Barton County Fair Update
County fairs across the state took on a different look and feel in many places this year due to COVID-19. The Barton County Fair Board and Barton County Extension Office worked together to develop a plan for 4-H youth to receive feedback on their project learning while minimizing contact.
In mid-May, the decision was made to move all indoor exhibits to a virtual format with fair board support. Using an education-based application called Flip Grid, Michelle Beran set up judging opportunities and directions for projects from Art to Woodworking! Due to an outbreak in neighboring states of a very serious rabbit disease, the decision was also made to move the rabbit show to a virtual format.
Livestock shows continue in a live format but with substantial modifications. All exhibitor families have a health check before they entered the grounds, spectators were not allowed, and each species was only on the grounds during that particular show. Each species show was spread out over the four days to minimize contact and to allow for thorough cleaning between shows.
While these changes created some challenges, 4-H Ambassadors stepped up to record a video to replace their normal high-energy Youth Rally. It was still held on the Tuesday of fair week and the Fair Board shared it out through their website to make sure that the public in Barton County knew the activities and involvement was still happening!
The 2020 Barton County Fair looked different while providing youth with feedback on project learning. They also shared some fair-related fun such as crosswords puzzles, color pages, and word search games.
A fair board member made a comment during the early discussions that “we need to be excited about the things we can do to celebrate and showcase and not focus on the things we can’t do.” This energy and partnership were very helpful in planning for an alternative fair format.