WISHEK, N.D. - This year, the fairgrounds in Wishek, N.D., were brown and dry, with drought affecting the area. But that didn't stop the town from celebrating its 91st annual Tri-County Fair.
From July 13-16, the Tri-County Fair offered a broad variety of events, including carnival rides, stock car races, a kuchen contest, bingo and much more. The fair gave community members of all ages something to enjoy.
But for many, the main event of the fair is the livestock and exhibit show, where participants get a chance to win blue ribbons or a grand champion titles. The exhibit hall was full of projects submitted by 4-H members and students enrolled in agriculture classes, including something they built, baked or grew.
Crystal Schaunaman, with the North Dakota State University Extension for McIntosh County, works with the 4-H club with the projects being entered into the fair, as well as the livestock show.
"Every kid has a passion for something different," Schaunaman says. "Either it is for a certain project, a small animal or large livestock - it's fun to see that passion come through and to see the parents help them."
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The Tri-County Fair livestock show includes a horse show, 4-H animal show and an open small animal and livestock show giving anyone the opportunity to show off a favorite pet or their prize-winning livestock.
Cassidy Walth, a senior at Wishek High School, has been an active member in her local 4-H club since the third grade. She is also president of her local FFA Chapter. This year, Walth showed a heifer and submitted several projects to the show. Cassidy's sister, Caylee Walth, also brought two steers and one heifer. Together their family brought in four animals and several projects.
"This takes a lot of work - hard work - and I give my little sister a lot of credit, too," says Walth. "We are constantly washing them (the animals), working with them and practicing how to set them up. My mom has shown cattle in FFA and 4-H as well, so we learn a lot from her."
Cassidy believes the fair brings her family closer together.
"If it wasn't for the fair, then we wouldn't all be here together right now and working together as a family to get our livestock ready for shows or our projects completed for judging," she says.
Wishek's Tri-County Fair is locally run with 12 members on the fair board. Local businesses help to sponsor the fair, and members of the community also volunteer their time to help organize the event, run carnival rides and cook food for the event-goers.
