It's only a couple days until the Kiwanis Ogeechee Fair begins, and Statesboro Kiwanis Club members spent Thursday's lunch meeting discussing final details of the annual fund raising event.
The Kiwanis Ogeechee Fair begins with a parade through downtown Statesboro at 5 p.m. Monday. The fair, which runs Oct. 12-17, opens each weekday at 4 p.m. and on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The fair, now in its 48th year, is the club's only fund raiser, but that one event sends around $100,000 back into the community through donations given to various charities and causes, said Kiwanis member and seven-time Fair Chairman Darrell Colson.
That money comes solely from gate admissions; any income from the midway or elsewhere is used for expenses to host the fair, he said. "If we don't get it at the gate, we don't have it to give away."
But even with that, the club has dedicated Monday night to help the community in another way: admission to the fairgrounds Monday is a can of food, a box or bag of staple food ( such as rice or pasta), or $1 that will go to the Statesboro Food Bank.
Colson said Bulloch County EMS, Bulloch County Sheriff's Department and other volunteers will be at the fairgrounds each night to ensure safety. No alcohol or drugs are allowed, and any troublemaking at the event will not be tolerated. Visitors with problems are asked to locate a Kiwanis member (wearing yellow or light blue shirts), or find a member at the information booth, or contact a Sheriff's deputy, all of whom can be found throughout the fairgrounds.
"One of our goals is to keep this a family event," Colson said.
The Kiwanis Ogeechee Fair begins with a parade through downtown Statesboro at 5 p.m. Monday. The fair, which runs Oct. 12-17, opens each weekday at 4 p.m. and on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The fair, now in its 48th year, is the club's only fund raiser, but that one event sends around $100,000 back into the community through donations given to various charities and causes, said Kiwanis member and seven-time Fair Chairman Darrell Colson.
That money comes solely from gate admissions; any income from the midway or elsewhere is used for expenses to host the fair, he said. "If we don't get it at the gate, we don't have it to give away."
But even with that, the club has dedicated Monday night to help the community in another way: admission to the fairgrounds Monday is a can of food, a box or bag of staple food ( such as rice or pasta), or $1 that will go to the Statesboro Food Bank.
Colson said Bulloch County EMS, Bulloch County Sheriff's Department and other volunteers will be at the fairgrounds each night to ensure safety. No alcohol or drugs are allowed, and any troublemaking at the event will not be tolerated. Visitors with problems are asked to locate a Kiwanis member (wearing yellow or light blue shirts), or find a member at the information booth, or contact a Sheriff's deputy, all of whom can be found throughout the fairgrounds.
"One of our goals is to keep this a family event," Colson said.