Ethnic Fair draws nearly 3,000 visitors

See around the world in one day

By Jackie Hunter

Attendees of the Wooster Ethnic Fair seemed to be making up for lost time as they browsed booths from the Netherlands to Nepal this past Saturday. The ethnic fair, a production of the Wooster Unity Project, was cancelled in 2007 for the first time in six years.

"We felt that it would not be well attended," said co-organizer Inell Keller. Apparently, the organizers should not have worried, as popular demand encouraged members of the Wooster Unity Project to bring the fair back in 2008. A large crowd on Saturday at the Wayne County fairgrounds confirmed the desire of Wooster citizens to share their cultural heritage. Estimates put attendance at between 2,000-3,000 visitors.
Steve Shapiro, a member of the Wooster Unity Project, was pleased with Saturday's turnout. "I feel that diversity," he said, "sharing and embracing it, is important for the project."

The Wooster Unity project's mission statement speaks of a "commitment to promote opportunities for the learning and understanding of racial, ethnic and cultural diversities." For youth like Kaci Bucklew, the ethnic fair has fulfilled that commitment.
Bucklew first attended the ethnic fair in 2006 as a part of a "4-H and my world�" project to learn about the different countries and cultures represented. After she compiled what she learned, she was selected to show her project at the 2006 Ohio State fair where she won first prize.

Her passion for learning about other countries did not end with that single project. This year, Bucklew was manning her own booth, displaying all that she had learned. As for the next step, Bucklew had something more ambitious than another fair in mind.
"Some time in the future," she said, "I'd like to travel around the world and see different countries." Her list of stops includes Japan and China. She also hopes to see a few countries in Africa.

Inell Keller was a driving force in organizing the return of the ethnic fair, and was pleased that the fair could provide such learning opportunities for people like Bucklew. "It highlights the various ethnic groups within the community," she said. "People really want to participate and show their ethnic culture."

As for her own involvement, Keller wanted to give Wooster residents the opportunity to learn more about their neighbors. "We live in a world community," she said. "We're not just dependent on ourselves."

Keller was also pleased by the opportunity for students from Wooster city schools and students from the College of Wooster to come together. Several international student ambassadors from the College of Wooster brought artifacts and souvenirs from their home countries to explain and share.

With booths from as nearby as Canada and as far as Pakistan, the seventh annual Wooster ethnic fair fulfilled the promise of allowing attendees to "See the World in One Day."

Next on the agenda for the Wooster Unity Project is an outdoor art display entitled "Embracing our differences." This display of the work of local artists will go up on the campus of OSU's Agricultural Technical Institute.

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