families.
• Two hundred and thirty two animals were auctioned at this year’s Junior Livestock Auction, raising more than $350,381 for the youth of Nevada County. Funds raised from the auction go directly to these students and many use the money for college education or vocational training.
• This year’s Ag Mechanics Auction, featuring 48 custom projects handmade by FFA students from Bear River and Nevada Union high schools, raised more than $32,835 for these students.
• Proceeds raised from the local non-profit organizations that sell food on Treat Street will allow these organizations to provide vital services to our community.
• The Fair featured nearly 8,000 community exhibits. A complete list of exhibit winners is posted on the Fair’s website at www.NevadaCountyFair.com.
• Wednesday evening’s Idol Competition was won by Chelsea Kirksey, who received $767 for her charity of choice – African Ministries (through Gold Country Chapel).
• Saturday’s Locks of Love event had 18 individuals donate hair to help provide a hairpiece to financially disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical hair loss. The Designer’s Hair Salon assisted with the hair donation process, and cut and styled hair for free.
• Sunday evening’s VIP Derby winner was Josh Schwarz, who received $1,000 for his non-profit of choice – Nevada County 4-H.
• The Fairgrounds Foundation raised approximately $5,500 through its Heritage Lamb project. Proceeds will be used to assist the Foundation in its efforts to continue to improve the Fairgrounds. Paige Lampert raised the animal and received a $500 scholarship for her efforts.
• This year’s Fair included 91 business sponsors – the highest ever.
• In June, Nevada County 4-H Cal Focus Delegates partnered with California Electronic Asset Recovery (CEAR) to offer a free electronic waste collection fundraiser for the Nevada County Fairgrounds. At the Fair’s opening day ceremonies, representatives from Cal Focus presented the Fairgrounds with a check for $1,326.80.
• The Fair teamed up with local libraries on their summer reading program and provided carnival ride tickets as prizes to children who read during the summer. During Fair time, 100 coupons were given to young readers in our community.
• The Fair partnered with Nevada County’s agricultural community for the second year to create Ag-Sperience, an area devoted to education in local agriculture.
• Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital and Sierra Nevada Medical Group teamed up with the Fair to present Senior Involvement Day on Thursday at the Fair. During this time, healthcare professionals gave presentations on a variety of health topics and physicians from Sierra Nevada Medical Group answered questions from the audience.

“These events represent the Nevada County Fairgrounds’ commitment in supporting and developing community partnerships,” said Sandy Woods, CEO of the Fairgrounds. “It also represents Nevada County’s continued generosity. Our community is what makes this Fair so special, and we are grateful for that support.”

The 2012 Nevada County Fair is August 8 – 12. Visit www.NevadaCountyFair.com or call 273-6217.

Wendy Oaks
Publicist, Nevada County Fairgrounds
(530) 273-6217

wsoaks@gmail.com

Website: www.NevadaCountyFair.com

Facebook: Nevada County Fairgrounds