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Ohio Farm Bureau is seeking candidates to serve as Farm Bureau member representatives on the Ohio State Fair Junior Fair Board for 2022. The board is made up of Ohio’s best and brightest young leaders, ages 16 to 20, who are hand-picked to contribute to the success of the Ohio State Fair each year. Goals of the Junior Fair Board include:

• To serve the people of the Ohio State Fair.
• To interact with fairgoers and provide the best experience possible.
• To help other agencies and organizations with their tasks, booths, etc. at the fair.
• To gain networking experiences and special opportunities.

Ohio Farm Bureau will have two members represented on the board. There will be one returning member from the previous year (second year member) and one new member to the Junior Fair Board (as a first-year member). All first-year members are required to go through Farm Bureau’s application process in addition to the Ohio State Fair Junior Fair Board application and interview process.

Board member perspective 

Kameron Rinehart, who is a Farm Bureau member in Fayette County, was a Junior Fair Board member for four years, serving two years on behalf of 4-H and two years on behalf of FFA. Today’s teens are incredibly busy and have numerous opportunities for camps, internships, volunteering and summer jobs, but Rinehart encourages teens to give the fair board serious consideration. 

“You only have a couple chances to do this (due to the 16-20 year old age requirements),” he said.  “Your timeframe is not very long to be involved in these opportunities.” 

“Once you’re on the state fair board, you realize you’re part of a whole big group of people. There is a reunion each year, and you meet people a couple of years removed from the board and people 50 years removed from the state fair board.,” he said, so the networking is invaluable. 

As a board member, he shadowded then Ohio Department of Natural Resources Director Jim Zehringer for a day, which Rinehart said helped him understand how the director worked with his team and the governor. He also worked with Ohio Expo Center Commissioners Tom Price and Steve Reinhard. “They are people I still talk to and see at events today and something I’ve cherished,” he said.

Rinehart said one of his most fun memories was serving as the Celeste Committee chair, meaning he got to meet celebrities such as Charlie Puth and Joe Jonas. Fun fact: Joe Jonas had never seen a live sheep before. Rinehart took him to the sheep barn with Ohio Sheep Improvement Association Director Roger High, where Jonas met the Pozderac family. 

“That stands out as well as the people you serve with,” Rinehart said.  Over the course of the fair, there is plenty of leadership development training, with courses on etiquette and public speaking, that you can use the rest of your professional life, he said. “The skills will be beneficial to you post graduation whether entering college or the workforce.”

General requirements

• 16-20 years old.
• Currently a member, or parents are members of Farm Bureau.
• Highly involved Farm Bureau member.
• Individuals’ accomplishments (i.e., competition at the state and/or national level, leadership experiences, community service/volunteer experiences, etc.). 
• Leadership experience with the potential and desire to continue to grow as a leader.
• Very responsible, respectful and professional.

Applicants do not need to have previously volunteered for Farm Bureau at the state fair level or attended the state fair to be a member of the Ohio State Fair Junior Fair Board

Job duties

Board members will be at the fair July 24-Aug. 7. Members must be at the fair for its entire duration, including two days pre-fair. First-year Junior Fair Board members are paid a flat-rate stipend of $750 for their service; returning members will receive a $900 stipend for their second year of service.

Among tasks at the fair:

• Ushering concerts in Celeste Center
• Costume characters and escorts
• Mobile Customer Service Rep
• Tour guides for fair daily tours
• Parade – announcing and line-up
• Assisting at various exhibits in ODNR park including Kayak Pond, Wildlife Fishing Pond, and Smokey Bear
• Assisting at the Ohio Tourism booth
• Public speaking – Livestock show welcomes, Main Street and Gazebo Stage welcomes
• Assisting at the Ohio State Fair Hall of Fame Luncheon and Ohio Ag Hall of Fame Breakfast
• WOSU PBS Kids Day
• Governor’s media tour
• Skillathons
• Butter Cow unveiling
• Interacting with fair staff and commissioners
• Participation in the Ohio Joint Legislative Ag Committee Hearing

To apply

All applications are due by Feb. 11 at 5 p.m. and can be submitted via email to [email protected].

Photo credit: Ohio State Fair