Macy Hynek is the 4-H Youth Development Agent for the River Valley District 4-H program. The River Valley District covers 4-H for Clay, Cloud, and Washington. The Cloud County Fair will take place July 18th-23rd at the Cloud County Fairgrounds. She shared how they prepare for the county fair starting in February, with the process ending in September with the Kansas State Fair. “The 4-H Team always jokes in the early months that we cannot say the word ‘fair’ because it’s too early for that,” Hynek said.

So how do they prepare for the county fair? Well, a lot of work goes into it. Judges need to be called, and two pre-fair packets are sent to the 4-H and FFA families. Award sponsors need to be contacted, livestock animals need to be tagged and weighed, and the local fair board must be met with as well.

Once the big preparations are over with, then they can focus on the small details to make the fair run smoothly. “We make sure all the families get enrolled for the fair, create binders to collect all the results, order ribbons, prepare superintendents, and so much more,” Hynek shared. “It’s the small things like hanging a name on the 4-H’ers project and stall cards by the animals that people enjoy while walking around the fair. It’s a lot of months in the making but it’s a fun time of the year.”