By Amanda O’Rourke
SUNBURY — Joan Brezgel brought her grandchildren to the Northumberland County Fair on Wednesday to do what so many in rural Pennsylvania have been doing for generations: entering their food and garden goods for judging.
In Brezgel’s baskets were a rainbow of sweet corn, peas, cabbages and pumpkins, even potatoes. Vases held orange cosmos, black-eyed susans and white day lilies.
All were grown in Brezgel’s Herndon garden, right next door to her grandchildren, James, 15, Jenna, 8, and Jordan, 5.
“They helped me weed the garden and also to thin out the flowers,” Brezgel said. “They also helped me plant the seeds in the spring.”
The Northumberland County Fair, previously known as the Northumberland County Expo, opens to the public today at 3 p.m. and runs through Saturday at the Sunbury Armory, on Mile Hill Road, just past Pomfret Manor Cemetery.
“We thought (the name change) would generate more interest,” organizer Jane Rebuck said. “People are familiar with a fair. They don’t really know what an expo is.”
This year’s fair, as in past years, harkens back to organizer Ed Mashburn’s memories of the fairs he frequented as a child growing up in South Carolina, with baking contests and animal exhibits.
“I also remember the canned goods,” Mashburn said.
Canned goods is one of the 20 departments open for entries this morning at the fair and includes fruits, vegetables and pickles.
More than the drive for the blue ribbon and $4 first-place prize, Mashburn said competitions like the ones offered at rural county fairs serve as a reminder.
“People don’t know where their food comes from,” Mashburn, a gardener himself, said. “Do you know there are actually adults who don’t know that potatoes grow under ground?”
For Mashburn, events like the Northumberland County Fair are a perfect way for grandmothers like Brezgel to teach her grandchildren not only where their food comes from, but how to harvest it, bake it and preserve it.
“In not too many years, people who can can and freeze food are going to be at a distinct advantage over those who are dependent on going to the grocery store,” Mashburn said.
Brezgel, who along with her husband owns beef cattle, agreed: “It teaches (my grandchildren) appreciation of how hard it is to grow food. You don’t just go to the store and pick it up.”
Operated completely by volunteers, the fair costs $20,000 to $25,000 annually to put on, Mashburn said, with about $8,500 in reimbursements coming from the state Department of Agriculture. Other money is raised through program advertising and exhibit fees.
But Mashburn fears recent budget cuts by Gov. Edward G. Rendell could put the fair in jeopardy next year. “If we don’t get reimbursed this year, we’re going to have a hard time putting on a fair at all next year,” he said.
This year’s fair also includes animal shows featuring horses, sheep, goats, rabbits and guinea pigs, as well as children’s amusements and entertainment.
The Northumberland County Fair runs today and Friday from 3 to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. For information, visit its Web site at www.northumberlandcountyfair.com.
