TOPSHAM

For Nicole St. Pierre, the Topsham Fair has always been a part of her childhood.

“Oh, I’ve been coming to the fair since I was a little kid,” she said on Wednesday afternoon.

St. Pierre said her favorite part of the fair was the animal attractions. When she was younger, she used to participate in the horse show and just enjoyed seeing all the animals. But instead of walking around and enjoying the different attractions today, she was taking orders for hungry fair goers behind the Topsham Fire Department’s food booth.

Operating out of a small, white structure on the property, the modest food booth was a much tamer sight to see among a sea of colorful vendors, yet still attracted crowds of visitors in search of a good burger or fries.

“We serve all your normal fair foods — cheeseburgers, chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, sweet potato fries, regular fries,” she said.

She added that the burgers served at the booth were bought locally from Bisson’s Farm.

St. Pierre said the booth has had a presence at the fair for at least 20 years, and this week’s workers and cooks consisted of members of the fire department and their families.

“Everybody just volunteers their time, we’ve got family members … and spouses who will come in to cook all week,” she said. “Families will come in and do family night.”

St. Pierre, a Topsham firefighter herself, has been a member of the department for six years and was tending the booth with her husband, mother-in-law and other members on Wednesday.

Overall, St. Pierre said the fire department feels like family.

“We’re all kind of family oriented. We’re all kind of brothers and sisters,” she said.

Money made through the booth this week will be used to support the fire department for future fundraisers, scholarship programs and extra equipment for the department.

While this is the fire department’s sole fundraiser for the year, St. Pierre said it brings in a few thousand dollars.

Although St. Pierre hadn’t had a chance to explore the fair this week, she said she would try to later in the day.

“I’m hoping to go around today. We’re going to be running the fire trucks for the demolition derby tonight so hopefully in between I’ll have a chance to walk around and check things out,” she said.

dkim@timesrecord.com