Fair Board hosts appreciation dinner

CRESCO - “This evening is to appreciate our sponsors and showcase the candidates for queen and princess,” said Mighty Howard County Fair Board Executive Secretary Tom Barnes.

The event took place at the Expo Center on June 15, with nearly a full house of supporters of the fair attending the festivities.

“We can’t do what we do without our sponsors. We are indebted to you and to our fair board and their significant others,” Barnes continued.

Jim Hughes gave the invocation before the pork dinner, prepared by Elma Locker, and the sides by McAllister Catering. The meat came from KMAX Farms, Reicks View Farms and Iowa Select Farms.

After the dinner, Barnes went on to explain how appreciated the sponsors are to keep the Mighty Howard County Fair one of the very best in the state.

This year has been especially tough on the pocket book. In 2020, costs ran about $1,000 per week. That included $350 in electricity for the main three buildings. Now it is up to $1,000 per month for each building.

“This is a money pit,” he said. “Sometimes we’ve made a profit of $100 for the fair. Other times $2,000-3,000. We’ve even had to borrow money to get through the year.”

But the board continues to make improvements. We are way over $2 million in improvements over the past 20 years.” And it shows. Evans United Shows, who does the rides and carnival, tells the board the Mighty Howard County Fair is by far the best fair they go to.

He thanked just a few of the many individuals and groups that help make the fair one of  the best in the state. They include the Howard County Board of Supervisors, his wife, Sue Barnes, and the Extension Council, Master Gardeners, Historical Society, Wildlife Club, Driftrunners and more.

He also appreciates the 100-plus volunteers who show up each day of the fair to help it run smoothly. “It takes an army to make this thing go.”

Another helper is the Borlaug Intern, who this year is local Justin Kerian. “He is a former exhibitor, and he is learning a lot about the back side of the fair.”

 

Improvements

• One of the biggest improvements over the past 10 years is the Reicks View Ag Education Center. It was built in 2016 and enabled non-farm kids to raise swine for the fair.  The number of students participating in the swine show was dwindling, but this year, 17 youth are showing swine. 

The center also includes a show ring and an area for dairy cows. Twenty-two youth are showing dairy cows this year.

Four of the queen candidates will be showing animals at the 2022 fair. “What these kids learned here, they are going to take with them for the rest of their life,” Barnes stated.

• Some of this year’s improvements include:

~ Technology — This is the niche of board members Dean Lickteig and Michael Ollendick. The fair will boast four large screen televisions around the grounds — Featherlite Center, Ag Ed Center, 4-H Building and Expo Pavilion. They will broadcast daily schedules, special alerts, sponsor recognition and more. The livestock shows will also be livestreamed, which will be linked to the fair’s social media accounts, so the public can watch them.

~ Over 57 banners with sponsor’s logos will be displayed around the grounds. Other signs have been placed on the inside and outside (on 7th St.) the racetrack for the biggest donors.

Barnes said, “It’s a lot of long volunteer hours for our board. But we do it because of these young women sitting up here (queen candidates). They are our future.”

 

Queen Candidates

Janice Ollendick and Heather Slifka kept the queen candidates busy all day, as they met with judges, Les Askelson of Decorah, Kevin Janssen of LeRoy, Minn. and Audrey Nosbisch of Ridgeway in the afternoon for a light lunch, and then attended the appreciation dinner in the evening.

Mighty Howard County Fair 2021 Princess Audrey Ferrie gave some insights into fulfilling her role over the previous year. She said going to the fair was always a favorite activity for her. “As princess, I got the scoop on what goes on at the fair. I had so much fun going to all the shows. I want to say ‘Thanks’ to everyone for helping and supporting the fair.”

The 2021 Fair Queen Ashley Reicks agreed. “We had a blast going to the fair last year. Every girl dreams of getting a crown on her head and that night we did. It’s crazy how much time people put into the fair. Thank you to everyone who puts in time to put the fair together.

Each fair queen then answered one question posed by Barnes. The girls were chosen randomly.

•  Kelsey Burke, of Cresco, is the daughter of Kenny and Christine Burke, and just completed her junior year at Crestwood High School. 

Question: Name one thing you’d give back to your parents if you could. 

Answer: Overall a thank you for everything they’ve done for me. They have shown us great work ethic.

• Sierra Hansmeier, of Cresco, is the daughter of Jeremy and Denise Hansmeier and just completed her junior year at Crestwood High School. 

Q: What would you change about your world to make it as perfect as possible? 

A. I would want to make everybody happy and make them get along. I would want nobody to see anyone as different, and we are all equal.

• Sarah Anderson, of Riceville, is the daughter of Brian and Katie Anderson and just completed her sophomore year at Riceville High School.

Q: Describe yourself in one word.

A: Genuine. I can just talk to people easily. I come off as nice and not scary.

• Nora Ryan, of Cresco is the daughter of Jason and Sara Ryan and just completed her junior year at Crestwood High School.

Q: If you could have lunch with anyone living or dead, who would it be?

A. My grandpa. When he passed, we couldn’t talk to him. He affected me  a lot. I’d like to have one more meal with him.

• Joey Vobr of Cresco is the daughter of Eric and Melissa Vobr and just completed the 10th grade at Crestwood High School.

Q: Tell us something you’ve experienced in life that caused you to change significantly.

A. The death of my grandpa changed me. I saw how strong people can be, and I saw how people can be really supportive. It gave me an example of how to support others.

• Kayla Burke, of Cresco, is the daughter of Kenny and Christine Burke and just completed her junior year at Crestwood High School.

Q: Define hard work in two words.

A: Responsible and trustworthy. You don’t always have to have someone tell you what to do, and you should be trustworthy.

• Chyann Bullerman-Yu, of Cresco, is the daughter of Casey and Cambria Sebastian and Dustin and Katy Yu and just completed her sophomore year at Crestwood High School. 

She was unable to attend the dinner due to a death in her family, but was able to attend the afternoon session.

Barnes closed the evening by saying, “We’ve got a little event taking place next week. One item you can bid on in the 4-H building is a handmade quilt from Farm Safety Days t-shirts over the years.

“Oh, and everybody is responsible to pray to the weather gods!”

The queen and princess will be crowned on Wednesday, June 22 at Scheidel Plaza Stage at 5:30 p.m.