This year, the Barton County Fair is going to be quite different. The static exhibits such as foods and crafts are all going to be shown online, not out at the Expo buildings in plain view. Livestock shows will go on, but with a different schedule and with no spectators. This is all in place because of Covid 19 restrictions that needed to be in place in May to even be able to plan for a fair.
Before Covid sent us all to our homes, most 4H’ers were already hard at work so their projects would be them ready at Fair time. For example, in order to participate in the 4-H Market Beef show, that animal needs to be weighed and tagged by the Extension office. The weigh in date for 2020 was back on February 29th. (This is just one beef project). For a Foods project, the 4-H’er should be learning about the project and cooking all year long. Art projects are worked on for the entire year at times, and to get the perfect snowstorm picture, you need to have snow. Fair is the culmination of their yearlong hard work, and it is meant to celebrate the 4H’ers and what they have learned along the way.
For 2020, even though you cannot come out to the Expo grounds to view all of the finished projects, you can still help celebrate the children and their hard efforts. There will be several avenues to be able to view their projects. On flipgrid.com, you can search for 4-H Public Showcase with the flip code “btcofair” to view some of the virtual videos of the 4Hers and their projects! You can also visit the Barton County Fair website at bartoncountyfair.com. Facebook will also be busy with livestreaming! https://www.facebook.com/ksrecottonwood will livestream the livestock shows for people to be able to still watch amongst other activities. You can also go to the Barton County Fair’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BartonCoFair for fun and exciting content!
This year has been challenging for many reasons; and The Barton County Fair falls in that category. With a little ingenuity, willingness to be flexible and the ability to learn new things, we will do our absolute best to celebrate what 4-H is about; the learning process and the journey it takes to get there above all!
Alicia Boor is an Agriculture and Natural Resources agent in the Cottonwood District.