For Carole Hellein, going to the Westmoreland Fair at the county Mt. Pleasant Township fairgrounds every year is a “family tradition.”

Hellein, 84, of Latrobe, is part of four living generations of family members who have been involved in the nine-day event since the late 1960s. Her mom and dad, Isabelle and Bill Miller, were part of the fair board — with Isabelle still being the only female board member in the fair’s history.

“I helped her in the office when she was secretary,” Hellein said. “I guess it’s in the blood, in the family.”

Carrie Bateman, Hellein’s daughter, said that the Millers helped construct a lot of the original buildings on the fairgrounds.

“We’re very proud of the Westmoreland Fair,” said Bateman, 53, of Blairsville.

This year, Bateman and Hellein are both superintendents for the open class inside exhibits, specifically the canned goods category.

Hellein has been helping with the canned goods category for over 40 years. She was involved with 4-H for over 40 years as well, where they’d train dogs in obedience and showmanship as part of a 4-H dog club.

Similar to Hellein’s family, Pamela Howarth has been a longtime fair-goer. She was a 4-H member for 20 years before she started her own 4-H clubs. Now Howarth, 66, of Uniontown is a judge.

She usually judges three or four fairs each summer, including Westmoreland, Washington, Fayette and Bullskin, as she has been for 10 years.

“I love coming to Westmoreland for the atmosphere,” Howarth said.

Typically, Howarth judges crocheting and needlepoint. This year, she judged an array of needlework, household items, afghans and quilts, and hand crafts.

“I’m that judge that offers to purchase — if they’re willing to sell — when I see something,” Howarth said.

She’s met up with exhibitors from Westmoreland three or four times and bought their items in the past.

Howarth gave insight into the process of judging, saying it’s important to look for “uniqueness” rather than perfection.

“It may not always be what somebody thinks, but it gives that person … encouragement to realize their creativeness makes a difference,” Howarth said.

The amount of time it takes to judge depends on the number of items in each category. If there are about 15 items or more, Howarth said she starts by doing a “once-over” to look for “eye appeal” and narrow down the options.

The Westmoreland Fair allows judges to award five items, according to Howarth. She tries to be “appreciative” of the time it took the entrant to complete their project by turning the items inside out, making sure they’re in the right category and recognizing when the item is handmade.

“You have to look at them because they took the time to do it,” Howarth said. “When you do it by hand, you have to do it mentally — and that’s the true craftsman.”

She said she always tries to give the entrant suggestions on the back of the tag she places on each item. “Constructive criticism,” Howarth said, can be a way to help them in future entries.

In the building just next door, Elizabeth Pesci is a superintendent for many of the flora categories — and has been since 1988.

Specifically, Pesci, of Greensburg worked with about seven categories this year, including different types of potted plants, cut plants and arrangements.

Her job included accepting the flower entries and making sure they were categorized correctly.

For Pesci, the Westmoreland Fair encourages people to become involved in agriculture in Pennsylvania, even if they’ve had no exposure to anything related previously, and connect with familiar faces year after year.

“I just enjoy the camaraderie,” Pesci said. “They’re all plant people, so they’re all interested in every plant … So we just talk about plants, and eventually talk about family.”

Moving forward, Bateman said she believes more kids need to get involved with the Westmoreland Fair, especially with 4-H, because her generation’s “aging out” and there’s less participation from younger generations.

Melissa Murphy, whose great-grandmother was Isabelle Miller, said since nowadays everyone tends to be on their phone or on the go, “people don’t really take the time to learn these new skills anymore to participate,” especially by entering the contests.

Murphy, 35, of Unity , said she believes some of the lack of participation could be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic and the process of returning to normalcy following its height.

For those who are involved, Murphy said it’s a great learning opportunity, where fair-goers can talk to multiple generations for advice and stories.

And Suzanne Hellein, who is also part of the four generations, agreed. The Westmoreland Fair, for her, offers a “sense of community” — not just family traditions.

“I just feel like less people care about this type of stuff,” said Suzanne, 28, of Pleasant Unity, said. “I don’t think people realize how many different things that you can actually get into and enter here if you take the time.”

The Westmoreland Fair will continue every day until Saturday, Aug. 26, with gates opening daily at 10 a.m.