James “Jimmy” Alderman, a longtime volunteer at The Big Cheese at the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair, passed away on September 10. Alderman was one of the stand’s longest-tenured volunteers and, for decades, was a familiar presence for fairgoers stopping by for one of The Big Cheese’s famous grilled cheese sandwiches.
“Jimmy was one of our longest tenured volunteers,” The Big Cheese shared in announcing his passing. “For decades he would help cut the cheese, call out in his loud distinctive voice ‘fresh hot grilled cheese, pretzels, nachos’ for everyone to hear. Jimmy was always fun to volunteer with, he shared amazing stories and will be deeply missed.”
Located next to Old MacDonald’s Barn, The Big Cheese is one of the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair’s most recognizable food stands and has become a tradition for generations of local fairgoers. The stand, operated by the Maryland Cheese Council, routinely presses and sells more than 10,000 Wisconsin cheddar grilled cheese sandwiches during the Fair’s nine-day run.
In addition to its grilled cheese sandwiches, The Big Cheese offers block cheeses from Maryland and Wisconsin, cheese curds, cheese with fruit, nachos and pretzels.
For many longtime visitors, Alderman’s distinctive voice calling out the stand’s offerings became as much a part of the experience as the grilled cheese itself. Alderman will be deeply missed by his fellow volunteers and the generations of Montgomery County Agricultural Fair visitors who encountered him during his decades at The Big Cheese.
