Junior board puts in months of work

The Junior Fair Board is 'a little army,' as one board member put it.
By JEANNE STARMACK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
CANFIELD -- The Canfield Fair began days earlier for the Junior Fair Board than it did for the rest of us.
For us, it started Wednesday, and all we had to do was get in our cars and drive there.
For the fair board though, it started Aug. 19 with setup, and the 45 members had to do a lot more.
"We opened barns, cleaned top to bottom, opened cages, cleaned stalls, all that stuff," said Amanda Davis, of Berlin Center, the board's public relations liaison.
And after we all go home on Labor Day, the fair board will still be at work.
"We're a little army, and everyone has to participate," Davis said. "We don't have a weak link in our chain."
Some of the kids never leave the fair, she said, staying from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m. After the last day, they have to go to school. "They're very dedicated."
The Junior Fair promotes the interests of youth through educational exhibits and activities, according to the fair's Web site.
Davis said planning and organizing really begins in January, with monthly fair board meetings.
Members of the board
The board's members come from 4-H, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Camp Fire USA, Farm Bureau Youth, Future Farmers of America and Junior Grange. They are 15 to 18 years old.
The board includes three committees, said David Moliterno, a member. They are youth day, special features and public relations.
The youth day committee organizes the pageant and awards ceremony for the 4-H royal court and the Junior Fair Board's outstanding youths, which took place Thursday. A 4-H king and queen and two outstanding youths are picked each year, and other honors and scholarships are awarded.
The special features committee handles events that include the bed races, which took place Wednesday, an obstacle-course contest called the Battle of the Barns, which is set for Monday, and the Ice Cream Social on Sunday.
The public relations committee promotes the fair through radio, TV and print media.
The fair board also produces a newspaper, The Round Up, which has information about Junior Fair events and results from its shows and contests. The paper's available every day at the Junior Fair office in front of Barn 10.
Events to come
Some upcoming events planned by the Junior Fair Board include the ice cream social, which is open to the public and begins at 5 p.m. Sunday at the South Dairy Complex.
There will also be a scavenger hunt Sunday for kids of all ages, with prizes. Registration is from 6 to 6:15 p.m. at the Junior Fair office, and the hunt begins at 6:30 p.m.
Monday's Battle of the Barns begins at 4 p.m. at the North Saddle Horse Ring. It is open to all kids. Registration for it ends at 3:30 p.m. at the Junior Fair office.