Blue Ribbon Foundation Breaks Corndog Kickoff Fundraising Record for 5th Consecutive Year

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DES MOINES, IA (07/15/2015)(readMedia)-- Iowa State Fair fans celebrated "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" Saturday, July 11th at the Blue Ribbon Foundation's 19th annual Corndog Kickoff Benefit Auction and Fair Food Grazing Party. For the 5th consecutive year, the Corndog Kickoff has broken a record. Last Saturday's event raised a total of $460,000 for the renovation and preservation of the Iowa State Fairgrounds!

More than 2,000 Iowa State Fair supporters gathered for a night of fun, food and fundraising. The Blue Ribbon Foundation auctioned off 27 live and 215 silent auction packages for totals of $140,500 and $57,730, respectively. Patron contributions totaled $206,575. The remaining funds consisted of ticket and merchandise sales.

"The Corndog Kickoff set another record this year in terms of attendance and dollars raised. The Blue Ribbon Foundation is grateful for the support to continue our mission of restoring and preserving the historic Fairgrounds. The State Fair will continue to grow and prosper because of your generosity," said Peter Cownie, Blue Ribbon Foundation Executive Director.

The Blue Ribbon Foundation encourages the public to attend this year's Iowa State Fair, August 13-23, to see the many improvements made possible through the support of Fair-lovers. Enjoy free entertainment on the new MidAmerican Energy Stage located east of Pella Plaza and west of the Patty & Jim Cownie Cultural Center. Improvements have also been made to the Youth Inn. The second phase of the renovation includes: extended walkways, updated fire alarm and suppression systems and all levels of the building are now handicapped accessible with new elevators.

Connecting Grand Avenue and the Richard O. Jacobson Exhibition Center, the new Ruan Plaza creates a pedestrian walkway on the Fairgrounds. This project includes new paved parking, expanded sidewalks, and a reorganized vendor layout in the area to the east and south of the William C. Knapp Varied Industries building. The plan to beautify the area while improving pedestrian traffic flow will be implemented in several phases.

Since its inception in 1993, the Blue Ribbon Foundation has been raising funds to renovate and restore the historic Iowa State Fairgrounds. More than $110 million has been generated to date and has supported 40 projects throughout the Fairgrounds. Improvements have been made to the William C. Knapp Varied Industries Building, the Grandstand, the Campgrounds and Ye Old Mill. In addition, funds support the building of new facilities such as the Paul R. Knapp Animal Learning Center, Elwell Family Food Center and the Richard O. Jacobson Exhibition Center.

The Iowa State Fair Blue Ribbon Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. For more information, please contact the Foundation at (800) 450-3732, bluerf@blueribbonfoundation.org or visit www.blueribbonfoundation.org.

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