Remembering Cathy Hanson

Things happen in life that is great. Things happen which can be quite tragic. This past week, it was the latter. Our community lost one of our own. Cathy Hanson passed away yesterday after suffering a massive heart attack.

To say that this hit many of us hard would be an understatement. It was a shock that is quite numbing and really drives home several important things.

I’ve known Cathy and the Hanson family for the majority of my life. Growing up I was friends with her son Mark and we’ve been good friends for most of our lives. We would spend time at each other’s houses and so would get to know each other. My mother and Cathy did many things together as they both served on various student/parent organizations while we went through school, and they were close.

Cathy’s heart attack happened last Saturday night, and Mother told me that she saw Cathy at the fair earlier that day and they talked, chatted and laughed like there wasn’t a care in the world. So you can imagine how this has affected all of us. I suppose the one thing I take from it is that you need to live life as full and complete as you possibly can. I believe that Cathy did this.

In the entire time I’ve known her, she was always out in the world doing things. Whether it was as a mother, who raised four children, or as a wife, who worked around the farm along with her husband Glenn, or working in the community as a 4-H Advisor, a church elder, in the Grange, or through the school, Cathy was involved, and was often in charge because it was the only way things would get done. When Cathy would say that something was going to get done, you could take that to the bank.

I’ve been here before, with family and friends over the past several years, and it is a rough road each and every time. I try to take one thing though from the experience, and here, I believe it is to go out, live life and be involved.

Life is not worth living if you wait around for it to come to you. Cathy taught me that, and it’s a lesson that I’m going to try to take to heart.

Hardin County Fair 2012: One For The Books

It occurred to me that I didn’t really spend much time during the rest of the week keeping people updated on the fair. It’s my fault really. As the week continues, fatigue begins to set in a bit and you lag and get behind on what’s important. Comes with the territory I suppose.

Emilys and Willies Baskets (Emilys Won and Willie came in third)

At any rate, I found that the remainder of the 2012 Hardin County Fair was a great success. (At least for my money). Rain did roll in on Friday which caused some issues but the rest of the weekend went pretty smooth.

Friday, I arrived at the Fairgrounds around 1pm. Dad was waiting to drive his team of draft horses out on the track and from what I gathered, had been waiting for some time. Around 1:30 or so they called the farm class which was Dad’s class and we went out. At this exact moment, Mother Nature decided to screw with us again and the sky opened up. The rains fell fast. However Dad was able to finish the class and complete. The event was called off after the next class.

Interviewing Ridgemont FFA Advisor Stephane Jolliff

I had to take my turn in the WKTN Booth later that day. I enjoy it but the drawback is that I don’t get to walk around and experience the fair as I normally would. So I ask people to come to the booth and talk about what’s happening, which I did this time. I tried to make it lively, but my boss thought I needed to tone it down a wee bit. He thinks I sound too much like a 60’s DJ sometimes.

With Holly Layman, who was in the Arena this year

We had the ballgame Friday night which was called late in the 4^th quarter due to lightning and the lopsided score.

Saturday, I pitched a tent and spend the entire day in the show arena for the Jr. Fair Livestock Sale. Dad and I would take turns announcing for the sale and Will and Emily would record the sale bids and buyers. The day began at 8am and wasn’t finished till 4:30. No breaks, or pauses, and it was great. I enjoy the sale a lot because it is the conclusion for many of the exhibitors and it’s always gratifying to see so many businesses and individuals come out and support the kids.

Sunday, I wasn’t out much as I had to fill in on the Sunday morning show and run board ops for the Cleveland Browns but I made it out at 4:30. While Sunday can suck sometimes, I liked it because it gave me a chance to walk around the fair with my friends and not have to worry about being somewhere for a report or making sure I got a picture. I was able to actually enjoy it.

Will's showing what the end of the fair looks like

People don’t usually realize the kind of hard work that goes into putting something like this on, nor do they realize how great it is to have such a large fair in our county. I’ve been to many fairs and for many counties it’s something they do in addition to other things but it’s not their big thing. In Hardin County, if we do one thing well, it’s the Hardin County Fair. It’s not easy, and there are times when we test each other get on each other’s nerves and might disagree, but we all know that this is a great fair, and we work our hardest to ensure that each and every year it’s as good but preferably better than the last.

I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Hardin County Fair 2012: Day Three (Halfway There)

Didn’t spend a lot of time at the fair today due to “technical” issues we were having with the broadcast out there, and they needed someone in the studio. It was just as well as there wasn’t much going on today, unless you’re into harness racing.

Although I did manage to get a pretty neat shot of the harness racing  a couple of years ago.

At any rate, I thought I would take this post to showcase some pictures that we’ve got and posted on the WKTN website over the week.

I always try to get a crowd shot because there's usually a mass of people at some point and I want to get it all in, so I try to find a high spot and shoot down on the crowd. It isn't always easy. The thing that's interesting about this shot is that it was pouring buckets of rain not an hour after it was taken.

The Hardin County Pork Producers built their own barn this year to serve. They moved from their traditional location beside the arena to a spot across from their barns. It's not a bad place and I'll be interested to see how business has been this year.

Bob Fish and his daughter Rachel, two longtime friends. Bob is the fairboard president this year. His wife Chris was named fair honoree for her many years of volunteer work for the fair. It was a shock to many of us when she passed away last year.

Many fairs host these traveling animal shows and they're always fun because you can see something that you normally wouldn't see in Hardin County. This year the show was wild tigers.

This right here is one of my favorite things to do every year. When you walk around the fairgrounds you see moments that are amazing. Sometimes it's a young kid walking an animal, or a baby sleeping or just some people looking at something interesting. Here one of the traveling entertainers is talking with a young kid named Lucas, if I remember correct.

Of course, each year all the royalty of Hardin County Agriculture are out and about at the fair. It's one of the opportunities for young people (mostly women) in the county to get exposure and make a name for themselves. My cousin Sarah, the Hardin County Lamb & Wool Queen is on the far right.

The high school band show is always a highlight on opening day. I try to get the good shots which isn't easy with the equipment I have plus the fact that I know little about photography. But I think I got some decent pictures.

And of course, I would be remiss if I didn't include some from my former high school band.

I saw this in the Arts & Crafts Building this year. For a quilt it's rather impressive, though I'm sure some would beg to differ. I just thought it was interesting.

The next three shots I didn't take which is why they are actually good. Holly Layman, who is working my old job from the show arena this year, and one of my best lifelong friends took these and I thought they were excellent. This is Skyler Lotz and his turkey is sleeping.

At the poultry show, we see an excellent picture of Noah Beach who is competing and Jr. Fairboard members Mackenzie Zembower and Alex Steele

And finally, this is my favorite picture by far this year. When Holly showed me this shot I knew we had something really special. This is Kinsie Klingler and Hannah Hall with Mini Me (Though Holly wanted it to be called Mini Moo.) Sometimes you just know you have a great picture that is front page material, or captures the Fair so well. This is one of those shots.

Tomorrow is Friday, which is a busy day out at the fair. Dad will be out with his horse team most of the day for the Draft Horse show and my mother and sister will be out there most of the day. Friday will also have the antique tractor parade and a concert by Phil Dirt and the Dozers so that should be ok. I’ll also be doing my show in the booth from 3pm to 6:30 before I need to high tail it to the station for the football game. Should be a good day, weather permitting.

 Stay tuned.

Hardin County Fair 2012: Day Two (Long day and not much of it at the fair)

I didn’t spend much time at the fair today for a number of reasons. I was asked to attend a rally at the University of Findlay which featured Ann Romney and write about it for the university newspaper, the Pulse. I was more than happy to do so as I have a column in the paper this year, so it made sense. 

Having said that, the addition of the rally and the fair made the day rather long.

At any rate, the rally ended at 1:30 or so and I high tailed it to Kenton. I was just coming into Dunkirk when I heard on the radio that I would be coming in after 2pm to broadcast while Dennis made his way out to the fair. With around 15 minutes left in the drive at 1:55 you can imagine what was going through my mind. I booked it and made it back a bit after two.

Then, for some odd reason, our computer out at the fair kept going offline and someone needed to be at the station till we were done for the day at 7pm. Bear in mind, at this point I still needed to write and file my column from the mornings events by 3pm, so you can imagine my mindset around 2:30 this afternoon.

At any rate, I finally made it out to the fair around 7:15 and made a point of attending the show choir show and the market lamb show. I didn’t get many pictures today, which kind of bummed me out but there’s always tomorrow.

My family usually works the Hardin County Beef Producers Steak Barn on Wednesday and they did again this year. My dad is the shift leader that day and he usually gets into it with some of the guys as to who gets there early. My sister reported that Dad was the first one on site this morning and didn’t let anyone forget it. Dad has an interesting sense of humor.

For what it’s worth, the high school show choirs who performed put on an excellent show for those in attendance, and it was well attended. Each had their moments to shine. Naturally I’m partial to the Kenton Middle School Dimensions and the Kenton Top 20 and both groups were excellent. So good luck to them both this year.

The market lamb show was well attended as well. Given the heat and humidity of the day it was a bit stifling in the show arena all day and especially tonight but they were able to get through it.

Tomorrow should be better. I hope those who were there had a great time today, and I look forward to seeing them tomorrow.

Stay tuned.

Hardin County Fair 2012: Day One (Heat & Umbrellas Order Of The Day)

Day One.

As far as first days go, it could have been better, weather wise, but it was still pretty good. The showers which fell at a couple of different points throughout the day didn’t seem to dissuade people from coming out though I am sure the numbers tomorrow will tell a different story. For my money there were quite a few people out there.

At any rate, there’s usually a bit of activity on the first day. The fair officially opens and many of ag-still projects are judged on the first day. I am pleased to report that the two pictures I entered won in their classes.

This photo was entered in the 2012 Hardin County Fair pictures contest where it took second. I took it on the back of Joe Kearns wagon on Draft Horse day. It was beaten out by a really good pic of a young exhibitor sleeping next to his dairy feeder.

 This second photo won it’s class. It was entered in the Hardin County Fair special which included scenes from around Hardin County. I took it several years ago during a barn raising on County Road 180. This particular barn raising happened several weeks after the original barn caught fire and they all turned out to build another one. This barn was finished in the same day and is one of my favorite shots. The fact that it won took me by surprise considering the shear number of photos that are entered each year. So I was pleased.

 Like I said, the rain came and went several times, but it held off for the King and Queen contest and the High School Band show so that was nice. Natalie Molk from Kenton and Austin Eibling from Upper Scioto Valley were named the fair king and queen so a good luck to them this week.

Tomorrow I will not be able to make it to the grounds until later in the day so I may not have as much to talk about then but I’ll let you know tomorrow what happens so…

Stay tuned.

Hardin County Fair 2012: Setup Monday (Labor Day Indeed)

For many of us, the Hardin County Fair really begins on Monday. This is the day before the fair officially opens and everyone is bringing in their projects and contest materials. Vendors are setting up and booths are being put together. Considering several of the vendors are open and serving it’s like an extra day all rolled into the rest of the week.

For my part, I wasn’t out there so much this year. In years past I would go out early to either take out an animal (when I was younger) or help set up a couple of booths. It usually began with helping my Dad set up the booth for his sportsman’s club, Rushcreek. They have a booth in the Wildlife Clubs tent which showcases their club and activities, especially the hunter safety courses which are always in demand each year.

Boss man and John Siemon getting the kinks worked out of the system.

Later, I’ll help set up the booth for my radio station, WKTN. Whereas in years past I would be roped into actually setting up the booth and equipment, this year I was at the studio downtown. There were some technical issues of course (there always are) but we were able to get things going, and we’ll be there all week long in the Merchants Building.

As the afternoon rolled on and I finally made it out to the fairgrounds, I met up with the rest of the family and we entered our projects this year. I had two photos that I took which I’ll display at the end of the week. My brother and sister entered a basket each that they made and my sister also entered a cross stich pattern she made. Most of these will be judged this week so it should be interesting.

Taken from 2008, my brother wasn't here on Monday this year, though he'll be in by Saturday.

Finally, on Monday the whole family takes its shift in the Hardin County Lamb Producers Barn where we serve lamb products throughout the week. My family has a long history with raising lambs dating back as far as I can remember so we help out wherever we can each year.

Overall, it seemed like the crowd was down a bit, and we all figured it was because many of the vendors came in early over the weekend to set up, which means they weren’t around today, but there were still a lot of people out and about. Ran into some friends and I believe will still run into many more before the week is out.

Stay tuned.

The Hardin County Fair Begins Next Week

As I sit here in the studio running the board for the Ohio State game I thought I’d take a moment to let everyone know what is coming up next week. If you live or are from Hardin County, then you are aware of the Hardin County Fair. It’s the premier event in the county each and every year, and if there’s only one thing that Hardin County does well it’s this fair. I suppose the argument could be made that it’s one of the best in the State of Ohio. I certainly think so.

Throughout the entire week, I’ll make a posting on what I see, hear, do, and otherwise keeping you appraised as to how my week will be going at the fair. There’s much to do, but I won’t be out there, saturated in the events as much as I have in the past. School and changes in my work obligations have dictated that my time be spent in other endeavors during the week along with the fair insanity but I’ll do the best I can.

Just to give you a bit of a preview, for many of us, the fair really begins on the day before it officially does, on Monday. Monday is the main setup day, but many of the livestock organizations and other vendors are open and serving while everyone is getting ready so it’s like an extra day.

Highlights this year include the ever popular High school band show, and Fair Kind and Queen Contest. The High School Show Choir Show. Harness racing, a demolition derby on Saturday and the big Truck and Tractor Pull on Sunday.

Of course my interest has always been in the livestock shows. Ever since I was a young kid we would be attending, or participating in the shows. There’s the Hog show, Goats, Poultry, Market Lambs, Steers and dairy and beef feeders, both Junior Fair and Open Class shows. Plus the 4-H Horse & Pony show and the Draft Horse Show, both in the area near the grandstands.

Throughout the week, I’ll be around, sometimes on the air but most times just floating around getting information to pass along to everyone so it should be interesting.

When the week’s over, I am usually spent, but it is, without a doubt, my favorite event each and every year. Some could take it or leave it, but I live for the county fair. Fair’s & Festivals are great to attend because they really are a showcase of what makes a community great. Each year people participate, compete, and just meet for a great time. I always run into friends I haven’t seen in a year or so, and make new ones. Each day is usually exciting, and I can’t wait for it.

So stay tuned next week, and we’ll see what happens.