

| ADVERTISERS Craftlister.com Chickadee Hill Tourism CT Magazine East Coast Artisan Festival Network Online Sunshine Artists The Art &Craft Show Yellow Pages The Crafts Report Craftshowdates.com Where The Shows Are Greater New Haven Convention & Visitors Bureau My Fairs and Festivals Full Advertiser List! |



certainly an indication of our success. But success is measured in many ways, not the least of which is the money our fair brings to the church. This money enables us to bring our ministries into the community and the world, doing God’ s work. This year’s fair was certainly successful in a financial respect. We sold $6,057 worth of hot dogs, hamburgers, egg sandwiches, burritos, funnel cakes, strawberry shortcakes and beverages! Our bake sale took in $854, while the plant sale made $1,608. Most impressively, Trash & Treasures had its best year ever, bringing in $3,840! We had a very good year, signing up 133 vendors. The fair committee made some big improvements this year, which cost some money, but after significant expenses we were still able to give the church a check for about $16,000. I think the real success of our annual Fair on the Green is that it brings our congregation together in a way that nothing else can. I’m not sure that anyone will remember the amount that this year’s check was written for, but we will all take away countless stories and memories of the experiences that we shared over the two days. The fair is a collective effort that cannot be successful on any level without each person’s contribution. So, to everyone who chaired a committee and spent hours attending meetings and preparing months in advance, those who stopped by to help price items for Trash-and-Treasures, who advertised our fair and who were willing to lend their muscle setting up tents and tables the night before the fair and take them down again in the rain on Saturday, who prepared food or did the shopping, who ran a food booth or sold plants and baked goods, who monitored the parking lot, who organized entertainment, who cleaned up after a long two days, who sold tickets or counted money, who cleaned tables and bathrooms and garbage cans, who ran until they could not run any more… thank you. Every volunteer has my most sincere thanks and an invitation to do it all again next year. - Stephen French |
alone. Anyone who has taken this on knows this to be true. In fact, when taken on by one person it can become a chore rather than a labor of love and, especially when serving your church, this should not be the case. Of all the ways that I have served my church, chairing the fair was by far the most difficult. It is, in my opinion, a wonderful event that does so much more than raise money for the church, and I hope that it continues on for years to come. Next year will be the 40th annual Fair on the Green and it will be my last fair as chair. I am asking that two or three members of the congregation step forward to commit to taking on leadership positions with the fair. Running the fair with 3 people will maintain a reasonable level of work for each person and will allow the experience to be satisfying and rewarding, as church service should be. I am currently working on a very extensive and comprehensive guide to chairing the fair that will hopefully make the task easier in the future. If you are interested, or if your heart compels you share in leading the 2011 Fair on the Green, please contact me immediately. - Stephen French |