As the flowers bloom and the weather starts to warm up more people are participating in activities outside, such as the fairs that are popping up all around the area. The most popular being the Florida State Fair and the Strawberry Festival. The Florida State Fair opened on Feb. 8, and closed on Feb. 19, consisting of classic fair games, rides and agricultural attractions.

   Jessica Scura (’26) attended the fair for the first time this year with her boyfriend and family.

   “We went on the Ferris wheel and we went to a lot of agricultural experiences like the petting zoo, and they also had pig racing. There were small games that you could pay to play and we played a few, but there were also a lot that were free. It was nice to be able to not spend a lot of money and still have fun,” Scura said. 

   The Florida State fair is mostly known for their animals and the events they do with them such as pig racing. Adriana Richardson (’24) normally attends the fair yearly making it a tradition for her.

   “I used to go every year with my dad so it’s a really fun memory. I look forward to hanging out with my friends at the fair and I also look forward to eating all the food and seeing all the animals,” Richardson said. 

   While most go to the fair for the animals or the food there are also other attractions such as their art exhibit making it so that there is something for everyone to enjoy.

   Uma Limaye (’24) takes passion in art and won a scholarship and multiple awards for her art this year that she entered into contests at the fair.

   “My art teacher has always been super encouraging of the fair because she likes other people giving advice on our art, having other eyes look at it, and just to go and see other people’s work. So she always keeps in mind the fair when we’re doing our projects and art pieces, but I didn’t purposely paint my paintings for the purpose of entering them. The lady that runs the art exhibition at the fair sent every senior an email that had a PDF of the application, and I just randomly decided to fill it out. I wasn’t sure if I was gonna apply for it because it was kind of a long application, but I filled it out. I ended up getting an interview with her and then she emailed me two days later saying that I got the scholarship,” Limaye said.

   Limaye won two first place awards and one second place award. Everyone that entered their work in the exhibit signed up online in either the youth or adult section and then were able to choose from many categories such as needlepoint -a form of embroidery- all the way to 2d art. 

   Although the Florida State Fair is over there are other fairs such as The Strawberry Festival to still attend. The Strawberry Festival will be open until March 10. with many live bands performing. One Blood is currently giving away two free tickets to The Strawberry Festival to everyone who donates blood.