CAROLINE COUNTY, Va. — Kathryn Burruss is a familiar face to many attendees of the State Fair of Virginia at Meadow Event Park in Doswell.
“I started working with the State Fair in 1975 when my coworker and I were working with 4-H youth poultry clubs. We would go to the clubs and teach them how to groom chickens for showing,” Burruss said.
Her passion started in fifth grade when her handmade skirt earned Burruss her first blue ribbon.
“Before that, I didn't think I could do very much. But after that, I could do anything,” Burruss said. “It's my passion to give other people the opportunity to grow from their experiences at the fair.”
Over the last 50 years, she has assisted with the 4-H horse show, judged and led arts and crafts, and helped in the horticulture department.
“My family has been to the fair every year, except for two, and it's just a family tradition. Two of my three children are married and have children, and they have started the tradition with their own children. It's something about the fair that's in our blood,” Burruss said.
She now serves as the fair’s superintendent of the horticulture department and is in charge of organizing the garden and their big tent with demonstrations and showcases of Virginia’s agriculture.
The 2025 theme for the event is “Real Fun, Real Virginia,” an opportunity to see and experience Virginia’s diverse farming and forestry legacy.
“Agriculture is at the heart of ‘Real Fun, Real Virginia,’ connecting us to our land, our traditions and our future,” said Robert N. Corley III, a State Fair of Virginia Youth Development Board member. “These attractions showcase not just crops and animals, but the people and families who grow, raise and innovate for Virginia.”
This year’s fair brings a range of entertainment for all ages, including the new AgriGolf attraction, held daily from noon to 8 p.m. near Kidway. The hands-on activity blends mini golf with an agricultural twist, with each hole featuring an entertaining and educational theme.
Beyond the variety of field crops, plants and preserved foods featured in the pavilion, guests can see Virginia commodities like cotton, peanuts, soybeans and tobacco grown in the adjacent garden. The garden also boasts a new back porch for daily agricultural programming.
“You're always going to find a mix of traditional foods and new foods, animals, agriculture, gardens, crop messaging, and AG education,” said Marlene Jolliffe, the fair’s executive director.
Jolliffe said their board listened to last year’s guests who filled out their survey on what creature comforts to add to the 10-day festival.
In 2024, they expanded their bathroom offerings.
This year guests can expect more gate discounts and extra seating throughout the fair.
“Our visitors are going to find some new permanent seating that runs all the way from Harvest Landing down to the main entry tunnel. They're going to find up to two areas that we are adding with picnic tables,” Jolliffe added.
She said guests can be reassured by a large security and police presence from organizations like Virginia State Police at the park.
The culmination of the livestock competitions is the Sale of Champions on Oct. 4. Proceeds from the sale will benefit the State Fair of Virginia Youth and Scholarship Programs which have awarded more than $1 million since 2013.
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