Village Fair Raises $19,000 for Local Non-Profits

The Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber of Commerce reported that more than $19,000 was raised to help support local non-profit organizations during the Birmingham Village Fair last week.

The total was slightly less than last year, but still high enough to represent the second largest total raised during the event's history, following last year, chamber president Joe Bauman said. Due to rain, attendance on the fair's kick-off was literally washed out, but strong weekend performances made up for it, particularly Sunday, when more than 4,000 people took in the carnival games, delicious funnel cakes and a dozen rides around Shain Park.

The four-day event is a community fixture now spanning five decades, and it addition to all the fun, it is the largest single fund-raiser of the year for the chamber. A portion of the proceeds will be distributed to the chamber's 19 non-profit partners.

Bauman credited fair operators North American Midway Entertainment and the city of Birmingham for strong support in keeping the fair going. He also credited the numerous corporate sponsors for their support in making the event a success, and making it easier to plan for unknowns, such as weather.
Lakeshore Express, AT&T, WOW cable and Walgreens were among the top corporate partners. 

"We've been trying to diversify the revenue stream a bit because when your major fundraiser is weather dependent, it can mean a lot of sleepless nights, and it does," he said. "But overall we're very pleased with how things turned out."

In addition to the funds, non-profits also had the opportunity this year to set up informational booths to educate the public about their mission.

"We wanted to do something a little bigger and better for the organizations that contribute to the quality of life in the community," Bauman said.