By ROBERT JUMPER
ONE FEATHER EDITOR
Stickball and pageant plans dominated discussion at the Cherokee Indian Fair meeting on Monday, Aug. 10. Those in attendance included: Events and Fairgrounds Supervisor Frieda Huskey, Lisa Frady, Angela Hernandez, Mariah Mahan, Mollie Grant, Faye Pheasant, Laura Blythe, Michelle Westley, Miss Cherokee Taylor Wilnoty, Miranda Stamper, Josie Long and Warren Dupree.
Huskey led the meeting and started by providing a copy of the July meeting minutes and reporting that she had met with each day organizer individually to go over budget clarifications and discuss day plans -giving guidance on planning.
She also told the group to enlist as many volunteers as possible and she would fill in necessary assistance with temporary workers for the Fair. This would help save on labor costs so that more funds could be applied to entertainment and food.
She announced that Sound of Music company would be providing on-grounds, overnight security and would do a radio broadcast during the five-day event. Huskey explained that, as in past Fairs, Sound of Music would provide an alternative to interrupting stage entertainment by making necessary announcements like lost children, vehicles blocking parking or traffic, etc.
A returning favorite, Raymond Fairchild, will perform on Saturday evening at the amphitheater.
The stickball games will be going through some changes. Separate meetings are being conducted to finalize plans for games, but Huskey indicated that children’s stickball games may be played on multiple days of the Fair and several of the men’s games would be played at Unity Field. Last year, all games were played on the Fairgrounds.
Yona Wade will be the master of ceremonies for the pageants to be held at the Fair. The plan is to have the Teen Miss Cherokee pageant at 7pm on Tuesday, Oct. 6; Little Miss Cherokee Pageant at 6pm on Wednesday, Oct. 7; and Junior Miss Cherokee Pageant at 6pm on Thursday, Oct. 8.
Huskey advised the day organizers that they could not assist with the community floats because it would be a conflict of interest, since they are employed in a capacity at the Fair.
Michelle Westley presented a 5K run to coincide with the Community day activities on Saturday, Oct. 10. The running event, called the “Splash of Color Dash”, is a 5K in which participants are hit with a multi-colored substance called “Hippie Powder” along the route. The cost of registration will be $20; $30 for a VIP registration. Proceeds from the run will benefit the Tahnee Arkansas Memorial Children’s Fund. To learn more or register, go to Facebook and search “Tahnee Arkansas Memorial Children’s Fund”. Huskey advised Westley to work with Chris Watty, the day organizer for Community Day to see what the opportunities are to partner with the 5K group.
Jim Long will be constructing the Exhibit Hall shelving again this year.
Huskey instructed the day organizers to prepare a bullet point list of all activities for the day plans and be ready to present those at the next Fair meeting.
The Cherokee Indian Fair Committee invites anyone interested in helping with the planning process to attend their monthly meetings. The next scheduled meeting is Monday, Aug. 24 at 5:30 pm.
The Cherokee Indian Fair will be held Oct. 6-10 at the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds. The theme for this year’s fair is “Weaving Dreams and Traditions Into Our Future”.
Info: Frieda Huskey, Events and Fairgrounds supervisor, 359-6492 or friehusk@nc-cherokee.com.
