Foundation adds fan favorites and creature comforts to Minnesota State Fair

Donna Swedin didn't grow up in Minnesota, but the Connecticut native fell hard for the State Fair when she moved here two decades ago.

She and her partner and fellow fair fanatic, Phil Whipple, plan to attend four times this year alone, ambling around the fairgrounds from sunrise until the finale fireworks. Swedin is so passionate about the Great Minnesota Get-Together that she's bequeathing half her estate to the Minnesota State Fair Foundation upon her death.

"Everyone knows I go a little nuts about the fair," said Swedin, head of commercial operations for a biotech company, as she strolled through the midway.

Swedin is one of 60 founding members of the 1854 Society, which the fair-boosting philanthropy launched this year. The society — named for the year of Minnesota's first territorial fair — is the latest effort by the foundation to harness the public's passion for the fair and keep the 12-day event going strong for future generations.

Founded in 2002 to boost the fair, the behind-the-scenes philanthropy is commemorating its 20th anniversary this year. Its accomplishments include $16.5 million in investments ranging from the CHS Miracle of Birth Center to memorial benches scattered around the fairgrounds and dazzling energy-efficient lights illuminating the grandstand marquee.

Foundation Executive Director Mary Chung said the overarching mission is simple: "We want to continue to make the fairgrounds welcoming, where everyone can feel they can come to have a good time and be part of this amazing cultural tradition we have here in Minnesota."

Despite its name, the State Fair is not run by the state but by the Minnesota State Agricultural Society. It receives no state subsidies and is self-sustaining.

The current fairgrounds, which opened in 1885, are a sprawling 322 acres with nearly two dozen historic buildings, miles of roadways and infrastructure to maintain. The Legislature gave the Agricultural Society bonding authority to borrow to make improvements in the early 2000s. The foundation was created around the same time to steward the public's support and donations.

Fair General Manager Jerry Hammer said it's been a wise strategy.

"The foundation has exceeded our hopes with what they've accomplished," said Hammer, who also serves on the foundation's board. "If you've gone to the fair, the foundation has had a big impact on your visit."

Having a foundation has made it easier for people to donate to the fair, and also ensured those donations could be pooled and spent on the right mix of essential improvements and more high-impact projects, fair leaders say. The foundation manages the Friends of the Fair donor group and added a new fundraiser — Blue Ribbon Bingo — this year.

One of the foundation's most beloved projects has been the Miracle of Birth Center, constructed in 2006 to replace a cramped and outmoded location. Visitors flock to the center to watch farm animals including goats, sheep, pigs and cows give birth and tend to their young.

A squirming crowd of mostly parents and young children lined up outside the center minutes before it opened Tuesday, eager to coo over the babies born overnight. It was one of the first stops of the day for the Taggart family of St. Paul.

"My two girls, they love to see the babies and they just love to see the animals," said Stephanie Taggart as she checked out a brood of chicks.

In addition to the Miracle of Birth Center, the foundation has funded construction of the History & Heritage Center, the new demonstration kitchen and display cooler at the Creative Activities building, and a major rebuild of the West End Market, as well as renovations at the Warner Coliseum and Robert A. Christensen Pavilion. It's responsible for 1,900 commemorative metal benches — a number that grows annually — and maintaining hundreds of mature trees throughout the fairgrounds.

"It's taking what would have been a C+ project and making it an A+," Hammer said of the foundation's contributions to the West End Market.

With all the other needs, catastrophes and hardships happening around the globe, Swedin, who has no children, said she thought long and hard about leaving such a big chunk of her life's work to the State Fair.

Ultimately, she decided the joy the event brings to the community and families is a worthwhile legacy.

"The fair has certainly provided us a lot of happiness," Swedin said. "It's our happy place."