They make the Hamline Church dining hall happen

The 2026 Minnesota State Fair is now in the history books, ending on Labor Day. The end means that a large corps of volunteers gets to put away special volunteer garb for another year. The name tags, T-shirts, ball caps and aprons are put away.

It’s not known exactly how many volunteers donate their time and talents to the Minnesota State Fair. The number could easily be in the thousands. As individuals and in groups, volunteers help at many of the exhibits, doing everything from guiding guests and answering questions to running presses at the Minnesota State Fair Newspaper Museum.

Some volunteers work at food and beverage service establishments, including the Midway Men’s Club and the two remaining church dining halls, Salem Lutheran of Minneapolis and Hamline United Methodist Church of St. Paul.

Hamline Church’s dining hall will celebrate 140 years’ service in 2027.

It was founded in 1897 by the church’s women’s group, with the goal of raising funds for the congregation’s own place of worship. The church operated at Hamline University since its founding in 1880.

The initial items served included sandwiches and lemonade. The church served up an array of foods at various fair locations before moving to its current location. The current building opened its doors in 1968.
The Minnesota State Fair estimates that the dining hall has up to 100 volunteers each day in its kitchen, food prep area, serving line, dining room, smaller service window and dish room. Behind-the-scenes volunteers take home aprons for laundering, help with bookkeeping and handle more tasks. That means roughly 700 volunteers each fair.

The dining hall has one of the fair’s oldest volunteers in Falcon Heights resident Elaine Christiansen, who celebrated her 96th birthday during pre-fair activities. She has served for more than 40 years at the dining hall, mentoring many fellow volunteers in the art of food preparation. She also enjoys greeting guests.
Christiansen and her longtime friend, the late Betty Ward, are pictured together on one dining hall wall. They also have their own bright yellow bench in front of the building.

At one past anniversary event, Christiansen was honored as a duchess of the St. Paul Winter Carnival.
Another faithful volunteer is Como resident Mary Bloom, who balances an active retirement and a busy family life with dining hall committee co-chair duties. She made many trips back and forth to the fairgrounds this summer.

“It’s lasted because it’s so special. . . . it gets in your blood,” said Bloom.

Bloom has been a dining hall volunteer since the 1980s. She loves the dining hall, its traditions and the camaraderie among the volunteers and guests. She also sees the volunteer duties as helping to keep church members bonded and connected and building on traditions.