Many who go to the Shippensburg Community Fair each July will let you know they come simply for the massive array of ingredients they can bask in at some point during the week.
Whether they are regarding the countless selections at the nonprofit meals stands or the yummy baked items entered into the Home Products Division contests, many truth-seekers can’t get sufficient of the offerings made with the aid of talented community participants.
Tuesday night, July 23, will truly fulfill any candy teeth as crowds of human beings flock to the Home Products buildings to bid pinnacle dollars to indulge in the array of homemade sweets.
The Baked Goods contests get underway at 9 a.m. and noon on Tuesday as the competitors submit their entries for judging. More than two dozen volunteers will help prepare the room, lining up entries of pies, desserts, cookies, cakes, and candies along with lengthy tables.
Jodie Popio, the co-chair of the baked goods department, is one of the many volunteers who stay up to see and smell all of these deliciously created objects each year.
“There are such a lot of talented bakers available who produce a huge range of items each year, that it always amazes me when I see folks making their way to the registration line with their sweets in tow,” Popio added. “The Shippensburg Fair is small in comparison to where I came from. However, it’s far this sort of near-knit community, and to see how anyone helps the fair and every different, I assume simply exquisite!”
“There are so many specific objects entered in the contests each year, for example, an inexperienced tomato pie. I had never heard of that before I moved right here,” she continued. “In addition to peer all the beautifully embellished desserts and cookies, and all types of pies that humans bake, is quite neat, too.”
Originally from Lock Haven, Popio stated she is used to seeing Lemon Sponge and Mince Meat pies and other Pennsylvania Dutch favorites that she grew up with, consisting of sticky buns and homemade rolls. Having participated in other local and country fairs, she is acquainted with the friendly opposition, and all sundry enjoys; however, she said she believes the feel of community and friendship at some point of the week encourages parents to participate and come to be concerned with the fair itself. “Everyone is so pleasant and so inclined to jump right in and do something that needs to be executed to make the complete procedure pass smoothly, and to me, that in reality speaks volumes about the honesty itself and people who work so hard to make the honest successful each year.”
Popio has been a volunteer for the past 10 years; thank you to her neighbor, Vivian Diller. “Vivian invited me to come along with her when we first moved here from Ohio. She has been a volunteer for gosh, probably 25 years or more,” Popio defined. “I became happy to move and check things out during that first 12 months, and I guess you can say I became hooked due to the fact I’ve been going ever on account!”
She said she surely enjoys seeing pals that she’s made over time, people she doesn’t see in the years’ course besides at true time. “It honestly is a lot of amusing, and to see all the proficient humans we have inside the community 12 year after year, is just top-notch!” She said there are such many extraordinary categories to go into that there certainly is something for everybody.
“Whether you’re into baking, crafting, gardening, stitching, or photography, you may find your niche at the fair.” She additionally likes the fact that special committees encourage new ideas. “Two years in the past, we introduced a gluten-free class to the baked goods entries,” she cited. “We had someone input a gluten-free object in the competition but didn’t have another gluten-free gadget at the time, so we conceived that due to the number of folks who can’t have gluten in their diets, it might be a terrific concept to add this category, so we did.” She said this gives those who may not be able to participate inside the beyond an opportunity to participate in the future.”
Pope encourages every person to browse and check out the fair, especially the Home Products section. She said it’s miles without a doubt neat to see how many skills there are within the community, and it is also a wonderful way to support the honest and be a part of the revel in that only comes around once a year!
