An annual tradition since the 1950s, the Rotary Club of Amherst Town Fair returns to the Town Common for three days beginning Friday, Aug. 23.

Bringing amusements including a Ferris wheel, a merry-go-round and a climbing wall, food booths with cotton candy and caramel apples and other activities to the Amherst green, the event, previously put on in the spring and in recent years held toward the end of August, is one of two late summer fundraisers organized by the Rotary Club.

Money collected by Rotary, including a payment from Fanelli Amusements to have the fair staged in Amherst, supports scholarships for area high school seniors, donations to help out local families, and contributions that benefit local nonprofits, says Rotary President Linda Michaud.

“Rotary coordinates with Fanelli and will have a booth set up, selling drinks and handing out information,” Michaud said.

The club, with its motto of “service above self,” has made around $927,000 in charitable gifts since 1993, including a $25,000 gift to the Amherst Survival Center; a $50,000 gift to the Hitchcock Center for the Environment that assisted in constructing their new buildings; $5,000 for creating the Amherst Dog Park; and $25,000 toward a new playground at Crocker Farm School.

The fair comes two weeks before the Rotary Club’s Connecticut Valley Century (COVAC) ride, which takes bicyclists through Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont and offers routes from 25 to 100 miles in length. “People love that ride,” Michaud said. Proceeds from the ride benefit the Good Works Fund.

On a recent Thursday afternoon, Rotarians, following their twice-monthly noon luncheon beneath a large tent outside the Inn on Boltwood, were joined by players and coaches from the University of Massachusetts hockey team in filling backpacks with supplies, such as filler paper, notebooks, binders and pencil cases for young students. The backpack project is considered the first activity of the new year for the club.

The club then brought the backpacks to the school district’s central office at the middle school for distribution before the first day of school.

The Rotary, which currently has 38 members, has regular guest speakers, along with activity reports, quizzes and raffles, as well as conversation, during their noon meetings. For the most recent meeting, Art Lobdell, the assistant district governor of the broader Rotary region, dropped by.

Michaud said new members are always welcome and current members can bring guests.

“We encourage people to come, we encourage anyone to join,” said Thad Dabrowski, a longtime member of the club. Dabrowski said there is open enrollment, with annual dues of $145.

Dabrowski pointed to other club activities that support children in town, including providing Merriam Webster dictionaries to third graders and partnering with Amherst Family Outreach to get gifts for children and gift cards for families during the Christmas season.

The organization also offers annual awards through its community grant program and has a partnership with Kestrel Land Trust for the annual breakfast fundraiser on behalf of Puffer’s Pond.

While some events have fallen by the wayside, like the once-famed Teddy Bear Rally and an antique show and flea market, the Rotary Fair continues to go strong.

The fair’s first day will run from 5:30 to 10 p.m., followed by 1 to 10 p.m. on Aug. 24 and 1 to 6 p.m. on Aug. 25.

Tickets can be bought in advance at fanelliamusements.com/events/16.