After almost two years of space and silence, the Brown County Fairgrounds were filled once again with bright carnival rides, fried food smells and loud engine sounds.
Lines of excited kids formed for bracelet nights as lines of hungry adults formed outside the various food booths.
At 9 p.m. Monday, Lick Creek Love Bugs leader Mandy Chittum finally had time to step outside the club’s food booth to eat her dinner.
“I don’t even know how to put it into words, but I was ready,” Chittum said about being back.
The Love Bugs are known for their ribeye sandwiches, cheeseburgers, fried potatoes and corn. For a Monday night, one of the three bracelet nights, Chittum said her booth was busy.
“I didn’t know what to expect and this is crazy. It’s been very steady. I’ve almost sold out of the meat that I’ve ordered for today,” she said.
For Chittum and other residents who grew up here, the fair is not only the official end to summer, it’s also where people come to catch up. The last time some residents saw each other was at the 2019 fair after the 2020 fair was canceled due to the pandemic.
“This is what you look forward to. I refer to it as the homecoming. Literally, it is. It’s where you see everybody you know that you haven’t seen in forever,” she said.
“I had a customer walk up earlier. He was one of the first ones to the booth tonight and he said, ‘I want two cheeseburgers. I’ve been waiting two years for these.’ That made me feel good. That was pretty cool.”
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The weather was hot and dry all week, so grandstand events went off without any delay.
As of Thursday afternoon, Brown County 4-H Fair Board President Mark Stargell said grandstand attendance was up from 2019, when there were more rain disruptions. Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights were still yet to come and featured the biggest shows: motocross races, demolition derby and the mud bog.
Parking money was also up from 2019. It cost $2 per vehicle to park on the fairgrounds. That money goes to pay rent for the parking field, and then any extra is split between the Brown County 4-H Fair Board and the 4-H Council.
Nick Brooks and his daughter Brinley were among the first people on the Ferris wheel Monday night.
“It feels good, obviously, because it’s a little more normal compared to last year,” Nick Brooks said. “It’s always fun to come here. It’s smaller, but it has everything you need.”
Angela Parsley is not from Brown County, but her family has the Parsley Farm. She brought her son, Grayson, and friend, Calvin White, to the fairgrounds to get a bracelet and ride rides all night. This was the first fair the family had attended this year.
“It’s exciting, and it’s exciting to see the kids so happy,” she said.
Lifelong Brown County resident Martha Napier sat in the air conditioning at the Exhibit Building, sewing a runner with a ballerina on it. She and three other women decided to have a “sit and sew” during fair week to increase the activity in the building. “While you’re sitting here sewing you can kind of keep an eye on the exhibits, too,” she said.
Napier and her friends are members of quilting groups in Brown and Johnson counties. She talked the three of her friends into entering 21 exhibits for judging, afraid that there weren’t going to be many exhibits to see. One of those quilt entries, from Carol Dale, ended up winning best in show.
Napier has been helping at the fair ever since she was a child and her mom was a 4-H leader. Her family would raise animals to bring to the fair. To come back to the fair after almost two years away means a lot to her.
“I enjoy it,” she said, tears filling her eyes.
Inside the barn that houses goats and sheep, Katrina Harsch was helping her granddaughter, Chloe, shear her goat, Rodeo.
His name is Rodeo “because he won’t stand still,” Chloe explained.
This is the first fair Chloe is able to show her animals. Last year, she finally was old enough to become a regular 4-H’er instead of participating in the Mini program, but because of the pandemic, there was no actual “show.”
“We took pictures of the animals, sent them in and they judged them by picture. It’s not the same at all,” Katrina said. She and her granddaughter were happy to be back in the barns with the friends who have turned into family.
The truck and tractor pull was taking off Monday night in the grandstand. Finn Clephane sneaked over for a peek of the action, peering through the fence as a large diesel truck made a dash for the finish line while pulling a heavy load under black smoke.
“I’m glad we can gather in spots like this and not have to worry too terribly much. Our community can get together again. I think that’s awesome,” said Finn’s dad, Jezra.
“Everything has calmed down to the point where I feel comfortable enough to walk around with everybody else and not feel like everyone is looking at me because I don’t have a mask on or I’m too close. It’s nice to have a community feeling in general. It feels like we’re bouncing back — at least, that’s what I hope.”
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[sc:pullout-text-end]In the middle of the carnival stood Bailey Walker as she watched her son, Brayden Floyd, throw a dart at a balloon at one of the games.
“My daughter (Rylee, age 2) hasn’t really gotten to go to a fair. This is her first time and she likes it, so it’s exciting,” Walker said.
Alison Faulkner watched as her daughter Alex, took a spin on the Merry-Go-Round holding a stuffed pink elephant carnival game prize. It was the first time the Faulkner family had been to the Brown County Fair.
Allison’s father, Paul “Buddy” Hickman, came along as well. “I am really impressed,” he said of the fair. “Everything is organized.”
“It feels like we’re getting back to life as it once was,” Alison said “– and not just the fair, but just human connection.”
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The Brown County Fair Highlights special section, featuring the winners of all 4-H and Open Class contests, will be inserted into the Aug. 25 paper.
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