A small Episcopal church surrounded by cotton fields in La Union is gearing up for its 42nd straight year of wiener dogs, brisket, and blessings. St. Luke's Episcopal Church will host its Country Fair and Great Dachshund Stampede next Saturday, Oct. 24, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 7050 McNutt Road, an event that has entertained families from El Paso, Canutillo, Anthony and Las Cruces for more than four decades.
The headline attraction remains the Great Dachshund Stampede, featuring the signature dog races and a doggie costume contest, according to KTSM 9 News. This year's fair will add special races open to all dogs, not just dachshunds, giving mixed breeds and mutts a shot at bragging rights alongside the long-bodied regulars. Past editions of the stampede have pulled in more than 100 dachshund competitors and spectators from as far away as Arizona, Texas and New Mexico, according to a 2014 report from Borderzine.
Entry fees from the races will not just cover ribbons and bragging rights. A portion of what owners pay to enter their dogs will be donated to the Animal Rescue League of El Paso, which funds spay and neuter programs in the borderland. Based in nearby Canutillo, Texas, the no-kill shelter has saved more than 27,000 companion animals while offering spaying, neutering, microchipping and medical care ahead of adoption, per the Animal Rescue League of El Paso.
A Church Rooted in Cotton Fields Since the Early 1900s
St. Luke's traces its origins to a mission founded in the early 1900s to serve pioneer farming families in the Mesilla Valley, with the sanctuary's cornerstone laid in 1916 and the building consecrated two years later. The church was historically known as “the little church in the cotton patch” because of the farmland surrounding it, and it marked its centennial in 2016 on its five-acre property, according to the Episcopal Asset Map.
Organizers said they want fairgoers to see the church itself, not just the dog races, by sharing its history and showing off the 22 traditional stained-glass windows inside the historic sanctuary. Guided tours of those windows are offered as part of the fair, the same source notes. Father Maurice Ryan Lee will bless the animals twice during the day, at 11:30 a.m. and again at 3 p.m., the station reports.
Admission Is a Can of Food, Not Cash
Getting in the gate costs no money at all — organizers said admission simply requires a can of food for dogs, cats or people. Those donations will go directly to the local food bank, stretching the fair's charitable reach beyond the animal shelter benefiting from race entries.
Hungry visitors can expect smoked brisket, homemade goodies and a bake sale, plus dozens of vendors selling arts, crafts and other wares scattered across the grounds, per the same report. It's a one-day event, so anyone planning to browse the vendor tables or catch a dachshund heat should plan around the 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. window next Saturday.
Why La Union Needs the Spay and Neuter Dollars
The fair's fundraising push lands amid a persistent overpopulation problem for companion animals across the borderland. El Paso Animal Services ran a Spay-A-Thon in March that fixed 450 owned pets in just three days, a sign of how much demand exists for affordable spay and neuter services in Doña Ana and El Paso counties, according to El Paso Animal Services.
Novelty dachshund races like the one at St. Luke's have become something of a regional pastime, showing up at community events from Ruidoso's Long Dog Derby to Buda's Wiener Dog Races, according to Discover Ruidoso. La Union itself sits as an unincorporated community of 997 residents in southern Doña Ana County along the Texas-New Mexico border, per the U.S. Census Bureau.
The fair also fits into La Union's broader reputation as a fall agritourism stop in the Mesilla Valley. The town is home to the 13-acre La Union Maze, which opened its 27th season last month, as Hoodline reported on the maze's roots. La Union also hosts La Viña Winery, established in 1977 on a former jalapeño farm and recognized as New Mexico's oldest continuously operating commercial winery, according to New Mexico Magazine.
