Gets some sweets, pet a bee at Canfield Fair's beekeeper attraction

CANFIELD

A white dot makes her easy to notice as she makes her way around the hive. The real queen bee does not sing and dance, but she does keep the hive moving.

Without her, the worker bees would not be — and without the worker bees, the honey would not be.

“I enjoy the honey bees, and I know what a benefit they are to society and what dire straits we will be in if they disappear,” said Bruce Zimmer, president of the Columbiana and Mahoning County Beekeepers’ Association. “They are a major pollinator.”

Zimmer and members of the association are inside the Canfield Fair’s Fruit, Hay and Grain Building, accessible through entrances on Smith and Springfield Drives throughout the six-day fair.

With their live observation hive on display at the fair, the members work to inform the public about bees and their importance.

They also sell sweet and waxy goodies made by the members’ bees. The funds raised at the fair go toward education on honey bees.

“The little kids love to be able to see the bees,” Zimmer said.

Zimmer offers children a chance to pet a bee, but little do they know they are really about to pet a miniature silver bee charm, which Zimmer gifts to them afterward.

Read more about the popular fair attraction in Thursday's Vindicator or on VIndy.com.