Meigs Senior and Junior Fair Board members attend state convention

Members of the Meigs County Junior Fair Board attending the annual fair convention in Columbus. Submitted photo.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Members of the Meigs County Agricultural Society along with the Meigs County Junior Fair Board attended the Ohio Fair Managers Association Convention in Columbus over the weekend.

Several members of Meigs County Agricultural Society attended the conference which addressed rule changes with various livestock projects and other information from improving site communications to social media. Sessions were held for senior fair and junior fair board members. Entertainment, concessions and other vendors are booked months in advance of annual county fair. The convention presents fair board members the opportunity to network with other fair directors from around the state as well as see potential vendors.

Fair board members from around the state talk with various vendors including Smash It Demolition Derby which puts on the annual derby at the Meigs County Fair. Photo by Carrie Gloeckner.

One of the sessions for Junior Fair included a presentation from Michelle Stumbo on the Drug Prevention Day event held for the first time at the 2018 Meigs County Fair. It was the first type of event to happen like that at a county fair. Multiple agencies including the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office, Meigs County Prosecuting Attorney, Meigs County Extension Office, ADAMH Board, Meigs County Health Department and Meigs County Prevention Coalition came together to sponsor Kids Day at the fair with special presentations from John Buckland as Batman and Javier Sanchez both bringing an anti-drug and anti-bullying message. The session was described as “In Meigs County, organizations partnered to sponsor a Drug Abuse Prevention Day to address needs in our community. A fun event was held to share motivation to make good choices, resources, and giveaways with school-aged children. Come learn about it!”

Also among those attending the convention was new board member, Anita Morrissey. Morrissey was elected in November to the board during the regular election. During the convention she attended sessions for new board of directors.

The 2018 Meigs County Fair Queen Mattison Finlaw also competed with other fair queens from across the state for the title of Ohio Fairs Queen.

Dates were also released for fair across the state including the 2019 Meigs County Fair which will be held from Aug. 12-17. Other area fairs include the Gallia County Fair which will be held July 29-Aug. 4. The Athens County Fair will be held Aug. 2-10 with the Albany Independent Fair is set for Sept. 4-8. The Barlow Independent Fair is set for Sept. 26-29.

The Ohio Fair Managers Association is a voluntary, not-for-profit Corporation, serving State, Independent and County Agricultural Fairs, shows, exhibitions, and several festivals within Ohio. The associate members of the OFMA associations, corporations, festivals, and individuals engaged in providing products and services to its members, all of whom are interested in the improvement of Ohio’s agricultural fairs. The OFMA represents 95 Fairs in Ohio, more than 240 associate members from allied fields, and holds its Annual Convention in Columbus, Ohio in early January. Throughout the years, the OFMA claims to stay true to its purpose of promoting and encouraging the development and improvement of agricultural fairs, shows, and expositions. The OFMA is actively engaged and supports the International Association of Fairs and Expositions as well as the Federation of State and Provincial Association of Fairs.