Not just for play: Toy tractors a serious passion at FFA show

Tractors proved a powerful pull during the Blooming Prairie FFA’s 12th annual Toy Show, drawing curious shoppers from around the region on the last Saturday of winter.
Toy tractors, that is. And while they appeared to make up the bulk of the items sold in Blooming Prairie High School’s cafeteria March 14, other wares were available, including massage gift certificates and vintage magazines.
Bill Nixon of Claremont stood behind a collection of toys; he said it was his fourth year at the Blooming Prairie Toy Show. Why does he come?
“Have fun, talk to the people,” he said. “I just enjoy it.”
Nixon said he sells at about four toy shows a year, and that a red International toy tractor probably was his most valuable item.
Nixon chatted a while with show visitor Dan McGowan of Byron, who said he attends such shows because of a love of toys he can trace to childhood.
“My grandpa was a farmer, and my brother farmed … I’ve just always loved toys,” he said.
Filling the cafeteria with toy-covered tables only took about a half-hour, said show organizer Bill “Rink” Rinkenberger. He credited the help of students for the swift setup.
Rinkenberger was optimistic at noon — halfway through the six-hour show — that attendance numbers would be strong. There’s a reason for that, he said.
“The problem we had the last couple of years was there was always a playoff basketball game, so this place would clear out about 11,” he said. “We don’t have that this year.”