By Frank Bucholtz/Special to Aldergrove Star

The annual Aldergrove Fair is more than seven months away, but it isn鈥檛 too early to start preparations for the popular summer event.

The longstanding tradition of a fair in Aldergrove goes back more than a century to the first fair, held on Sept. 19, 1912.

The Aldergrove Agricultural Fair and Festival Association, which runs the fair, is holding its annual general meeting on Monday, Dec. 12, and is looking for people to get involved.

President Robin McIntosh says volunteers are needed to start preparations for next year鈥檚 fair 鈥� and he promises that they won鈥檛 have to spend a lot of their free time on the preparation work.

鈥淲e are looking for new ideas, and we would like to see more involvement from the community and businesses. We need a lot of volunteers to make it happen,鈥� he said. 鈥淎 commitment of two hours a week or less would really help out the organization. We would love to see some younger people involved.鈥�

The annual meeting takes place at Coghlan Hall, 6795 256th St., starting at 7 p.m.

McIntosh says serving on the board requires a commitment to a monthly meeting, and occasional phone calls in-between.

鈥淚鈥檇 love to see another eight to 10 people on the committee,鈥� he said.

Many of the preparations for the fair need to take place well ahead of time, McIntosh noted.

For example, he said, the fencing surrounding the fair site changes each year, so that means calculating what space is needed and then ordering the portable fencing well ahead of time.

The stage and music will be considered in January.

McIntosh says creative ideas are welcomed and encouraged, and will be considered carefully.

An example of an idea that worked well this year was the beverage garden, which featured products from local breweries and wineries. This proved to be very popular.

Staging the fair involves much more than the host organization. Aldergrove Community Association (ACA) ran the Kids Zone at the last fair. The Aldergrove Business Association (ABA) and its members are involved, and ABA members get discounts on booths and free advertising on the screen.

鈥淎ll of us as organizations like to work together and tie together events for the community,鈥� McIntosh explained.

A good example of this is a series of upcoming Christmas Light Up events. This starts with a Christmas Tree Light-Up on Sunday, Dec. 4 at the Aldergrove Plaza, 272nd Street and Fraser Highway. It runs from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.

This event also coincides with the Rotary street light-up, featuring lights and decorations along the main streets; the business light-up sponsored by the ABA and the residential light-up, sponsored by the ACA.

The Elks are also involved, hosting a pre-event before the annual Christmas Light-Up Parade on Saturday, Dec. 10. The pre-event will feature refreshments and also takes place at the Aldergrove Plaza, starting at 4:30 p.m.

The parade, a popular Aldergrove tradition, will start at 6 p.m. on Dec. 10 and run along Fraser Highway from Old Yale Road to 273rd Street.

Those seeking more information needs about the fair organization can look at aldergrovefair.ca.

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