The dazzling lights of the Star Trooper, hot-off-the-grill corn on the cob, the roar of engines at the grandstand, local kids taking home trophies for a job well done — all this and more is just a few days away as summer reaches an end and the Brown County Fair returns.

We are less than a week away from the fair, which kicked off last weekend with the 4-H Horse and Pony contesting shows in the horse arena at the fairgrounds. The baby contest was this past Saturday in the Exhibit Building.

The rest of the fair events will start July 25, with the carnival starting at 6 p.m. Monday, July 25 and ending Saturday, July 30 at 9 p.m.

New 4-H fair royalty will be crowned during the Brown County Fair Queen and Princess pageants on Sunday, July 24 beginning at 7 p.m. on the Pavilion Stage. The youngest fair royalty will be crowned during the Junior-Little Pageants on Tuesday, July 26 at 7 p.m.

Katie Finney, the 4-H Youth Development Extension educator, said the fair is welcoming a new initiative this year: Fight the Hunger.

Under this new initiative, a trailer will be onsite as part of a statewide contest where people can donate food goods that will later be weighed by participating counties.

If Brown County produces the most food, the 4-H fair board will receive a cash prize that will go to the Junior Leaders program.

The Master Showmanship competitions will take place Friday, July 29. Livestock shows are happening each night of the fair, too.

Grandstand events are also happening each night from July 25 to 31 beginning at 7 p.m. Go kart racing is the first event to kick off the week on July 25.

Live music will also be on the Pavilion Stage from 7 to 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

Brown County 4-H Fair Board President Mark Stargell said last week that everything so far is coming together for this year’s main summer event. He said he expects the attendance at the fair this year to be about the same as last year.

“I look for a lot of folks to do eating and mingling more than events,” he said.

Overall the 4-H program is still rebounding from the pandemic somewhat, picking up more club members as the years go on.

Currently, there are 150 4-H members including Mini 4-Hers, which is down compared to the 2019 fair when there were 225 members, but up from last year — the first year back after the pandemic.

The 4-H experience two years ago was moved online entirely and was the only element of the fair to happen in 2020.

As far as major changes to the fair experience this year, Stargell said there will not be any. A new PA system was recently installed at the fairgrounds. The system will allow the sound to be kept within the bounds of the grandstand, but if crowds need to be alerted of an announcement, sound can be channeled through speakers in the main carnival area or in the Exhibit Building.

“That’s been needed for a long time,” he said.

The same carnival company as previous years will return to operate rides. Unlimited carnival ride bracelets will be $20 per person and only available Monday, Wednesday and Saturday nights. On other nights, you can buy tickets on a per-ride basis for $3 per ticket.

Parking will be $2 per car, the same as last year. Parking will be charged beginning Monday, July 26. Money collected from parking goes to the Brown County 4-H Fair Board and the 4-H Council. Once the rent for the parking field is paid, the remaining money is split between the board and council.

New this year, Meredith-Clark Funeral Home will offer a free shuttle service back and forth from the parking lot to the fairgrounds.

The fair board will use its portion of the parking money to maintain the grounds and the fair council will fund scholarships and kid activities with its portion, Stargell said.

Visitors can expect to find their favorite fair eats — whether it’s fried potatoes, ribeye sandwiches, funnel cakes or corn on the cob — at their usual food booths on the Midway, including the Lick Creek Love Bugs and political parties serving either fish sandwiches or cobbler and ice cream.

With this year being a General Election year, visitors can also expect to see faces of those who will be on the ballot in the fall campaigning at the fairgrounds. Stargell said that are also many independent candidates who will have booths campaigning this year.

Finney said that with plans and events underway before the fair, the last few weeks have been the same as always: chaotic and fun.

“We’re seeing lots of people (at the fairgrounds) and hanging out during the day,” she said. “It’s nice for people to come together.”

Judging on the amount of people coming into the Purdue Extension office to get open class booklets, Finney said that there is a lot of interest from the community to participate.

One of the most fun events at the fair for Finney is Kids Farm and Fun Day, which will be Tuesday, July 26 from 9 a.m. to noon. Kids will be able to race at the grandstands during a bike drag race at 11 a.m. that day.

Finney also likes walking through the barns and buildings in support of young 4-H members.

“It’s fun to walk through the barns and see what our kids are capable of,” she said. “It’s always fun to see.”