Since 1857, the Coffee County Fair has been a staple of Middle Tennessee life. Now in its 165th year, there are tractor pulls, carnival rides, beauty pageants, and competitions in everything from livestock to arts and crafts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe fair is organized and run completely by volunteers, with a board that sometimes stays past midnight to work,\u201d said board member Katie Kusisto. \u201cVolunteers also work in the exhibit building and during the fair, as well as set up and take down.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI do it for the community,\u201d fair board president Stewart Little said. \u201cFor the kids and the community to be able to have a fair to go to\u2026 for people to understand, you know, what feeds America is our agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kusisto said that in the next few years, five fairs across Tennessee are expected to close their doors. \u201cDespite being one of the oldest fairs in Tennessee, the Coffee County Fair is still going strong. Most of that strength comes from hard volunteer hours,\u201d Little said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve always had a good foundation as an old fair,\u201d Little said. \u201cThe foundation was started a long time ago, and that\u2019s what we\u2019re still standing on today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe fair provides a time to see people and to relax,\u201d said Kusisto. \u201cIt also supports local agriculture and local fundraisers. This year the high school softball, baseball, and football teams have food booths to support their organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCrazy things happen every year, throughout the year, but when you come to the fair you can be together with your community, with your close friends and your family and have a good time,\u201d Kusisto said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2022 Coffee County Fair\u2019s slogan is \u201cRemembering 165 Years of Yesterdays, Embracing Visions of Tomorrow.\u201d Kusisto said that seeing that future is one of her favorite pieces of the fair. Included in that, are special days for veterans, first responders, seniors, and children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s really nice about the fair, too, is you get to see the future of our community,\u201d Kusisto said. \u201cYou have your kids that come, [your] school, your youth day on Friday. You get to see, really, our future right here at the tip of our hands.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is always a need for more volunteers,\u201d said Kusisto, \u201cbecause there are always items that still need to be done \u2013 and new volunteers bring new, fresh ideas. The community\u2019s support of the fair is what keeps it running year after year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t have volunteers for things like the fair or other nonprofit organizations within the community… we have nothing,\u201d Kusisto said. \u201cWithout the community\u2019s support and the volunteers, you have no fair.\u201d GN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Coffee County Fair is still going strong despite many other fairs across Tennessee having to close. Volunteers are always needed. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":68,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[33],"class_list":["post-7443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-october"],"yoast_head":"\n