By Alyssa Riccardi and Chris Lundy
BERKELEY – For the second year in a row, the Ocean County Fair has been canceled due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The event was to originally occur July 14 through 18 at the Robert J. Miller Airpark.
On April 20, the Ocean County Fair took to their Facebook page to break the upsetting news. Organizers stated how they’re unable to hold the event because capacity restrictions are still in place.
“Sadly, once again we must cancel the Ocean County Fair. COVID restriction placed on us by the state and 4H being limited from having large gatherings make it impossible for us to safely host our 2021 County Fair.”
Although the Ocean County fair is canceled this year, organizers are already looking forward to planning for 2022, aiming towards a scheduled date of July 13 to 17.
Last year, organizers put out a similar statement: “Rutgers Cooperative Extension/4H has put a hold on all 4H activities through August. 4H is such a strong partner of the fair that we cannot see a way forward without them this year.”
The organizers are volunteers, and they rely on the assistance of 4H and other groups.
The 2020 fair would have been the 73rd year of the fair. The only years they missed were 2020 and 2021.
According to its history, the Ocean County Board of Agriculture held the first annual “4-H Achievement and Agricultural Ocean County Field Day” on September 6, 1947.
It started at the Ocean County Park in Lakewood, but outgrew it in the 1980s. It was then relocated to the Robert J. Miller Airpark in Berkeley Township. The first four-day fair was in 1982.
It used to be an agricultural show for local farmers to show off their crops. However, as farming gave way to housing and commercial development, there are very few farms left locally. The 4-H has taken on the agricultural aspect of the fair, showing off what families have grown and nurtured.
