Food, fun and fond memories hallmarks of Nebraska State Fair (2024)

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — Cindy Jacobs was enjoying a plate of nachos at the Nebraska State Fair in Grand Island’s Fonner Park on a warm afternoon Saturday.

The grandmother from Kearney, Nebraska, had been at the fair for only slightly more than one hour, but she was already having a good time. She had just finished watching her 13-year-old grandson march and play percussion as part of the Kearney Catholic High School band.

Later, once Jacobs finished her nachos, she got to watch her younger grandchildren enjoy the rides that made up the Greatest Carnival on the Planet.

“I got them (ride) wristbands back on Black Friday. So they’ve been looking forward to this since November,” Jacobs said.

For Jacobs and thousands of other Nebraskans, coming to the State Fair is a cherished tradition. Jacobs remembers going to the fair with her parents when she was a kid growing up on a farm. Then, the fair took place in Lincoln.

“It was the highlight of the whole year,” Jacobs said. “We worked on the farm with the sweat on our brow. We’d get money. Then we go to the State Fair and blow it all.”

It’s a similar story for longtime fair volunteer Sharon Kay Smith. A lifelong David City, Nebraska, resident, Smith has been coming to the Nebraska State Fair for 66 years. She has spent 14 of the last 15 fairs as one of hundreds of volunteers helping visitors and listening to their stories.

Stylish quilts depict themes

On Saturday, Smith was at the quilt exhibits. While she does not possess the quilt-making talents of her grandmother and mother-in-law, she knows how to identify a stylish and well-made quilt. She had 473 quilts to look through at the fair’s expo event. Quilts, which were designed by Nebraskans 7 to 98 years old, included those with Christmas themes, rabbits and distinctive geometric patterns.

For Smith, a bank teller, looking at the quilts is just one part of a magical State Fair experience that keeps her coming back every year.

“I’ve never missed a fair,” she said. “There are so many new things coming up now. They have so many planters and different kinds of contests. The tractors still come (along with) all of the animals. The parents are just as excited because there are so many new food vendors.”

Sticky Fingers is one of the fair’s many food vendors. Based in Loveland, Colorado, the vendor offers what Chris Wright calls “authentic Philly cheesesteaks.”

“We do not do a steak sandwich on a hoagie. We actually bring our rolls in from Philadelphia,” he said.

Sticky Fingers, along with some other vendors, also offers unique deep-fried foods associated with fairs. Those include funnel cakes, deep-fried Oreos and even deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

For Wright, being able to serve food at the Nebraska State Fair is just one way he can give back to an event that provided much fun for him when he was a kid.

“I had a lot of family that grew up around here” in Nebraska, he said. “I … always knew it was a fun time and a blast.”

As Megan and Jake Hunter’s 6-year-old and 18-month-old children played in a box filled with corn — not sand — they had a full day ahead with fun and opportunities for fond memories for their children. The family from Arcadia, Nebraska, had already been to the petting zoo and were heading to grab slushies and ice cream before hitting the carnival rides.

“There are a lot of fun things to do for all of us,” Megan Hunter said, adding she’s been coming to the Nebraska State Fair since she was a kid.

Fair has central location

She added that, for her family, it’s nice to have the State Fair in Grand Island, where it moved from Lincoln 15 years ago. For one, it makes a shorter drive for her and other Nebraskans who live in the central and western parts of the state. Two, it refreshed an event that’s been held annually in Nebraska for 155 years. Several buildings have been built in Grand Island to accommodate the fair.

“It’s a lot more updated and family friendly,” Hunter said.

As the 4-H fashion show was underway in the Nebraska Building, Courtney Glock, marketing director for the Nebraska State Fair, said the fair’s central location has been a plus for the entire state. She added Grand Island businesses and community leaders promote the fair each year with a community decorating contest and other activities.

“We’re still only about two hours from Omaha. So it’s really not that difficult for anyone in the state to make it a day trip,” Glock said. “The community of Grand Island has embraced it so much.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be the State Fair without live music. Musical acts at the fair this year include Christian rock band Casting Crowns at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday and award-winning country artist Riley Green at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

“One thing we pride ourselves on is you can come out and pay the gate admission and then get hours and hours of free entertainment for you and your children,” Glock said. “No matter what age, you can find fun for very affordable (prices).”

This year’s fair runs through Labor Day. A schedule of events and ticket information can be found online at statefair.org.