MARILLA, N.Y. (WKBW) — The 2024 Marilla Ag Day wrapped up its 19th annual celebration on Sunday, hosting a parade, all to say ‘thank you’ to the countless hardworking farmers all across Western New York.
Several agriculture workers and their families spoke with 7 News about what this special event means to them.
"Biggest thing is to let people be aware of the farmers, how everything is still grown and not fake and grown in a laboratory somewhere… All the people sitting are appreciative of us as we’re coming down the road,” Nathan Freiheit said. “Farmers don’t have a lot of time to get out and about and visit a lot of people, so this is the one day a year that brings them together. You’ll find farmers that haven’t talked to each other since the last year they were here.”
“Just showing how big of an impact agriculture has around this area. You don’t see a lot of towns do stuff life this,” Ryan Balcerzak said. “You don’t see a lot of family farms anymore, so it’s kind of tough… I like to contribute to the community and come out for a good time."
“Gives us something to do, something to look forward to every year,” Mike Fuer said.
“I love farming, so I wanted to have fun,” 9-year-old Xander Green said.
