The Mini Sappa Antique Thresher & Engine Club is made up of people with a variety of backgrounds and different interests. There are “car people,” “tractor people,” “small engine people,” and “horse people.” The list could go on and on. However, we share two things in common—a love for preserving and enjoying all things vintage and a passion to pass a bit of history on to future generations.
Well, actually we're not nearly that philosophical, but you get the idea!
The Mini Sappa Club is a laid-back organization in which it's easy to fit right in. We get together on the evening of the second Sunday of each month for a potluck dinner and business meeting. Of course, these meetings aren't mandatory by any means, but the more the merrier. Traditionally we gather in Oberlin, KS. However, this
winter we'll be meeting in Atwood, KS, as club members are using a member's shop to restore the 2011 raffle tractor, a John Deere A. In addition, part of the group is working on a beautiful raffle quilt. Meetings will return to the Oberlin location in April.The club participates in several activities throughout the year. One event the club enjoys is the Oberlin Business Alliance's Parade of Lights on the Friday of every Thanksgiving weekend. This parade takes place just after sunset, and each entry is decked out with Christmas lights. Of course, the Mini Sappa Club is there in style! Speaking of the holidays, the club decorates a themed Christmas tree each year for display throughout the holiday season at the Last Indian Raid Museum in Oberlin, which hosts trees from several local organizations.
In the summer, we all enjoy attending other shows in the area. For the past several years, we've hosted a tractorcade from Oberlin to Selden, KS, on the morning of the Selden Tractor Show in June. This is a great opportunity to get some quality time behind the wheel of your tractor and enjoy the Kansas countryside at a little slower pace.
Speaking of slowing things down, each year club members get together in October and use a one row picker to gather a load of ear corn for the following year's show. The big harvest event, though, is the annual wheat binding! One 10 foot swath at a time, the wheat gets cut, bound, and loaded onto bundle racks to await its fate at the following Mini Sappa Show. The binding activity typically coincides with the July business meeting and potluck dinner.Of course, the main event for the club is the Mini Sappa Antique Thresher & Engine Show in September. It's a big job to put the show on, and the members do it all for free. Planning and preparations begin as soon as the previous year's show draws to a close. We do our best to produce a great, family-friendly event each and every year.
