Meet Jill

Jill Darin has been showing her canning at the Henry County Fair
for seven years

Jill Darin of Geneseo enjoys practicing what some people call a lost art. "In some respects canning is a lost art. People are so busy that they find it difficult to find the time. But, I also know that more people having taken up canning or are willing to try it in the last few years." When she first got married, she wanted a garden and after her first year of gardening wanted to save some of her produce, so she gave canning a try. Even though she has won many awards at multiple fairs including sweepstakes and judges choice, her first time canning didn't go so well. "I wasn't too successful back then with making pickles, but canning whole tomatoes was a breeze and gave me confidence to keep trying."

She has been showing at the Henry County Fair for seven years winning in many different classes and divisions such as baking, fresh produce, amateur photography, antiques and collections and crocheted items. "Other than canning I LOVE to enter the pie category" she says. Her least favorite canning item is peaches because it is very time consuming to get all of the skins slipped off of them. The hardest thing to can is any recipe that involves habaneros, "I clean out the house when I do it" says Jill. Her favorite thing to can? Tomato soup. "It makes a cold winter's day enjoyable having a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of homemade tomato soup" she says.
Jill believes there are many benefits to canning because she knows what is and isn't in her food and can tailor to fit her family's tastes and canning is so much healthier as well as economical.

Jill's canning has won multiple awards
 including the Sweepstakes and Judges Choice Award 

Jill also points out that one common myth about canning is that canning is dangerous, adding that they thought of the can "exploding" scares people. But she also mentioned that news pressure canners have safety features on them to help prevent any dangerous situations.

What Jill enjoys most about the Henry County Fair is looking at the 4-H and Art Hall exhibits, saying it is wonderful to see everyone's hard work and when asked about the new classes at the HCF she mentioned that they haven't changed too much but maybe just got "a little more defined."

Be sure to check out Jill's canning and other exhibits over in the Art Hall throughout fairweek!

Deadlines

Deadlines for the Henry County Fair for June 9th at 5 p.m. include the Pit Master Cook-Off, Cutest Baby Contest, Talent Show, and all Art and Livestock Departments. Entry forms are available online or in hard copy in the fairbook, be sure to mail or drop them off to the fair office 311 East North ST, Cambridge, IL PO Box 105 61238. The gate fun pass will increase to $25 after June 9th so get them soon! 315

The Art Hall

Most people come to the fair and sadly never take time to come the Art Exhibitor’s Hall. It’s too bad because you’ll find everything there: from pencil drawings to canned soup, quilts to radishes, dried flower arrangements to muffins. Best of all, everyone over 8 years old, is welcomed and in fact encouraged to compete. There is a chance you can get a ribbon and a premium!

The Art Hall allows exhibitors to release their inner “Martha.” In all seriousness, the Art Hall has several departments: Agricultural Products, Floriculture, Textiles, Fine Arts, Art and Photography, Antique Collections and Vintage Articles, Culinary, Baking, and two Junior Shows just for ages 8-13 and 13-19.

Then there are classes in each of the departments. Let me clarify.  For example, in 2012 I entered a two crusted Sweet Potato Pie that was exhibited in the Culinary Baking department, in the Two Crusted Pie class. To figure out the department and classes you will want to compete in, I will post each department and class in separate posts at a later time.

The recently appointed Exhibition Hall Superintendents Tamra and Eva Dynes, are trying to update some of the Art Hall portion of the fair. Some of the new classes will be a selfie, potted plants, and the oldest and/or most interesting item before 1930. To figure out the department and classes you will want to compete in, I will post each department and class in separate posts at a later date. The entire fair book should be online at http://www.henrycountyfairil.com/ around April 1st. If you desire a hard copy, the fair book will be available at local banks around Henry County about the same time.