By Tina L. Scott
MMC Staff
MERRILL – Another Lincoln County 4-H Free Fair is in the books, after drawing thousands to the Merrill Festival Grounds for a traditional county fair and all that that entails.
This year’s theme was “Moov’in On with Tradition!” … and the Aug. 17-21, 2022, Lincoln County Fair did not disappoint.
Rides, games, music, exhibits, food and fun combined with decent weather, bringing in families and kids of all ages, including those who are still just kids at heart.
“I had fun,” said one local annual fair-goer, Darlene Weirich of Merrill. “Maybe because I was a farm girl and it brings back all the memories of 4-H, taking all the exhibits, hoping for a blue ribbon.”
Hundreds of volunteers and 4-H youth and their parents made it all possible, from the kids mucking the stalls and the volunteers who cleaned out the barns after the fair, to the local churches and organizations that cleaned, cooked, served and then cleaned again in the permanent food stands on site. From the ticket takers for the grand stand shows to the people who picked up garbage on the grounds or in the stands, hundreds of individuals worked together to make it happen for the 138th year.
“I would like to give a blue ribbon to the people that put on the fair,” Weirich said, recognizing that it takes a small army to pull everything together. “Not only the Fair Board, but the ones behind the scenes, preparing the food before the crowd comes … the kids getting their animals ready to be judged and growing vegetables, photography, woodworking and all the other projects … the police … all that stood at the parking booths …” There were just too many to list.
Weirich said she thoroughly enjoyed herself.
“The music in the tents was fantastic and fun … the rides and the games to play, hearing the laughter of the kids and (seeing their) bright happy eyes … seeing friends giving hugs …”
Weirich also appreciated that Merrill’s fair is still free admission.
“I support the Lincoln County Fair, and I paid for parking, but also walked in without paying (because you can),” she said.
4-H youth displayed the fruits of months of labor as evidenced by 4-H club displays and individual entries into many categories of competition that helped them develop skills and abilities they will be able to use for a lifetime. Nowhere is the amount of time and dedication that goes into their projects more evident than in the animal showing and the annual auction.
Monster truck mud bog racing, demo derby, free antique tractor pull, free horse show, butter carving, free ventriloquist show, horses, cows, pigs, sheep, goats, exhibits, live music, bands, beer, dancing, chickens, Ferris wheel, win-a-goldfish game, vendors, exhibits, cheese curds, ice-cream, corndogs, fun house, bumper cars, hamburgers, animal auctions, calves, steer, ducks, bunnies … what was your favorite part of this year’s fair?
