Sheriff’s Mounted Posse Powers Students During Special Friends Day

For thousands of students with special needs across Kern County, Special Friends Day at the Kern County Fair offers a sensory-friendly fair experience tailored specifically to their needs. Behind the scenes, one dedicated volunteer group has fueled that experience for over 50 years by firing up the grills at 4:30 a.m. to cook thousands of meals.

Just past the fair entrance, representatives from KCSOS’s Special Education Services department greeted arriving families Thursday and ensured students from participating school districts received a meal ticket for the Special Friends Lunch.

“Special Friends Day is a little less sensory overload for the kids, so they can come out and enjoy the fair,” Justin Thompson, Executive Director of Special Education District Support said. “It’s an opportunity for students to go out and engage and interact with the community, for staff to do lessons on animals and agriculture, and then the rides are open.”

Special Friends Lunch is hosted by the Kern County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse in partnership with community organizations, including KCSOS. Though the posse is widely recognized for its appearances on horseback, its members are volunteers who represent the Sheriff through community service—not as law enforcement personnel, but as uniformed goodwill ambassadors.

Founded in 1939, the group is the oldest existing working posse in California. The posse participates in parades and rodeos and raises funds for children with special needs, providing everything from handicapped bicycles to playground equipment for local schools.

This year, the posse expected to feed 5,000 children on Special Friends Day. In the early days, members would pick up students from their schools or homes and take them to the fair. As attendance has grown, students are now bused to the fairgrounds with their school, and feeding thousands of fairgoers requires as many hands as possible. The Golden Valley High School Future Farmers of America (FFA) group was among the young volunteers working the hot dog assembly line.

“We love doing community service projects,” said Jamie Rosas, a sophomore at Golden Valley High School. “I thought it would be fun, and so far it has been.”

Anthony Mungary, a four-time posse captain who has worked the event since 1995, recalled a touching moment when a parent thanked the posse for providing lunch at Special Friends Day. The parent shared that her son, who usually stayed home to avoid being stared at, felt comfortable and accepted during the event. For her, the day provided a rare opportunity to see her son step into the community and enjoy himself.

“Our focus is supporting the community and supporting children with special needs in Kern County,” Daron Hobson, 2026 Captain of the posse, explained. “That is our main mission—the reason for the existence [of the posse].”

The true reward comes once the grills cool down and families sit beneath the colorful fairground canopy to enjoy lunch.

“My favorite part is after we’re done cooking, getting to walk out and see all the smiles on those kids’ faces,” Hobson said. “We pass out badges out front, and it is tremendously emotional doing that. It’s fulfilling for us.”