For more than 60 years, the Beaver Dam Better 4-H'ers have made a tradition of providing refreshments at the Kosciusko County Community Fair.
This year, longtime fairgoers will notice the club's concession stand has a new look. The club recently finished a $40,000 project to build a bigger stand and outfit it with new equipment.
The club has had a stand at the fair since 1945. The first stand served only watermelon and soda pop. Now, the menu includes all the staples of carnival food - cheeseburgers, nachos, tenderloins, popcorn, candy and - new this year - onion rings and fish sandwiches.
Theresa Alber, 4-H leader and chair of the club's food stand committee, said the stand is staffed by club members and their parents. "The kids take the orders up front and the parents work back in the kitchen," Alber said. "Through the years, several generations have gone through and brought their kids and grandkids."
Alber said the teamwork between the families is one of the biggest benefits to running the stand. "You really get to know the families," she said. "You get to know them and a bond forms."
Alber said the proceeds from concession sales at the fair each year provide funds to cover dues and book costs for the 31-member club.
"We try to spend the money on the kids," Alber said.
The club also uses the money to sponsor community service projects.
Alber said the additional space and equipment at the new stand will help the club provide better service to hungry and thirsty fairgoers this year. She said grants from the K21 Foundation and Dekko Foundation made the project possible.
