By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
“How do we encourage rather than discourage kids to participate in the Wood County Fair?” That was the question Fair Board President Paul Perry asked at the Aug. 27 Fair Board meeting.
“Everything we do as a fair should come back to that question,” he said. “We are not just putting on a fair for today. We are building the future of Wood County Fair for years to come. That means we need to look at ourselves and ask, ‘How can we become better at serving our kids and families?’”
The work involves more than just the senior fair board and includes junior fair board, 4-H leaders, FFA advisers, parents, exhibitors, volunteers and the young people who are part of the fair.
“We need to listen to them and learn from them and be willing to make changes when something isn’t working,” he said. “We should celebrate our champions and those who earn the top awards, but every kid who walks through that gate, works on a project, enters an exhibit or gets in the show ring or simply has the courage to participate, deserves to feel that they are a winner in some way. A child may not remember what place they received years from now, but they will remember how the adults at the fair made them feel.”
Creating a fair where kids feel welcomed, appreciated, encouraged and proud to participate will invest in the future of Wood County, he added. “So this year, before we make a decision, enforce a rule, or respond to a situation, I challenge all of us to ask that one question.”
Celebrating the successes, looking for changes
Some of the successes at this year’s fair, as well as suggestions for future changes, were addressed by visitors at the meeting.
Amanda Barndt thanked the fair board for allowing her to host the Ring of Dreams Livestock Show and the Pee Wee Sheep Show during the fair.
According to Barndt, the Ring of Dreams, which invites individuals with developmental disabilities to show an animal at the fair alongside a junior fair member, welcomed 90 participants and 76 junior fair mentors this year.
“I really appreciate being allowed to do the Ring of Dreams during the fair, because I know that (Pratt Pavilion) is prime real estate on the schedule,” she said. “I also appreciate all of the extra hands to get everything in place for signup, practice and show days.”
The Pee Wee Sheep Show welcomed 54 young showmen this year. “It’s a pretty self-sufficient show.”
She asked to be allowed to do both shows during the 2027 Wood County Fair. Later in the meeting, the board approved the Ring of Dreams for 2027.
Barndt asked the fair board to bring back first-year showmanship classes for all species. “I’ve seen a need for it from the first year we got rid of it.” She admitted it hit harder this year when watching her young nephew show as a first-year showman in the junior class.
“He’s nine years old, and he’s showing against 13-year-olds. That’s not fair, and I’m going to stand by that,” she said, offering to sponsor and find sponsorships for all the awards for all the departments. “I don’t need another project on my plate, but I will gladly do it for the pure fact it benefits the kids.”
Barndt also recommended bringing sheep classifications back into the sheep department and asked to be part of the conversation. “I want communication on it, and I would like other local breeders to be included in that conversation as well.”
Holly Wensink, who organized the fair’s County Born and Raised Livestock Show, reported the show included over 100 exhibitors and 275 animals in six and a half hours. “We’ve had several people ask if we could add dairy feeders next year,” she said as she thanked the board for allowing her to do it and asked to include the show in the 2027 fair.
Perry thanked Wensink for putting the show together. “I heard good things as well.” Later in the meeting, the board voted to include the show in the 2027 fair schedule.
Wensink also suggested the goat department consider weighing the does to offer two classes based on weight. “There’s a huge bracket from 7 to 12 months and a 40-pound weight difference. “Several people said if we could have those does weighed and split the classes by weight, it would be a little more fair.”
Jenna Stearns, who helped with the livestock showcase this year, supported Barndt’s request to bring back the first-year showmanship classes. She offered to help with sponsorships for that and beef departments’ placings.
“I think we had just a little discrepancy in some of the beef shows that they only placed first and second when in the book it said first through fifth,” she said. “If there’s an issue with sponsorship, please reach out. There’s so many businesses available. They just literally do not know how. I’m willing to give as much as I can give to educate on how to do sponsorship, and how to get more people involved in the livestock showcase and sale.”
“I would love for you to be part of the livestock showcase and sale committee next year,” Perry said. “Now that we know where that sale lies and who’s going to be running that, we can plan a lot better sooner and essentially start planning now for next year.”
Fair Board election
The new and re-elected fair board members were officially sworn in at the meeting.
Jessica Susor and Jordan Crawford are the only two new directors elected during the fair. Their terms expire in 2029.
Re-elected are Paul Perry, Dan VanVorhis, Tony Violi, Deanne Corken, David Richmond, Donald Bechstein, Christina Adams, for terms that expire in 2029; Michael Miller, Erin Perry, Jolynn Nissen and Ashley Welling, terms that expire in 2028; and Collin Britton and Bruce Kidder, terms that expire in 2027.
Fair Board member Craig Coe submitted a letter of resignation, which the board accepted, effective immediately. With his resignation and a partial-term seat that was not filled in the election, there remains two open seats on the board. The board voted to post the open positions and ask for applications before the September board meeting.
The board also elected officers for the year: Perry was re-elected president; Tony Violi, first vice president; John Nissen, second vice president; Conni Grames, secretary. No board member was interested in the treasurer position. The board put that officer position on hold until September.
Members filled out sheets for their committee preferences; committee chairs and members will be determined prior to the September meeting, Perry said.
Livestock sale and financial updates
This year’s livestock sale totaled nearly $475,000, up approximately $50,000 over 2025 totals, according to Secretary and Livestock Showcase and Sale Committee Chair Conni Grames.
The add-on sale brought in $262,624; final-year members’ projects, $19,011.72; livestock showcase and sale, $115,750; junior beef, dairy crossbred dairy beef feeders, $13,003; and dairy beef feeders, $64,293, she reported.
There were still $208,000 in outstanding payments as of the Aug. 27 board meeting.
As long as the majority of the payments are made soon, the checks to the youths should be going out by the end of September or earlier, “but you can’t have $200,000 (of unpaid invoices) sitting out there. We don’t have that kind of pocket,” Grames said.
Any open class premiums that are $5 or less will be paid in cash, Office Assistant AnnMarie Nietz announced. “We are not writing checks for $5 or $2 and putting them in the mail. We are wasting money to do that,” she said.
All premiums will be available in the office Sept. 1-30. Exhibitors need to pick them up in the office in that time frame, otherwise, “it’s donated back to the fair.” This does not include sales checks, only open class winners in Fine Arts, Home and Garden and Annex (Farm Produce).
A total look at the fair’s finances should be available at the October meeting. The 2026 fair financial report will be compared to the 2025 fair finances.
There will be a swine department review, open to everybody, Sept.2 at 6 p.m. in the second-floor meeting room of the Administration Building at the fairgrounds, announced Fair Director and Swine Committee Chair Bob Strow.
Perry said each livestock department should hold an open meeting prior to December. “We need to have those meetings so we can recap those departments and gather the input from exhibitors and others to see where we are at and what we need to work on.”
