THE BALLOON MAN

Fair a mixture of change and tradition

Examiner file photo
Alien inflatable dolls are among the many goofy souvenirs and prizes that can be found at the Whidbey Island Fair, scheduled for Thursday through Sunday.
from:  whidbeyexaminer.com
By Elisabeth Murray,Staff Reporter
8/16/2012
Whidbey Island, WA--The name and ownership of the annual fair held each August in Langley has changed, but visitors may not notice much of a difference.

Fair goers will still have four days to visit the animals: alpacas with bodies shorn of fur that make their unshaved heads seem a bit cartoonish; crowing roosters with red combs and wattles waggling; floppy-eared, spotted goats peering curiously over the edges of their pens.

Fair goers will still have four days to climb aboard spinning and twirling carnival rides, bite into fried food, tap their feet to music and just have fun.

In July, Island County commissioners disestablished the Island County Fair as a county government-owned and operated fair. In its place is the Whidbey Island Area Fair, a privately run, regional fair run by the Island County Fair Association.
The money to support the fair will come from gate admissions and vendor fees, plus charges for camping and other events held on the fairgrounds throughout the year.

According to Kelly Cammermeyer, “office diva” for the association, the goal was to expand the event to allow for more participation from people outside of the county.

The organization has run the fairs since 1912, first as a private stock company and later as a nonprofit. The fair association became a Washington state nonprofit in 1923, and in 2002 qualified for 501c(3) nonprofit status with the Internal Revenue Service.

“It’s fantastic,” Cammermeyer said, and then paused with a laugh. “It’s ‘Fairtastic.’”

“Fairtastic” is this year’s fair theme.
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