Men in kilts, henna body art, and large wooden shoes were just a few of the interesting sights at the 10th annual Ethnic Fair, held April 16 at the Wayne County Fairgrounds. “The Ethnic Fair is a celebration of the diversity that exists in our community,” said Nicola Kille, one of the planners for the event. “On the surface, Wooster appears pretty homogeneous, but underneath there are a lot of different cultural heritages represented.”

This year’s slogan was “Wooster is the World,” said Gil Ning, co-chair of the Ethnic Fair. “The major focus for the fair is the interaction of the Wooster community with cultural diversity.

“We’ve had a record crowd today, probably due to the inclement weather—people are looking for something to do,” said Ning. The free event usually attracts 3,000-4,000 visitors.

This year, 53 booths helped visitors learn about a wide variety of world cultures through displays, games, food and music. “The event gives people the chance to actually meet someone from another country,” said Kille. “Often you hear about a country such as Pakistan or Ethiopia in the news. Here you can put a face to it and ask questions about it.”

The booths are judged each year, and this year’s winners were Italy (best small booth), and Hungary (best large booth). Winners receive $50 and a trophy. Prize drawings were also held for visitors who got their “passport” stamped at 30 booths.

Many of the booths were manned by international students from The College of Wooster. Marijke van Dijk and Bastiaan van de Lagemaat of The Netherlands are college seniors who came for a one-year program and ended up staying on. They have participated in the fair the past three years. “It’s always been great,” they said.

Other local businesses and organizations set up booths as well. Sukhbir Grewal, from the OARDC, was kept busy throughout the day explaining the culture of her native India. “I enjoy talking to people and sharing our culture,” she said.

The food was a highlight for many fairgoers, with options ranging from Sue Min egg rolls to Tulipan pastries and Middle Eastern cuisine from The Wrap House. Dancers also performed throughout the day, with the Cedar Valley Cloggers, Art of Dance Academy and Liederkranz Dancers of Mansfield each making appearances in the commercial building.

Elsewhere, a circle of bongo drummers welcomed visitors to join them. ATI students Bethany Taggart and Amber McQueen said they learned to play the drums in a music class. “We only know a few different beats but we have fun doing it,” said Taggart. “It’s fun to teach kids too.”

One group of children did some teaching of their own: third-graders from Jenny Gaut’s class at Cornerstone Elementary set up a booth with information about Ecuador. “It takes us a couple of months to get ready,” said Gaut. “We talk about what people would want to know about the country and make a book and quiz. We even practice etiquette for the event. The kids get so involved—they love it.”

Area children also had a hand in creating this year’s Embracing Our Differences Ohio art exhibit, which was unveiled the morning of the fair. The exhibit features a series of 3’-by-4’ posters with artwork and slogans that celebrate diversity. “There were 650 entries from over 20 schools in this year’s contest,” said Ferenc M. Relle Jr., who co-founded the organization.

“When I was growing up, there was a bumper sticker that said, “No one was born a bigot,” said Relle. “Hatred and bigotry are taught. Love and respect are also behaviors that are taught.” He and the many other participants in Embracing Our Differences Ohio and the Wooster Ethnic Fair are doing their part to promote an understanding and appreciation of the diversity in our midst.