State Farm Fair morphs into 2 separate events

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Staff Writer

4-H member Jill Eguires, 19, feeds her heifer, Kila. After 30 years at the State Farm Fair, Hawai'i 4-H members will host their own fair at Kualoa Ranch. The O'ahu County Farm Bureau also is planning a fair. Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser

The Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation, which had organized the event since its inception in 1973, will not be involved. A partnership with the 4-H Livestock Show that began in 1974 will end, and Aloha Stadium, the fair's location for the past nine years, is out.

The site is blamed in part for the decline of the Farm Fair, which suffered its worst attendance ever last year.

"We were trying to create a country fair atmosphere, (but) we were doing it on a blacktop," said Thomas Hill, president of the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation.

This year, the state fair's new organizers, members of the O'ahu County Farm Bureau, are looking for a new location, and 4-H will put on its own fair.

The O'ahu farm bureau has a tentative site in Kapolei, but must still finalize the location as well as set dates for its fair, according to Hill, who also is a member of that organization.

Meanwhile, the Hawai'i State 4-H Farm Fair will be held July 2-3 at Kualoa Ranch in Windward O'ahu.

Volunteers will put on the show, which along with parking will be free to the public, said Verna Eguires, whose two children participated in 4-H and who will coordinate the organization's new fair.

In addition to the livestock show and sale, the fair will highlight other 4-H activities, including home economics, fashion, art exhibits and a concert featuring 4-H members, Eguires said.

The family event also will have rock climbing, food sampling, games and produce sales, she said.

"This is going to be a full-blown farm fair," Eguires said.

Officials with 4-H said splitting from the State Farm Fair was a tough choice, but it had to be done.

Under the 4-H livestock program, members raise their animals to be market ready at a certain time, at which they are judged and sold.

A new place and time for the State Farm Fair hadn't been locked in, and 4-H had to make a decision or risk losing its entire event, said Roy Oyama, president of the Hawaii State 4-H Livestock Council.

"It's not a simple transition after 30 years with the farm fair," said Eguires. "This was a difficult decision."

Members of 4-H say the livestock show challenges their ability to raise market animals, and the fair is an opportunity to exhibit their accomplishments and to educate the public about the organization.

Plus the fair is fun, even with all the hard work that goes into preparing for it, said Brittany Kinoshita, 14, of Makakilo.

"I'm really sorry we're not going to have it at the Aloha Stadium this year," said Kinoshita, a Pearl City Highlands student. "It's a better location and more people can go there. It's close to the city, so you don't have to drive all the way to Kualoa."

John Morgan, president of Kualoa Ranch, also is concerned about people attending the new event but as a longtime supporter of 4-H, he said he was glad to have the show and sale at the ranch, where he raises cattle and operates a recreational facility.

"It would be a great fit for us," he said. "The big question is will people make the drive out here to see it."

Before moving to Aloha Stadium, the State Farm Fair had been held at McKinley High School, where attendance reached 165,000 in its peak year.

The fair moved to Aloha Stadium in 1995 and in that same year attendance dropped to 110,000, Hill said. The figure hovered around that number until last year, when only 77,000 people came, he said, adding that rain on two of the three weekends contributed to the poor turnout.

Oyama said the state is to blame for some of the State Farm Fair's problems. He faulted the state for not contributing as much to the farm fair last year as it had in the past. It costs sponsors about $300,000 to produce the fair. For a number of years, the state contributed $50,000. Last year, that dropped to about $20,000 as Gov. Linda Lingle asked for cuts by all departments to meet budget shortfalls, said Calvin Lee, with the state Department of Agriculture.

Money is available again this year, but it will be less than $25,000, Lee said.

Other states do more for their agriculture industry, including building a fairground for a farm fair and providing personnel to run it, Oyama said.

Supporters of the new Hawai'i State 4-H Farm Fair include the farm bureaus on the Big Island, Kaua'i, Moloka'i, Lana'i and O'ahu, said Eguires, adding that Meadow Gold and First Hawaiian Bank are major sponsors.

The Advertiser sponsors cash prizes for top finishers in the 4-H student livestock contest.

Jill Eguires, 19, has been a 4-H member for 11 years. She was concerned about the fate of the livestock show when she first learned that the fair was not going to be at the stadium.

The annual event breaks up the everyday routine and gives club members a goal to strive for, said Eguires, daughter of Verna Eguires.

"At first, it was disappointing that we were not going to have the same thing, but now it's exciting to see how this will be," said Jill Eguires. "I have a good feeling about this year because it will be different."

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.