Rainbow Valley Grange continues fair participation

During preparations for the San Diego County Fair, Grange Fair Team Leader Ed Komski found an interesting piece of Grange history on the fair Web site’s history page. The very first San Diego agricultural fair, organized by National Ranch Grange #235, took place in National City in 1880. According to the Web site (www.sdfair.com): “The National Ranch Grange Society organized a precedent-setting event with just two months’ work and only volunteer labor. The purpose of the original extravaganza was to showcase agriculture. Examples of locally grown produce were abundant. Livestock exhibitions were limited, because it was difficult to transport the animals, but the oil paintings, quilts, leatherwork, shells and ‘an elegant display of photographic art’ were an indication of what the fair might become more than 100 years later. Prize money that year was $200.50 — several zeroes less than the prize money offered in recent years.”

Today the four Granges left in San Diego County (Rainbow Valley #689, Ramona #632, San Marcos #633 and Vista #609) support a fair team, known as the North County Grange Fair Team, which participates in fairs throughout Southern California. This year at the San Diego County Fair the team has 11 equestrian entries as well as eight market animal exhibitors and nine breed animal exhibitors showing one steer, two swine, 11 Boer goats, one turkey and two pens of chickens. The community’s support at the Buyers Auction on July 3 at 10:00 a.m. would be greatly appreciated.

Rainbow Valley Grange donates first place awards for four contests in the San Diego County Fair’s Kids’ Best department: photography, writing, fine art (drawing or painting) and recycled art. Grange members from adults to juniors also take part in the California State Grange Expo held each year at the state convention in October, which will be in Bakersfield this year.

One of the purposes of the Grange, as stated in a Grange ritual, is “to preserve and bring together for exhibition, at proper seasons, the choicest products of orchard, farm, garden, dairy and household skill, that we may incite one another to good works.” As with the fairs, the expo exhibits many inspiring examples of arts and crafts from needlepoint to woodworking, photography to recycled crafts and creative writing to baked goods. There are no entry fees and guest exhibitors can take part in the expo for one convention without becoming a member. The Expo Premium Book is available online at http://www.californiagrange.org. For more information contact Lucette at (760) 489-9502 or Nancy Moramarco at (760)728-6690.

The Grange is also a community service organization. Each year, Rainbow Valley Grange gives a scholarship to a Vallecitos graduate who is now graduating from Fallbrook High School with plans to enter a four-year college. At the Vallecitos School graduation ceremony on June 14, Ed Komski presented Sokkim Ung with a $500 scholarship. Sokkim will be going off to the University of Riverside in the fall with best wishes from the Grange.