“Best Little Fair” takes place this weekend!

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The “Best Little Fair in the Land” is back for another year.
The East Perry Community Fair will take place this weekend Sept. 23-24 in Altenburg.
Record crowds flooded the fair last year after the fair was cancelled in 2020 and organizers are looking for similar numbers for the 2022 version.
A parade will once again open the fair at 1:30 p.m. on Friday. Mitch Miller of Cape Girardeau will be honored as the Grand Marshal. Mitch Miller will have no trouble finding the fairgrounds in Altenburg. He’s been working this event on behalf of Kohlfeld Distributing for the last 50 years, bringing trailers filled with kegs of Kohlfeld signature brands to the fairgoers every year until his retirement in January 2022.
The parade will again include its usual participants. Local high school bands from Perryville, St. Vincent, Oak Ridge, Chaffee, and Greenville will help set the beat as local schools, civic organizations, and area businesses march, enter floats, or display other entries to promote their causes.
There will also be several competition that will surely be well attended well into the night.
The popular 4X4 Truck Pull returns on Friday evening at 7 pm as well as the fair’s largest spectator draw, the “World Championship” Mule Jumping Competition at 4 pm on Saturday. Following a successful first year a Hot Rod Tractor Pull will return on Saturday evening at 7 p.m.
However, the backbone of the fair.

The competition judging of livestock, crops, and home economics entries as well as many classes for 4-H and FFA projects will take place Saturday morning. Two of them will be the beef cattle shows in Missouri in the show barn at 9 a.m. and the draft horse and mule show in the arena beginning at 10 a.m. The annual 4-H and FFA Youth Animal Sale is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Saturday.
The entertainment for the East Perry Community Fair will see a slight change in the lineup with several local stars in the making.
Logan Chapman will take the stage at 1 p.m., while Carly Green and Ian Ferguson, both from the Perryville area, will follow.
Musical group, Another Round, will take the stage at 6:30 p.m. Friday, while Generation comprised of Randy Preston and his daughter Dani Bishop will play Saturday at 7 p.m.
While the music is nice, many come for the various food options available at the fair. There will be 17 food stands with hamburgers, catfish fillets, funnel cakes, and bratwurst along with newer choices like Philly cheesesteak, nachos, tacos, pizza, and blooming onions.
Yes, the grilled cheese sandwiches will be available as well.
Fair goers are reminded that they must enter the parking areas on Poplar Street unless otherwise directed by the parking staff.
The fair recommends that fairgoers plan to arrive early to reduce their waiting times in traffic.