SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A good volunteer is often hard to find, but not even an extended global pandemic was enough to shut down a determined volunteer corps of hundreds of Illinois residents — many of them hailing from farm country — who helped make the 2021 Illinois State Fair a success. 

These volunteers, who helped staff popular daily attractions including the Illinois Specialty Growers Association (ISGA) food tent and the Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA) “Piglets on Parade” birthing center, embodied the “One Illinois” theme assigned to the 2021 state fairs in both Springfield (Aug. 12-22) and DuQuoin (Aug. 27-Sept. 6), according to ISF volunteer coordinator Pam Gray.

“Some of the volunteers come back year after year, and they sign up early. We get married couples, seniors, and others, and they know their way around the fairgrounds,” said Gray, who just put the wraps on her 27th year as a Springfield ISF volunteer. She added that before she began volunteering, the fair board hired workers to perform many of the tasks now performed by volunteers. 

“Many of our volunteers today work in the information booths around the fairgrounds. We also have volunteers who drive the horse jockeys back and forth from their paddocks to the barns, and those who work in the ISF museum. We have greeters at a couple of the walk-in gates with information to help guests maneuver the 366-acre fairgrounds. We try to make it a very fun experience for fairgoers,” said Gray, who maintains a database of around 100 fair volunteers and is looking to add more.

The longtime volunteer added that she takes special enjoyment from guiding couples with young children to fun and enriching areas for youth to play and learn, while providing tips on things such as how to cut expenses by using fair coupons or which buildings are equipped with air conditioning. 

At the ISGA food booth inside the Illinois Department of Agriculture tent, Illinois Farm Bureau (IFB) associate director of food systems development Raghela Scavuzzo coordinated approximately 120 volunteer shifts during the fair’s 10-day run. For the first time, the specialty growers utilized an online volunteer sign-up page to recruit workers for their tent, which offered Illinois-centric favorites such as apple cider slushies, watermelon slices and buttery ears of sweet corn. 

“It really helped us to have people go online and sign up. We have people working as cashiers, we have food runners, and we have stockers. We need help moving stuff; some of our watermelons weigh over 25 pounds,” said Scavuzzo, who draws on the Illinois Farm Bureau’s vast membership and colleague base when seeking fair tent volunteers. 

“Even our president, Randy Graham, is volunteering with Curtis Orchard. We pull from our membership and database of over 3,000 subscribers to our email bulletins,” Scavuzzo said, as ISGA tent volunteers Taryn Chesnek, Grace Clark, Angela Walters, Cindy Stoll and Debbie Stopa assisted Graham in delivering food and drink to fairgoers.

The five farm bureau colleagues offered similar reasons for volunteering at the tent, saying they were on hand to help the farmers and enjoy the fair festivities and attractions. “As the new DeWitt County Farm Bureau manager, I wanted to come here and help out at this event and have fun,” said Clark. 

“One of our farm bureau programs is ‘IFB Gives Back’ and I wanted to give back to the fair this year and to the Illinois specialty growers,” added Walters. “And I love the apple cider slushies.”

The IPPA brought dozens of volunteers to the fairgrounds but likely could have used more. On Agriculture Day, August 17, IPPA executive director Jennifer Tirey could be found running a cash register at the organization’s popular Pork Patio on Grandstand Avenue. 

“It takes around 250 to 300 volunteers just to get the Pork Patio and the (Piglets on Parade) Birthing Center up and running,” said Tirey. “We have organizations from across the state including FFA, 4-H groups, Troops, local county pig farmer groups that bring in volunteers, and we could not do it without those partners.”

IPPA asks volunteers to volunteer for one of two shifts, for one or multiple days, at either of their attractions in return for free fair admission, an IPPA volunteer shirt and a meal at the Pork Patio. Donations are also made to school organizations in exchange for sponsored youth groups who volunteer.

At the birthing center, IPPA communications director shared a list of FAQs from visitors with youth volunteers Brooklyn Wurm of Decatur, Ind., and Makenzie Hereth of Woodbine, Md. Both were preparing to volunteer for the IPPA through their involvement in the livestock judging program at nearby Lincolnland Community College.

“Our coach asked us to volunteer, and we both raised pigs growing up, so we have a lot of knowledge of the pork industry,” said Hereth.

“I’ve raised hogs farrow to finish and shown them. It’s a great experience, I love the industry and the people in it are just amazing,” Wurm added. 

At the end of Agriculture Day, lead fair volunteer coordinator Gray summed up the common character trait shared by most fair volunteers:

“Volunteers are givers. They are not the ones who ask what is in it for them, they are the ones asking how they can help others. I’m always honored to know these volunteers because they all have that same mindset as givers,” she said. “After not having a fair in 2020 due to the pandemic, I honestly thought we would have trouble filling these volunteer spots. But we had more volunteers this year, so I am thrilled.”