The San Benito County Fair calls Sunday “Community Cultural Day” as a wide variety of cultural backgrounds will be represented throughout the day. (Transportation info at the bottom of the page.)
It is a chance to celebrate the cultural blend of San Benito County and California in general. Of course, the fair is put on by a huge volunteer force and everyone is invited to take part next year in the hard work part of putting on the fair too. As many who have volunteered for anything know, pitching in allows them to get to know each other and its a great way to connect with different cultural and social groups.
33rd District Board President, Dara Tobias pointed out in an interview with BenitoLink that San Benito has Mexican, Central American, Portuguese, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Eastern European, Korean, Polynesian, English and Irish immigrants, along with many others. “My mother is a Dutch immigrant and it just got me thinking about celebrating the melting pot we have and the wonderful, different kinds of music and cooking they all represent,” Tobias said.
“The demographics of the county have changed over the years and today our population is over 50 percent Latin heritage, so we decided to mix things up a little and add some spice to our Sunday at the fair,” Tobias said. She said the 33rd District has been working with LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens) to include more Latino-oriented events and help improve the experience for all parts of the community.
That’s where they came up with getting “Los Freddy’s,” a popular Mexican group from the 1960s and 1970s. Los Freddy’s will be playing at 5 p.m. on the Holaday Seed Main Stage. The fair board put extra effort into reaching out to the Spanish-speaking community members via advertising on Spanish language radio stations to let them know about the show and the fair in general.
Los Freddy’s was founded in 1962 in Guadalajara, Jalisco. According to Wikipedia, “Early in their careers, the group earned popularity by playing cover songs of popular English-language songs (such as Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs’ “Wooly Bully” and The Beatles’ “Penny Lane”) that were translated into Spanish, as well as producing original romantic ballads. The band established themselves throughout Latin America as one of the top bands with a string of successful slow ballads and grupera songs. They were nominated for a Grammy Award in 1989.”
The fair board is making sure cultures are well represented, not just in the area of music, food and performances, but also in the broad areas of competition in the arts, cooking, sewing and other local crafts. The fair plans to expand and invite interest in these areas of competition as well.
“We know there are some wonderful family recipes out there and we would love to start seeing more home cooks put them in the fair and get a ribbon,” Tobias said.
The 33rd District board has also put more attention into the types of food available for purchase at the Bolado Park Fairgrounds on Cultural Day. Offerings will include Portuguese, Mexican and Chinese food, among others. The county’s home-grown food, including fresh fruit, vegetables and ranch-raised meat produced and distributed by all those working here in the local agriculture industry, will also be celebrated.
“The Taste of San Benito” goes from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. This “event within the event,” sponsored by Sabor Farms, happens in the Patio Area where attendees will discover a showcase of locally grown and produced fruit, meat, vegetables, cheeses, olive oils, candies, wines and other foods. Taste of San Benito is free with paid fair admission.
And there is the cowboy culture, too, as team roping will be held in the arena starting at 9 a.m. and running all day.
Sunday, Oct. 2, Community Cultural Day
10:00am County Fair Opens
Cisco Jim & El Dorado Roving
9:00-5:00pm Jackpot Roping Show Grandstand
9:00 am – 11:00am Baler Brunch U-Barn
10:30am Cowboy Church U-Barn
10:30am All Creatures Barnyard Races Porker Downs
11:00-1:00pm Taste of San Benito Patio
12:00pm All Creatures Barnyard Races Porker Downs
12:00pm Carnival Opens
12:00pm Folklorico Juvenil Main Stage
12:30pm Twinkle Time Main Stage
1:00pm All Creatures Barnyard Races Porker Downs
2:00pm Twinkle Time Main Stage
2:30pm Michael Mezmer Theater of Mind Patio Stage
3:00pm Twinkle Time Main Stage
3:30 – 6:30pm Randy Sauropod Variety Stage
4:00pm Ag/Hort Produce Auction Patio
4:00pm Calpulli Itzapalotl Main Stage
4:30pm All Creatures Barnyard Races Porker Downs
5:00pm Michael Mezmer Hypnosis Patio Stage
5:00pm Los Freddy’s Concert Main Stage
6:30pm All Creatures Barnyard Races Porker Downs
7:00pm County Fair Closes
Free Transportation to the Fair this Year! Ride the County Express Shuttle to the fairgrounds.
FREE Information in English about free transportation to the fair.
Información sobre el servicio de transporte a la Feria del Condado, Tarifa GRATIS La información en español