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Clergy dish up meatball sundaes, pickle ice pops and a little faith at the Minnesota State Fair
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Dean Wiberg, right, volunteers at the evangelical Crossroads Chapel tent, which distributes thousands of free Bibles during the Minnesota State Fair in Falcon Heights, Minn., on Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023. For many faith communities, the fair has long been an opportunity to reach a diverse crowd that can top two million. - photo by AP Photo/Giovanna Dell'Orto
FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. (AP) — As the sun rose on an unusually steamy opening day of the Minnesota State Fair, Jeff Knott and his two daughters joined the already long breakfast line outside the Hamline Church Dining Hall. The Lutheran family, at the fair to show the teen girls’ pigs Billy and Lil’ Red, favor this Methodist all-volunteer diner for its early opening, variety of foods including the signature “hamloaf” sandwich, and religious mission. “They use their proceeds for mission work, which I think is important,” Knott said before the family bowed their heads to say grace at the hall’s bustling tables.