Cloverdale Citrus Fair to Move 2022 Fair to April

For Immediate Release

Cloverdale Citrus Fair
Contact Allison Keaney, PhD
Akeaney@cloverdalecitrusfair.org 

Cloverdale Citrus Fair to Move 2022 Fair to April

In an emergency meeting held Wednesday night, the Cloverdale Citrus Fair Board of Directors voted unanimously to postpone the Citrus Fair. The new date is April 21-24, 2022. The move is in response to the current health order which prohibits public indoor gatherings to 50
people and outdoor gatherings to 100.

The order is set to expire on February 11th, a week before the opening day of the fair, but the preparation for northern Sonoma County’s signature event requires several volunteers, staff, and business partners working together to prepare exhibits, buildings, and the grounds.

“The health and safety of our community is our primary concern” said Allison Keaney, CEO of the Citrus Fair. “Moving the date of Citrus Fair allows us to support the health of all who prepare the fair by shifting that work until after the current health order is lifted, and providing a date that is safer and more comfortable for all patrons.”

As soon as the current health order was announced, Fair staff began working with business partners and service providers to find alternatives. The new date was selected based on the availability of these partners who provide the carnival, concessions, ticketing, security, and more. The popular and long-awaited Cabaret will also shift with the new fair dates, playing on Thursday through Sunday.

Updates on scheduling, exhibits deadlines, and other information will be shared via the fair’s website and social media outlets:
Cloverdalecitrusfair.org
On Facebook, Cloverdale Citrus Fair 2022

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The Cloverdale Citrus Fair launches NEW Ambassador Scholarship Program

Cloverdale Citrus FairFor Immediate Release

Cloverdale Citrus Fair
Contact Allison Keaney, PhD
Akeaney@cloverdalecitrusfair.org 

The Cloverdale Citrus Fair launches NEW Ambassador Scholarship Program.

The Cloverdale Citrus Fair’s Board of Directors is rolling out a new scholarship competition, open to all high school juniors and seniors from Cloverdale and Geyserville: The Ambassador Scholarship Program.

“As we prepare to celebrate our 130th year, we felt it was time to re-evaluate the way we recognize and support our youth as they prepare to enter college, trade school, or the workforce,” said Dylan Davis, Board President of the Cloverdale Citrus Fair Association.

The competition is a shift from the Citrus Fair’s Queen Pageant, a longstanding Citrus Fair tradition, and will make the opportunity available to more students. Applicants to the Queen Pageant have been decreasing over the years, signaling a time to try something different. One of those differences is with the scholarship award itself.

The Citrus Fair Association will underwrite the scholarship portion of the competition and has increased the awards significantly. The student selected as the Ambassador will receive a $5,000 scholarship and the runner up, the Associate Ambassador, will receive $2,500. The remaining participants will each receive $825. The money may be used for college, trade school, or professional training and certification.

Five participants will be chosen through an application process that includes a combination of recommendations, community service, academic performance, and written communication. The five students who are selected will participate in a panel interview and presentation program in front of an audience which will help determine the winner. In addition, they will participate in service-learning time for the fair, rotating through the various departments to learn about the administrative, marketing, planning, and facility elements that make up the field of venue management and the production of a fair. Participants will also attend skill development workshops to improve their interview, resume writing, and presentation skills. As with the Queen program, the student selected as the Ambassador will be required to represent the Citrus Fair at public events, while the Associate Ambassador will attend if the Ambassador is not available.

“Participants in the Ambassador Program will be able to learn about event planning and venue management as a career option while also learning valuable skills that will serve them no matter what career or educational avenue they choose,” stated Allison Keaney, CEO. “For the students chosen as the Ambassador and Associate Ambassador, that development continues through the year.”

The Queen Pageant, a long-standing tradition for the Fair, will be showcased and honored in a special presentation during the Citrus Fair on Friday, February 18th, opening night of the 2022 Fair.

Applications for the Ambassador program may be found online at the Citrus Fair website (cloverdalecitrusfair.org) and at the office at 1 Citrus Fair Drive, Cloverdale.

The 2022 Cloverdale Citrus Fair will take place February 18-21 and visitors will be welcomed “Under the Big Top!”  For more information visit cloverdalecitrusfair.org or email info@cloverdalecitrusfair.org

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Cloverdale disaster preparedness fair draws 1,500

Northern Sonoma County Fire and Earthquake Expo

Gracie McNulty, 19, attempts to stifle a laugh as Northern Sonoma County firefighters, Colby Jenkins, Andre Gluch and David Alvarez participate in an extrication drill during the Northern Sonoma County Fire and Earthquake Expo, Saturday, August 7, 2021 in Cloverdale. (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat) 2021


KATHLEEN COATES: THE PRESS DEMOCRAT: August 7, 2021

Link to original story

Some came for the free go bags. Others wanted to find out about products that would help them protect their home if another wildfire sparks in their vicinity.

People could learn how to prepare evacuation plans for their families and animals during a natural disaster. There was preparedness training for Spanish-speakers. Jazz and rock bands played.

There really was something for everyone at the Northern Sonoma Fire and Earthquake Safety Expo on Saturday at the Citrus Fairgrounds in Cloverdale. About 1,500 people attended the expo, which had booths for nonprofit groups as well as businesses inside fair buildings and outside on the grounds.

“We’re here making contacts and gathering information to help with rebuilding our house,” said Dan Grout, leader of the Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies group in the Mill Creek and Palmer Creek region near Healdsburg

“We’re looking at water defense systems,” said Grout, whose family lost their home during the Walbridge fire. “We know it could burn again and we want to be prepared.”

It was hot at the fairgrounds — in the mid-90s — and got hotter as the expo continued from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hydration stations with iced bottled water and a spigot that allowed you to run water over your head were available.

This was the first expo held in Cloverdale, and was spearheaded by Geoff Peters, program manager of the northern Sonoma County Community Emergency Response Team, trained volunteers who respond to disasters to put out spot fires and stop bleeding or give CPR. The group had a booth at the event.

“They are literally the first responders before the first responders get there,” he said.

The free event was postponed several times because of the pandemic, and Saturday people were still required to wear masks inside. There was free food: a pancake breakfast provided by the Kiwanis Club of Cloverdale, a lunch prepared by River Rock Casino and ice cream, shaved ice and hot dogs for the kids.

Those who attended got a free American Red Cross go bag, which included a weather band radio. Prizes of wine and olive oil were given to those who attended a majority of the 55 safety exhibits available as evidenced by stars collected on event “passports.”

“The idea is we want an educated community,” said Peters, a Cloverdale farmer. “We tried to make everything friendly and not be some dry lecture, so people can learn to be safer.”

Jose Lujan of Cloverdale said he came to show his “little man,” Jose, 2, “everything, like the first responders.” Jose Lujan Jr. was happy looking at the penned goats brought by Dr. Stephanie Larson, the region’s rangeland adviser, to show the benefits of using the animals to eat vegetation to decrease fire fuel.

“I wanted to get more information on the fires because they seem to come every year,” Lujan said. “How we can keep safe.”

Early on, the emergency response team staged a simulated earthquake disaster with two collapsed buildings, in which its volunteers, working with first responders, extricated “victims” and treated their wounds. People with simulated injuries that needed more than first aid were whisked away by Henry 1, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office helicopter. Ambulances came and went with their sirens blaring.

The Sheriff’s Office, Cal Fire, EMTs with the American Medical Response ambulance company, Cal Fire and the Healdsburg and Cloverdale fire departments were all on hand helping with the simulated disaster response and handing out literature.

Sonoma County Sheriff Mark Essick said the expo is “one more point of preparation that the Sheriff’s Office and the Department of Emergency Management have been working on since 2017 with the Tubbs fire.

“We now have an emergency alert system, evacuation mapping, defensible space requirements — all these things have been introduced or reintroduced to the point that you can have a fair like this and people can learn how to keep safe,” Essick said.

A spokesman for one of the home defense products, Vulcan Vents’ Nate Oliver, staged a live demonstration showing how the fine mesh and honeycomb exterior vents protected against both embers and flames, whereas regular vents don’t. He said homes in Paradise with the vents during the Camp fire three years ago withstood the flames.

“I’m so happy they had this fair so we can see these products,” said Holly Wilson of Healdsburg. “We live in the mountains and one of our structures burned in the Walbridge fire.”

Cloverdale Mayor Marta Cruz, who has been working with Peters and others to make the expo a reality, was there, posing in front of the helicopter. She said the expo was the result of two years of meetings with volunteers discussing safety measures for the people of Cloverdale. “I am a believer in regional collaboration and seeking resources that will support all,” she said.

You can reach Staff Writer Kathleen Coates at kathleen.coates@pressdemocrat.com.

2020 Fair Theme ideas needed!

Citrus Fair is looking for 2020 Fair Theme ideas!  Call (707)894-3992 or e-mail info@cloverdalecitrusfair.org with your suggestions.

The 2019 Cloverdale Citrus Fair Theme is All about Amazing Advancements

Ferris Wheel

Ferris Wheel

 


The 2019 Cloverdale Citrus Fair theme is all about the amazing advancements in science and technology that make for our rich history and diverse country.

In fact, many of our favorite fair foods and every day household items were unveiled at the World’s Fair. Wrigly’s chewing gum, pancake mix (yum) and the zipper were all on display at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. Read more about the Top 10 everyday items brought to us around the turn of the century.

Citrus Fair seeks Queen and Junior Princess candidates

Princess Program


Applications are now available for Queen and Princess candidates for the 2019 Cloverdale Citrus Fair.

Queen candidates must be in school, carry at least a 3.0 grade point average, live in either Cloverdale or Geyserville and be between the ages of ages 16 and19. In addition to participating in a small talent segment, they will be judged on poise and appearance in an interview with the judges and on stage.

Applications are also being accepted for Junior Princess contestants, ages 6-10, and Junior Miss Princess contestants, ages 11-14. Only the first 10 girls in each of the two categories can be accepted so early sign-ups are encouraged. Call 894-3992 or stop by the Citrus Fair office for an application.

2019 Queen Pageant

Queen Application and Rules

2019 Princess Program

Princess Application and Rules