Martha Murphy, the founder of Whidbey Children’s Theater, will be this year’s grand marshal of the Island County Fair parade.

“I’ve been practicing my waving,” Murphy joked. “Seriously, though, it really is an honor for me.”

Murphy said she has fond memories of the fair.

“My first visit to the Island County Fair was August 1982, when I attended with my two young daughters,” she said. “It was fascinating to me because of the excitement it generated in the children. It was a time to be with friends for the ‘last hurrah of summer.'”

In the following years, the family participated in fair contests, including the competitions for best baked goods, photography, flowers, collections, art and crafts.

“It was exciting on opening day to see ribbons attached to our entries,” Murphy recalled.

In 1999, she began directing shows for the fair, performing in the Pole Building, and since then it has become an annual tradition for Whidbey Children’s Theater to have a booth and entertain on the opening day of the fair.

The Island County Fair runs from Aug. 14 through 17 in Langley.