Mother Nature pushed back the Millenium Mineola Fair from May 20 to July 8 and the Mineola Chamber of Commerce, village, vendors, sponsors and all those associated with it made the best out of the hand they were dealt.

On May 20, heavy spring rains washed away the fair. The Mineola Fair Committee, headed by immediate past president of the chamber Teri Ranfone, decided to reschedule the fair as part of the Nassau Pops Symphony Orchestra's performing arts weekend at Memorial Park.

The fair, which took place from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 8, preceded the Plaza Productions' presentation of The King and I, which took place shortly after 8 p.m.

Past chamber president Peter Gollobin, who is also on the fair committee, acted as master of ceremonies. He announced the distinguished guests present during a brief service held during the afternoon. Among those present were Carle Marchese, commander of the American Legion Post 349, Manny Grilo, commander of Private Adolph Block1305 of the Mineola Veterans of Foreign Wars, Chamber of Commerce President Manny DeFreitas, 1st Vice President of the chamber Carmela Bernacchio, Village Clerk Lou DiDomenico, village Mayor John P. Colbert, deputy Mayor Lou Santosus, trustees Maryanne Warnecke, Elizabeth Conlon and Linda Fairgrieve, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor May Newberger, former mayor and current Receiver of Taxes for the Town of North Hempstead Ann M. Galante, Father Tom Murphy of the Corpus Christi Church and fair committee person John DaVanzo, who also acted as a representative for Nassau County Executive Thomas Gulotta. Chet Easton of First Presbyterian Church in Mineola sang the National Anthem.

Mayor Colbert thanked all those who put their hard work into making the fair a success including the chamber of commerce, the sponsors, Tom Rini, the village's superintendent of public works, and the rest of the village's staff. The mayor said when the fair got rained out in May, the hearts of those who worked on it sank. "We were happy to hear Teri [Ranfone] was able to convince everybody to come back for another day," Colbert said. "This is a fair that has community spirit. This is one of the things that is symbolic of what our village is all about."

Colbert presented the chamber a proclamation on behalf of the village, which was accepted by Ranfone and DeFreitas. On behalf of the county executive, DaVanzo presented a proclamation to the chamber naming July 8 as Mineola Fair Day throughout the county.

After the ceremonies, those gathered continued to enjoy the fair and the many tables set up, including ones by the Mineola High School Alumni Foundation, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence represented by Joyce Gorycki, the Mineola Historical Society, the veterans organizations and Mineola Youth and Family Services. The Girl Scouts Cadet Senior Troop 937/1737 had a table set up where they sold handmade items in an attempt to raise money for a trip to England. The Girl Scouts were pleased to note that patriotic items were popular including flag pins.

While fairgoers walked around Memorial Park and children enjoyed the rides, Gollobin continued to annonce those who would get up onto the stage and perform. Since the fair normally takes place in May, it attracts musical talent from the schools. But since school is out for the summer, entertainers were needed. People such as Gerry Hanson, who graduated from Mineola High School in 1969, and his daughter Kate entertained the audience by singing and Dance Dynamics, located on Jericho Turnpike, performed several dance numbers that were well choreographed.

The fair, DeFreitas said, wasn't as big as it would have been in May. However, people, especially kids still enjoyed it. "We have a nice day. I think everybody is having a good time," DeFreitas said.

Those on the fair committee ¬ Jerry Mehlman, DeFreitas, Bill Katz, Gollobin, Ranfone, Scott Fairgrieve, DiDomenico, DaVanzo, Elaine Panacciulli, Linda Doerrbecker and Bernacchi ¬ helped the fair remain an enjoyable experience. "I think it's great. The community came out so I'm very happy," Ranfone said.

Lou Panacciulli, conductor and co-founder of the Nassau Pops, christened Memorial Park the night before during the pops concert. Panacciulli, who was happy to have the fair held on the same day as The King and I performance, took note of the sunny skies and pleasant breeze that seemed to bless the fair this time around. "This is such a nice day. I can't believe how beautiful it is," he said.

"It was a good day under the circumstances of it being a rescheduling of the fair," said DiDomenico toward the end of the fair while the stage was being set up for the play.

Before the play was to begin, at about 8 p.m., Mayor Colbert presented certificates of appreciation to Panacciulli for helping to bring the play to Mineola and Kevin Harrington, executive producer of Plaza Productions, the group that put the play on. Colbert also previously presented certificates of appreciation to Panacciulli and the Nassau Pops for performing the concert on July 7 and the entire Mineola Fair committee.

The date of next year's fair is May 19 and thanks to those who helped make this year's a success in spite of the obstacle of bad weather, a rich community tradition continues.