On Saturday, April 26, three students from the Sutton 4-H Club of Sutton, Mass., represented Eastern States Exposition (ESE) at the Massachusetts Agriculture in Action Expo at Mount Wachusett Community College.
Erin Kaye is a senior at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School in Marlborough, Mass., where she has been studying culinary. In the fall, she will enter her first year at Kansas State University and major in animal science and grain science. She is the longest standing member of the Sutton 4-H Club.
Kaye was joined by Scarlet Gervais and Lily Grenier. Gervais is a freshman at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School in Upton, Mass. She is a “superb horsewoman and cattlewoman,” according to Paul Dunn, founder of the Sutton 4-H Club. Lily Grenier, the party’s final member, is a senior at Bartlett High School in Webster, Mass., and she dreams of becoming a paramedic. Come September, Grenier and Gervais will attend The Big E to show steer and heifers.
“I believe the Sutton 4-H Club made its first trip to The Big E in 2009,” said Dunn. “Last year, 12 members of the club represented Mass. beef at The Big E. This year, we will have the same number of participants, and 5 adult volunteers that will help, and everyone is equally excited.”
“Most members of the club have not grown up on family farms. Instead, they come from suburbia,” Dunn continued. “The evolution is astounding; older kids teach younger children, and the club builds more and more knowledge. I give the ladies that volunteered at this expo the highest praise—I would trust my herd with any of them, whether that be in the show ring, during an emergency or daily care.”
The Massachusetts Agriculture in Action Expo, sponsored by the Massachusetts State Grange, is a celebration of the food and fun unique to the vibrant agricultural community in the heart of the Bay State. This event is free to the public and offers excitement for the whole family. It is a visible representation of the Massachusetts State Grange’s commitment to promoting the rich agricultural history that defines its state.
Visitors experienced networking opportunities, a sprawling vendor fair and interactive workshops covering cutting-edge practices and environmental stewardship.
The Massachusetts State Grange has been a pillar of the agricultural community for more than 150 years. This group is a part of the greater National Grange, or The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry. They are a social organization that promotes economic and environmental sustainability for the agricultural community by providing educational and entertaining opportunities to the public.
Annually, The Big E celebrates Grange Day at the Fair, which is a nod to the New England Grange Building erected at ESE in 1938 by the State Granges of New England. The building offers fairgoers a plethora of locally sourced finds, including preserves and handmade crafts. They also host a quilt giveaway to raise money for neighboring nonprofits; in the last 20 years, the New England Grange has donated more than $100,000 to nearby charities.
Both 4-H and the Grange are vital to ESE’s history and present. We hope you will celebrate both with us at The Big E, September 12-28.