Annual Ag Appreciation barbecue helps start this year's Gage County Fair

BEATRICE – Early evening cloud cover helped hold down the high heat, bringing a good crowd out for an annual opening event of the Gage County Fair.
The Beatrice Area Chamber’s Agriculture Committee put on its Ag Appreciation Barbecue Tuesday night, at the fairgrounds beef barn.
Chamber President Angie Bruna says about 2,550 tickets were distributed for the meal.

"I was a little bit worried, checking the forecast for the whole week, because of feeding all the people, because we have about two thousand people who will come through the lines tonight, maybe more. But, it's really tolerable. The cloud cover is helping a lot.....a lot of people dining in but also people taking meals to go."

Bruna says the agriculture community is the key part of the area from a local business and community perspective. "It's really an economic driver for our community. We have ag that really impacts every aspect of business in our community. Not just the producers out working the fields and working the livestock. They're coming into the community and working with the small businesses and the large businesses. So, it's really a whole community-driving aspect of Gage County."

The Gage County Fair is one of the biggest events of the year for the area and it begins its five-day run Wednesday, drawing area residents and visitors. Bruna said it’s important for residents to welcome visitors from outside the community to the events, displays and entertainment during the fair….which this year carries a theme of “Buckets of Fun.”

Hot weather is expected throughout the fair, but Tuesday temperatures moderated during the late afternoon, staying below 90, for the start of the annual barbecue.