Friendly poultry challenge aims to bring more animals back to Grand Forks Fall Fair
Fall Fair vice-president Natasha Stone is putting her own ducks, chickens and heritage turkey into the competition — and challenging other local animal owners to do the same.
A selection of the animals Natasha Stone will be bringing to the Grand Forks Fall Fair.
Photos by Natasha Stone
GRAND FORKS — Grand Forks Fall Fair Vice President Natasha Stone has a challenge for Boundary residents with a particularly handsome rooster, prized duck or other barnyard contender: bring it to the Grand Forks and District Fall Fair.
Stone has been posting photos of her own birds on Facebook in hopes of stirring up some friendly competition ahead of the Sept. 12 and 13 event. In one recent post, she tagged friend Karen Millard and announced she was entering one of her ducks, describing him as “very handsome” before asking who else was up for the challenge.
Stone said the online ribbing is meant to encourage more people to take part in the agricultural side of the fair.
“I thought posting my birds online would be a fun way to encourage people to once again bring out their prize birds,” she told the Boundary Sentinel.
Stone has been in charge of entertainment since 2023 and this will be her fourth fair. This year, she said, she wants to expand participation and put a renewed emphasis on animals and poultry.
She will be entering a duck, a heritage turkey and chickens herself. One of her roosters does not yet have a name, which has prompted another new addition to the fair: a name-the-rooster contest.
Chicken Bingo is also being added this year.
The fair’s exhibitor handbook includes poultry classes for ducks, purebred and mixed hens, purebred and mixed roosters, turkeys and a “most unusual” entry. Other farm animal classes include rabbits, guinea pigs, alpacas, goats, sheep and an open category for other animals.
Animal exhibitors are asked to register at least a week before the fair so organizers can prepare appropriate accommodations. Animals are to be delivered to the fairgrounds by 9 p.m. on the Friday evening before the fair.
Stone said getting involved is not limited to entering an animal or exhibit. The fair is also looking for volunteers to help with setup, teardown and during the event itself.
Organizers are hoping to build participation in the parade as well. Stone said they would like to see logging trucks and tractors join the procession, along with more floats, children on decorated bicycles and scooters, and families with strollers.
There will also be plenty for visitors who prefer to leave the competing to someone else.
“We have a great lineup of entertainers this year,” Stone said. “You can just come enjoy the exhibitions, bring a lawn chair — or sit on the bleachers — and be entertained by our local talent. We have some of the best talent around.”
The Rotary Club will host a pancake breakfast at the fairgrounds on Saturday, while the children’s area will return along with other activities. Sunday’s events include the borscht competition and car show.
The 2026 Grand Forks and District Fall Fair runs Saturday, Sept. 12 and Sunday, Sept. 13. Exhibitor handbooks are available at several locations around Grand Forks, including Rilkoff’s, the Grand Forks and District Public Library, Save-On-Foods and the farmers market, with fair information also available through the Grand Forks and District Fall Fair website.
For Stone, the push for more birds, animals, parade entries and volunteers comes back to what she enjoys most about the annual event.
“Bringing community together,” she said.
Grand Forks Fall Fair Vice President Natasha Stone has a challenge for Boundary residents with a particularly handsome rooster, prized duck or other barnyard contender: bring it to the Grand Forks and District Fall Fair.