Saturday, August 13th, 2016
New building unveiled as fair kicks off
Concert draws big crowd
By Jared Mauch
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard
Opening act Ray Scott entertains the crowd in front of the grandstands Friday evening during the first day of the Mercer County Fair. The Daily Standard was not able to get photographs of the headline act because photography by the paper was not permitted by band security.
CELINA - The Mercer County Fair 2016 began Friday with the grand opening of a new building.
Fairgrounds staff, board members, and county officials met Friday afternoon to open the new FFA building with a ribbon cutting.
The building will provide new space for the county FFA members' projects they submit for judging, fair manager Cara Muhlenkamp said.
The estimated $172,000 structure was paid with the help of local donations, she said.
"It's great to see the generosity of the community at work," she said.
Fair officials received a $50,000 matching grant from the Ohio Agricultural Society Facilities Grant Program. The county's match can be either cash or in-kind work, Muhlenkamp said in May. She also reported in May that officials received a $25,000 donation from Farm Credit for the building.
FFA projects on display for the week include fruits, vegetables, wood benches, and various art projects.
The 50-feet-by-100-feet building will give FFA students more space than the junior fair building and a tent that has been used in the past. A groundbreaking was May 23 and construction was completed Aug. 2, she said.
Muhlenkamp said the extra space is "much needed" for the county fair, which seems to be growing each year.
It features multiple garage doors, two each on the north and south sides and one on the west side, and is located east of the Cooper Farms Junior Fair Building.
The building will also be home to the household department for cake and pie judging and storage for fair weeks, she said.
The start of the fair on Friday did see some much needed rain but the showers were short lived.
Muhlenkamp said she does not pay much attention to the weather of fair week because she knows the fair will go on rain or shine.
"There are plenty of tents for people to go in and out of in case it rains," she said.
The hot weather was on the minds of those tending to the livestock Friday. The animals will be kept in the shade as much as possible and the livestock buildings are opened up as much as possible to maximize airflow, Muhlenkamp said. Fans will also be blowing for an extra boost of cool air, she said.
After highs in the upper 80s on Friday and a high of 85 expected today, temperatures will cool off to the low 80s on Sunday and continue through Wednesday.
The big draw Friday night was the country music concert of Gary Allan with special guest Ray Scott. Ticket sales for the event had already exceeded 3,000 as of Friday afternoon with a few hours left before the music started, Muhlenkamp said.
An exact total of tickets would be available until after the concert, she said.
Another highlight of the opening day of the fair was the crowning of the Mercer County Fair king and queen. This year's king and queen honors went to Jay Uhlenhake from the Philothea Hustlers and Coldwater FFA and Ashley Broering from the St. Henry Lassies and Lads 4-H Club.
Mercer County Fair schedule:
Saturday
9 a.m. - country horseshoe tournament
10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. - baby contests
1 p.m. - Michindon truck and tractor pulls
2 p.m. - pie contest, Kaitlyn Schmit
5 p.m. - Mercer County Fair princess, prince, wee miss, little miss, wee mister contests
6 p.m. - tough truck
6:30 p.m. - pee wee showmanship
7 p.m. - Sherry Chandler, artist demonstration
7:30 p.m. - tug-a-truck
8 p.m. - The Thien Snipps, Empty Tank
Sunday
9 a.m. - invitational horseshoe pitch, open horse pleasure show
9:30 a.m. - patriotic rosary
10 a.m. - open poultry
10:30 a.m. - nondenominational church service
12:30 p.m. - harness racing
1 p.m. - Wright With Christ Bible Study
1:30 p.m. - invitational horseshoe pitching round robin tournament, peewee showmanship
2 p.m. - Kaitlyn Schmit, New Start worship
2:30 p.m. - open breeding sheep show
3 p.m. - Abounding Grace worship
4 p.m. - Jane Stachler religious experience
5 p.m. - RISE worship, wing-eating contest
6 p.m - Christian revival service
7:30 p.m. - open dairy, Haywired
8 p.m. - livestock scramble
Monday
10:30 a.m. - nursing home lunch/activities
1 p.m. - Minute to Win It games
2 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 6 p.m. - Matt McAtee and the Eventuals
5 p.m. - clay demonstration by Anna Talei Fisher
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard
Jay Uhlenhake from the Philothea Hustlers and Coldwater FFA and Ashley Broering from the St. Henry Lassies and Lads 4-H Club were crowned the Mercer County Fair King and Queen on Friday evening in the Junior Fair tent.
