BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — The Bloomsburg Fair is the state's largest agricultural fair. Hundreds of thousands of people visit each year.
Randy Karschner, president of the Bloomsburg Fair, told Jeremy that there are about 1,400 vendors, and the animal stables are packed with all kinds of cows, pigs, sheep, goats, and more.
The fair features a wide variety of food, exhibits, and rides. Karschner beamed, "It's kind of overwhelming. You just don't understand just how it feels unless you're here."
And this year the fair is more inclusive than ever. Karshner explained, "We have an adaptive changing room for our friends that come that are in wheelchairs and need assistance getting out of the wheelchairs. We have a Hoyer lift in there and slings and things. And this year we built a sensory room for our friends that come and maybe need to get out of the noise and get away from all the action."
But there is one thing that you can't find at any other fair in Pennsylvania—a restored Stuart Tank, a piece of American history.
Bill Hartzell, who sits on the Board of Directors of the Stuart Tank Memorial Association, declared, "This is the only fair where we showcase the tank."
It serves as a reminder of Pennsylvania's key role in World War II.
The Stuart Tank on display at the Bloomsburg Fair was manufactured in nearby Berwick, along with more than 15,000 others for the war.
Hartzell recounted, "It saw action Italy and North Africa. When we first got it, it was just a rusty hulk. Now we put it back to the way it came out of the factory."
This fully operational tank has a special name—"Lady Lois."
A Berwick man by the name of Fred Shepparly was instrumental in the production of tanks. During the war, he was stationed in the South Pacific to help with repairs. More recently, he helped in garnering donations to bring this tank back to Columbia County.
Hartzell explained, "We decided to name the tank 'Lady Lois' after his wife, because a lot of the soldiers would name tanks or jeeps or trucks after their spouses."
Lois and Fred Shepparly's son, Craig Shepparly, also serves on the Stuart Tank Museum Board of Directors and was there to teach fairgoers about Lady Lois.
Craig endearingly looked at the tank and smiled with pride, "It's fully restored, runs like a champ, and we're very proud of her." Jeremy chimed in, "Just like your mom." Craig agreed, "Just like my mom."
Lady Lois and several other restored tanks are housed for the rest of the year at the volunteer-run Stuart Tank Memorial Museum in Berwick.
Hartzell asserted that by restoring the tank, they were "trying to keep history alive." He went on, "That is our mission—to keep history alive so the younger generations have something in the future."