By Mike Pound
Globe columnist
It looked like rain Tuesday morning at the fairgrounds in Carthage Municipal Park.
Of course, lately it pretty much always looks like rain. But still, I figured that rain would be sort of unwelcome for the kids setting up their pens for the rabbit show at the 51st annual Jasper County Youth Fair. I figured correctly. The rain would be unwelcome but not unexpected.
“Every year it’s either rained or been hot and humid,” Tucker Dunaway said as he tied name tags on his rabbit cages.
Tucker was speaking with the confident voice of a four-year veteran of the youth fair. The 13-year rural Carthage 4-H member started showing rabbits at the youth fair when he was 9 years old and he proudly pointed out a gray lion-head rabbit that has won the Best of Show ribbon for the past two years.
“I started raising rabbits because people told me I had a way with animals. I guess I’ve done real well,” he said.
While we talked, Tucker reminded me that I spoke to him last year at the fair. I told him that he’s grown a lot since then and he grinned.
Working near Tucker was 10-year-old Chet Nichols. This is Chet’s second year in the rabbit competition. Chet told me that he owns and cares for 20 rabbits. I asked him how long it takes each day to feed and care for his rabbits. Chet looked at his mom, Dee Nichols, before he spoke.
“Tell him how long it should take. Then tell him how long it really takes you,” Dee said with a smile.
Turns out, according to Chet, that it should take him 10 to 15 minutes to do his rabbit chores but it sometimes winds up taking him 45 minutes to an hour.
I told Dee that I felt her pain.
That’s what I like about the Jasper County Youth Fair — you can always find someone who will take the time to chat. My wife has been going to the youth fair since she was a kid. Heck, my wife actually was once the Jasper County Fair Queen. She was the prissiest fair queen ever crowned, but she still loves the fair. When we got married, my wife started dragging me to the fair and we’ve been dragging our 9-year-old daughter, Emma, to the fair since she was a baby.
We like to wander through the fair and look at the animals and the other 4-H exhibits. We like to watch the kids chase the greased pig. We like to grab something to eat from the many vendors — Emma is partial to cotton candy — but mainly we like to chat with folks.
We chat with folks that we’ve known for years. See, just about everyone heads out to the fair at least once. We also like to chat with people we don’t know. My wife and Emma like to talk to the owners of the livestock, who you can usually find sitting in a canvas chair near their animals. Emma thinks it’s cool that a lot of the kids get to spend the night at the fair. I think it’s cool that for many people the fair is a chance to visit folks they’ve known for years.
Dee told me there is a sense of family among most of the fair competitors.
“I was in 4-H for 10 years and my kids started as soon as they were old enough. Every year now I see parents out here who I used to be in 4-H with,” Dee said.
So it’s a fun week, but it can be a tough week, Dee said. Because the rabbit show is one of the earliest competitions and because competitors are expected to display their animals through Saturday evening, Dee and her family will spend most of this week at the fairgrounds looking after Chet’s rabbits.
Of course, they won’t be alone. With more than 300 4-H and FFA members competing, there will be a lot of families spending the week at the fairgrounds. They’ll work hard but they’ll have some fun, too.
And it will probably rain at least once. And when it’s not raining, it will probably be hot and humid.
But that’s the fair.
Local News
Mike Pound: Youth fair can be fun but tough week
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