By Lisa Carolin
More than 200 free goody bags were given away at the Chelsea Community Fair during Friday, Aug. 23 Ladies Day event, which was estimated to have drawn its biggest crowd in the last few years.
An enthusiastic group of women filled the Multi-Purpose Arena, and a multitude of free gifts donated by generous local businesses were laid out on a long table on the stage.
Ladies Day Superintendent Carrie Trinkle was the main announcer, assisted by Michelle DeFant and Chrissy Hilberer. Fair Queen contestants handed the prizes to the winners, and 2018 Fair Queen Madison Brodeur also performed a violin solo.
The activities kicked off with Ella Haven Zahn singing the National Anthem, and then the giveaways began. During the program, Sue Rogers offered free chair massages.
An annual highlight is when Mary Tobin, Homemaker Superintendent, announced the adult and junior homemaker champions. This year’s adult champion was Erin Brzezinski, a Chelsea resident, competing for the first time.
The Homemaker runner-up was Erin Zempel from Waterloo Township.
The Junior Homemaker champion was Emily Trinkle, a sophomore at Dexter High School, who is also a Fair Queen candidate, and has had entries in the fair since she was 3 years old.
Avery Beeman, an eighth-grader at Grass Lake Middle School, was Junior Homemaker runner-up for the second year in a row.
The Ladies Day program also included a pickleball demonstration. and there was a fashion show sponsored by Vogel’s and Foster’s, featuring Fair Queen contestants and their moms.
By the end of the program, Fair Queen Brodeur and the five contestants were counting down the hours until Friday evening’s naming of the 2019 Fair Queen.
