Commissioner Miller Announces STAR Fund Donations During 2017 State Fair of Texas (9/28/2017)

COMMISSIONER MILLER ANNOUNCES STAR FUND DONATIONS DURING 2017 STATE FAIR

Talley Amusements donating portion of proceeds to STAR Fund, Farm Credit Bank of Texas matching

AUSTIN  – Commissioner Sid Miller announced today that Talley Amusements, the owners of the Texas Star Ferris wheel, and Farm Credit Bank of Texas are teaming up to donate proceeds from this year’s State Fair of Texas to the State of Texas Agriculture Relief (STAR) Fund.   Talley Amusements will donate 20 cents of every Ferris wheel ride purchased to the STAR Fund and Farm Credit Bank of Texas is matching the donation.

Mary Talley of Talley Amusements, the co-owner and operator of the iconic Texas Star Ferris wheel, said her family was moved by the devastation and losses sustained during Hurricane Harvey and wanted to do something to help.

“My family wanted to do something to help those affected. We were sitting around the table one night at dinner and talking about what we could do,” Talley said, “and we had heard Commissioner Miller talk about the STAR Fund before and I thought that sounded like a great thing, so we said to each other let’s figure out how we can use our business to help.”

 “The Texas Star is the No. 1 ride attraction at the State Fair of Texas,” Talley said, “so it seemed natural to donate part of our proceeds to the STAR Fund.”

Stan Ray, Chief Administrative Officer of Farm Credit Bank of Texas said Farm Credit has a long history of working with the Texas Department of Agriculture on funding for important causes, and this cause particularly made sense.

“The STAR Fund is a great way for Farm Credit to help support people in agriculture who have been adversely affected by Hurricane Harvey,” said Ray.  “We are donating to relief efforts in a variety of ways, but this partnership with the Texas Department of Agriculture is a great way to help support the state’s agriculture industry and rural communities we serve.”

”I am so proud to work with these two great Texas businesses,” Commissioner Miller said. “They stepped up to help their fellow Texans get back on their feet and that’s the true spirit of Texas.  I’m also proud to say they’re both GO TEXAN members.  I want to thank them on behalf of all of Texas.” 

The STAR Fund was created to collect monetary contributions from private individuals and businesses to assist farmers and ranchers in responding to and recovering from natural disasters. Funds may be used to rebuild perimeter fences, pay for livestock burial costs, restore operations and assist with other agricultural relief efforts. Agriculture producers in any of the governor’s disaster declaration counties have until Dec. 27 to apply. For more information on the STAR Fund, visit our webpage.  

The State Fair of Texas runs Sept. 29 through Oct. 22 this year and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Texas Star Ferris wheel is the largest Ferris wheel in the United States and can be seen from across the fairgrounds.

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