By By SPIROS GALLOS / Niles Daily Star
BERRIEN SPRINGS - This year's Berrien County Youth Fair promises to be one of the best in the fair's 59 year history.
The fair, which begins Monday and runs through Saturday, Aug. 21, features attractions such as the Hawg Trough, a 45 foot-long mobile aquarium, and country music singer Brad Paisley performing in the grandstand.
Karen Klug, executive director of the Berrien County Youth Fair, said that fair is not just for showcasing youth talent, but that it can be a fun event for the whole family.
Klug expects to have over 2,400 exhibitors with about 17,000 exhibits, and around 125,000 attendees passing through the fair during the week.
Berrien County youth between the ages of five and 20-years-old come to the fair to show livestock, home economics projects, and arts and crafts.
Adults can also compete in some events. Klug said there were over 50 entrants in the pie contests.
Some attractions expected to draw large crowds are the Hawg Trough, the Great Safety Adventure, and the Wonders of Birth exhibit, Klug said.
The Hawg Trough is a 45 foot-long mobile aquarium with clear sides so spectators can see how fishing lures work under water, and how fish react to them.
The aquarium will be stocked with bass fished by the Southwest Michigan Anglers Club, based in Niles.
Performances for the Hawg Trough run Monday through Saturday at 2 p.m., 5p.m. and 7 p.m.
The Great Safety Adventure is an educational exhibit designed to raise awareness of dangers in the home. The four safety risk area the exhibit concentrates on are fire and burns, poisoning, choking and suffocation, and slips and falls.
Parents and children walk through the house assuming the role of safety rangers, identifying safety hazards such as poisonous cleaning supplies, protruding pot handles on stoves, and an electric hair dryer close to a tub full of water.
The Wonders of Birth exhibit will include photos of the birthing process of various livestock animals and videos of some birthings such as calves and pigs.
Adult and baby animals will be there to be seen by visitors and volunteers will be on hand to answer questions from visitors.
Friday night, country music singer Brad Paisley will be performing in the grandstand at 8 p.m.
The fair has about 400 of the 3,000 grandstand seats still available for the performance, Klug said. Tickets for the concert are $20.
But when is all said and done, the fair would be impossible to put on without the over 800 volunteers who help out at the fair.
Most of the volunteers are police officers, fire fighters, and medics offering their services in their free time, Klug said.
For more information on the fair and for a schedule, go to bcyf.org.