About The Swiss Fair
Founding of The Swiss Fair
The Swiss Fair is a small fair to celebrate August First, Switzerland’s Independence Day. After successfully raising funds to sponsor a float in the 1991 Tournament of Roses parade as a celebration of Switzerland’s 700th anniversary, it became apparent to the United Swiss Societies of Southern California that Swiss Park was having deep financial difficulties. Funds were mismanaged by companies that were hired to run Swiss Park. There were outstanding loans, overdue bills,and the future of Swiss Park was very dim. Presented with the possibility of losing their beautiful Swiss Park, a few fearless housewives and members of USSSC came up with the idea of hosting the first Swiss Fair as a fundraiser.
The first fair took place in 1992.Since there was no available budget, the fair relied on all the different Swiss clubs to volunteer and help; some Swiss companies even reached out to help. There were no tents for shade but thank goodness for Hennies, the Swiss water company, who was working on establishing themselves in the U.S. and donated a lot of water as a promotion. The first fair raised $17,000 which was able to cover many of the overdue bills. After the fair, Ueli Burkhardt joined the USSSC board and hired Hugo Hunziker to manage Swiss Park. That’s where the turning point was for Swiss Park, however, Swiss Park was not out of the woods yet so the fair became an annual fundraiser.
Although Swiss Park has started to flourish over the years, the Swiss Fair has become a cherished and beloved event by all members of the community. It is a great place for Swiss people in Southern California to meet, celebrate Swiss culture, and promote their businesses. Many Swiss businesses donate, support, and advertise at the Swiss Fair. All proceeds still go towards the maintenance of Swiss Park where the fair takes place and many different clubs host their events.
Location & Contact
Address
1905 Workman Man Rd. Whittier, CA 90601
Contact
swissfairinfo@gmail.com
(818) 391-3697
The Fair Today
The setup of the Swiss Fair has changed a lot since that first Swiss Fair in 1992 and continues to evolve as times change. The fair has grown into 14 different booths that are present every year, and 4-7 additional booths that change depending on our vendors and sponsors. The traditional Swiss foods spatzli, sauerkraut, and sausages are served at the barbecue booth. Raclette is so popular that it has its own booth! If you’re craving a dessert, meringue glace is sold in the Alpine room next to where the Swiss Ladies have their Kafi Stubli and sell homemade Swiss treats. You can enjoy all these yummy foods while listening to classical Swiss songs that are sung by the Swiss Harmonie and listening to the Akkordeon Freunde Santa Barbara perform.
The entertainment doesn’t end there! For children, there is an entire section with children’s games where they can win prizes and run around. There is also a crossbow shooting competition for adults but sign up early because spots fill up quickly! At 4:00pm the children do a lampion parade led by Howard Howe playing the accordion. Don’t forget about the Raffle and Silent Auction! The Raffle is inside the Matterhorn Room, has about 25 different prizes, and closes at 4:00pm with the drawing at 4:30pm. The Silent Auction is at the information booth outside, has about 5 different prizes, and closes at 3:30pm.
When you’ve had your fill of festivities and are getting ready to head home, you can take some of the sausages with you! Our “Sausages-to-Go” booth sells the same sausages we grill up at the barbecue and more, all in vacuum sealed packages.