For Immediate Release:
July 21, 2008
County Fair open Wednesday through Sunday
Monmouth County booth gets upgrade; info on services available
FREEHOLD – MonmouthCounty government will provide information about county services during the annual county fair this week at East Freehold Park Showgrounds on Kozloski Road.
To help advance the theme “Monmouth County, The Place You Want to Be,” the county will staff a booth in the main vendor tent area and other areas throughout the fair.
“Monmouth County is proud of the variety of services it provides to the community,” said Freeholder Robert D. Clifton. “The county fair is a great opportunity for residents to a look at what we do, how we do it, and meet some of the county staff. I urge everyone to stop by the county booth to pick up the latest information on the services available to them.”
At the booth will be the resources from the departments of Economic Development & Tourism, Human Services, Consumer Affairs, Mosquito Commission, BrookdaleCommunity College, Health, FireAcademy, Emergency Management Office and Public Information.
Elsewhere on the fairgrounds will be other county departments including:
- Sheriff’s Officers who will be enrolling children in the “Youth Identification Program,” which involves preparing wallet-sized cards with a photo ID of the child. The child’s parents or guardian maintain complete control of the card, but it can be given to local first responders in an emergency to aid in the rapid location and safe return of the child.
- Public Works staff will set up some heavy duty road equipment and show how they help keep the county’s traffic moving on the roads and bridges.
Park System naturalists have prepared an interactive exhibit with an insider’s view of pollution and storm water runoff.
- Planning Board staff along with Master Composters will help residents discover what can and cannot be recycled and how to compost in their back yards.
“Even if residents do not make it to the county booth at the fair, they can always access many of the same resources on the county’s Web site,” Clifton said. “The Web site provides 24-hour access to county information and services.”
From the hills of Atlantic Highlands to the ManasquanRiver at the southern tip, and from westernmost reaches of Allentown to the shoreline in Asbury Park, MonmouthCounty offers its residents a diversity of lifestyles, quality health and education systems, thousands of acres of open space and permanently preserved farmland and the largest lending library system in the state.
The Monmouth County Fair is a family fun event that brings the community together to compete as amateur crafters, gardeners and bakers and to enjoy some great stage entertainment such as Biker Billy’s Cooking Show, the 1910 Fruitgum Company and Gary U.S. Bonds. There’s also an array of rides, games of chance and food.
Sponsored by First Energy Foundation and organized and presented by the Monmouth County Park System in cooperation with the MonmouthCounty 4-H, the Fair maintains the agricultural nature of a traditional county fair with its Home and Garden Competition, petting farm and 4-H animal shows and exhibits.
“The fair is an opportunity to see chickens, rabbits, pigs, goats, sheep, cows and horses up close,” Freeholder Director Lillian G. Burry said. “Most of the animals are cared for by the youth of the 4-H Association who take responsibility for the animals year round. These youngsters represent the future and viability of our agricultural community – we should all support their efforts.”
The county’s agricultural heritage also comes alive in the county’s Historic Services tent. Each fair day, staff and volunteers from Historic Longstreet Farm and Historic Walnford hold demonstrations showing daily activities of turn-of-the-century farm life in MonmouthCounty.
The Fair runs Wednesday through Sunday, July 23 to 27. The Fair gate is open 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Wednesday, July 23, Thursday, July 24, and Friday, July 25; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday July 26, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, July 27. The Fair is held at East Freehold Park Showgrounds on Kozloski Road, between Routes 33 and 537, in FreeholdTownship. Admission is $6 per person. Children 12 and under are free at all times. For more information on the Monmouth County fair, visit www.visitmonmouth.com or call (732) 842-4000.
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