The Wisconsin Association of Fairs was excited to receive more than thirty entries for the “Every Person Has A Fair Story Contest”. People were asked to submit their Wisconsin fair story this past November.
The winners were announced at the annual Wisconsin Association of Fairs Convention at the Chula Vista Resort in Wisconsin Dells on Monday, January 11, 2016 during the opening session.
Entries were divided into four districts and judged. Here are the first and second place entries in each district.
District 1
- First Place: Michael J. “Gus” Caylor Jr. from Merrill, WI.Story from the Lincoln County Fair.
- Second Place: Sharon & Michael Marx from Wausau, WI.Story from the Wisconsin Valley Fair.
District 2
- First Place: Flora and Wayne Danielson, Cadott.Story from the Northern WI State Fair
- Second Place: Linda Degner, Shell Lake.Story from the Washburn County Fair.
District 3
- First Place: Larry Parr, LaFarge.Story from the Vernon County Fair.
- Second Place: Jolene Martin.Story from the Lafayette County Fair.
District 4
- First Place: Judy Miglin, Forest Junction.Story from Calumet County and WI State Fair.
- Second Place: Chuck Kopsell, Delavan.Story from the Walworth County Fair.
First place entries from each district were awarded $50 prizes. Badgerland Financial, The Country Today, and National Tractor Pullers Association sponsored the prizes.
The Grand Champion was selected from the first place entries. The Reserve Champion selection followed rules from the fair judging world, that when a first place entry is selected, the second place entry from that class is considered for Reserve along with the remaining first place entries. This year’s Grand Champion received a plaque and a $250 cash award. The Reserve Grand Champion received a plaque and $150 cash award, both sponsored by Pam Jahnke, The Fabulous Farm Babe.
Grand Champion: Michael J. “Gus” Caylor Jr. from District 1.
Reserve Grand Champion: Sharon and Michael Marx from District 1.
Here are the stories that won! Enjoy – and congratulations!
District 1: First Place
Michael J. “Gus” Caylor Jr.
Merrill, WI 54452
Every child loved the fair, but even better than the fair itself I loved to race down after the fair left town Saturday morning and see what got left behind. The morning after the fair was always busy. Men worked on bringing down tents, rides and stands were packed up, and what was once a bustling midway bulging at the seams was now a large work zone as people cleaned and packed and got ready to head off to the next town.
The carnival that came to Merrill every year was known as Belle City Amusements. To say Belle City was a little less glamorous then their title would be an understatement. The rides were not the cleanest, nor were the people working them.
As I was making my way down what used to be a midway I would often look in the numerous metal trash cans that were spread throughout. Here sitting on top of a pile in a garbage can was a pile of ride tickets. None of them torn, none of them worn, none of them stamped with any date. They were just there, right there!
I looked around; this had to be a trick. Someone had to be filming me, waiting for me to grab the tickets before they jumped out and said “HEY KID, those aren’t yours.” Maybe it was a trick, maybe this was how they lured boys to run off with the carnival.
Either way I had to find out.
I quickly grabbed up the stack of tickets which more closely resembled two bricks stacked next to each other. I placed them in my backpack and biked home as quickly as I could.
Then I waited.
Summer turned to fall, winter came and went. All the time I kept those tickets in a warm dry place. Not too much light and don’t touch them too much and wear them out. Always making sure they were there when I checked. They were my little investment for the future.
Then it came. Opening day of the Lincoln County Fair. I didn’t want to seem too confident. I didn’t want to bring down the fortune the first day. What if I was caught? What if someone saw the supply I had?
I slowly strolled up to the bumper cars as if I was an old professional. I handed the ticket taker my three tickets and waited with the fullest breath of air in my lungs… and he took them. He took them. He ripped them in half and motioned me onto the ride. It worked, it really worked.
My fun lasted until Friday night. Relatives and friends I had not seen in years all wanted to talk to me. I was the most popular kid on the midway hearing from all sides, “Hey Gus, I heard you got tickets.” I did have tickets, and a memory that will last a lifetime of the summer I ran the midway.
It should be noted Belle City Amusements has grown into one of the premier carnivals in the United States playing big events like the Ohio and Iowa State Fairs. A much grown up version compared to what we saw as children.
District 1: Second Place
Sharon & Michael Marx
Merrill, WI 54452
It was Tuesday, the opening day of our county fair, August 1981. I was working with the other 4H members in our club, putting finishing touches on our beef and sheep barn display. That morning, I had finished my chores early to be able to spend the full day at the park with friends. Thoughts of high school were far behind me since I had just graduated.
I was unloading the back of a pick-up truck filled with bedding. I looked to my right, and there stood a girl, and I thought, “I haven’t seen her before. I would really like to meet her.” She was looking for her friend that was in my 4H. I caught her looking my way, and we smiled. We finished the setup of the beef display. I had to get home to finish getting my animals ready for entry day the next day. So I said to my friends, “See you all tomorrow.”
As the next day unfolded with the animal drop off and weigh-in, with the fair in full swing, when much to my surprise the young lady returned to our club area to see her friend again. We introduced ourselves to each other on the midday. We walked around the fairgrounds. I asked her if I could show her my animals. I thought she was very nice. While walking to the barns, I stole a kiss from her by spinning her around by hooking my finger in her belt hoop and she kissed me back! This was the start of a 34 year tradition for us to go for a walk down the midway of our fair and stop between the barns for a kiss. She is now my wife of 33 years, with 4 children, 1 girl and 3 boys, and we owe it all to the meeting at the county fair.
It was a warm, August summer day, my Mom let me ride my 10 speed bike to the fair with my brother. I was to meet up with my friend who was in 4H. I wanted to help her with the barn displays. The beef barn was humming with the laughter and hard work of all the kids eager to spend their week at the fair with their summer projects.
As I was looking around for her, a nice looking 4H boy was unloading a truck. I thought, “Hmm, I’d sure like to meet him!” I had found my girlfriend. We sat on the bales of hay that were stacked in the tack area of her club. Being teenage girls, we began talking about boys. I had at one point asked her “Who is this Mike Marx guy that you’re talking about?” Then all of a sudden, she pointed over to the bleachers and said, “Well, there he is right over there!” As she pointed him out to me, he looked my way. Our eyes met, world had seemed to buzz all around us, as time stood still for us…cupid had just shot his arrow!
Our first conversation was the next day, on the midway. Yep! I came back the next day! We talked for the longest time. He asked me if I wanted to see his cattle. I sure did! After sneaking a kiss, he then walked me back to my Mom’s car later that evening near the grandstand. As I stood by the open car door, he said to me, “I love you!” My Mom said, “What did he say?” I told her with a smile, “Oh nothing!” She then asked where he was going. I said back to the barns. She asked me if he’d like a ride. He promptly got into the car…we held hands and smiled the entire time!
District 2: First Place
Flora and Wayne Danielson
Cadott, WI, 54727.
Although the Northern Wisconsin State Fair in Chippewa Falls has always been an important part of our family’s life, the fair from the year 1950 holds an especially precious moment, for it was then and there that my husband first asked me on a date.
Wayne had won the grand champion award on his Holstein cow and was asked to show it in front of the grandstand that afternoon along with the other 4 dairy breed champion cows. Looking for a little help in scrubbing up his animal, Wayne approached his friend, Jim, and my younger brother, Bill. “Sure,” the boys agreed, they’d be happy to help, as long as Wayne would take each of the boys’ older sisters around the fair on a date. Although people who know us now may find this hard to believe, at that point in time both Wayne and I were extremely shy. Well, that cow must have really needed some work because Wayne agreed to the terms.
I was working in the 4-H Snack Bar when Wayne came over and asked if I would like to go to the grandstand show with him that night. Since all the 4-H exhibitors got free admission to the grandstand, it was a popular place for couples to go. I have to admit I was a little relieved to be able to truthfully tell him I couldn’t make it as I was shopping that night for bridesmaid dresses for a friend’s wedding. However, when the stores closed at 9:00, my friends dropped me off at the fair where I could get a ride home with my aunt.
Coming out of the grandstand, Wayne passed by the Snack Bar and was puzzled to see me. After I explained what had happened, Wayne asked, “Well, would you like to go around the fair now?”
“She’d love to go!” piped up Aunt Ella before I even had a chance to open my mouth, and we were off on our first date.
Happily, I was unaware of the boys’ agreement until years later, or I would have turned down Wayne’s invitation for that first date. Little did I know then that years later we would be married with 7 children (who all exhibited at the fair!) and now be enjoying 61 years of a very happy and blessed marriage– with one very special date night visit to the fair every year!
District 2: Second Place
Linda Degner
Shell Lake, WI 54871
I was the second of four girls born within five years that grew up on a dairy farm in Washburn County. My mother should have gone stark, raving mad during our peak 4-H years of showing at the county fair, but miraculously she did not. Each of us took many projects to the fair, including dairy, crops, gardening, knitting, foods, foods preservation and clothing. The clothing project always had many “last minute” components to it and after every fair was finished we vowed to not procrastinate for next year. Yet, like most New Year’s resolutions, that thought got stashed away on a shelf in the back of our minds until we dusted it off shortly before the next fair.
Four girls times four dairy animals each equaled a whopping sixteen animals that needed to be trained, washed, clipped, and cared for. The washing and clipping needed to happen that week of the fair. The “last minute” clothing project always took precedence over the animals because one of the four girls (me) did not take the clothing project. I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard, “just get started and your sisters will be down shortly to help.” I preferred the animals to fighting with the sewing machine any day.
The night before the start of our fair, my sister decided that she needed a blouse to complete her clothing ensemble. With determination and adrenaline, she worked all night to get it done. The last button was attached as we arrived at the entry gate with the first load of our exhibits. During judging, the Judge said, “The blouse…Yes the blouse was beautifully crafted, the seams were finished perfectly and the pressing was impeccable.” A good judge always points out the positive before she lets the axe fall. My sister fell short of the blue ribbon because she had sewn a sleeve in upside down! Instead of your arms hanging comfortably at your side, you would need to keep one arm raised at all times. My mom was flabbergasted. She had not noticed this before my sister had entered it. With short puffy sleeves, I suppose, the extra fullness under the arm wasn’t quite as noticeable.
Just as the ball drops on New Year’s Eve in Time Square, we vowed once again to start our projects earlier for next year’s fair!
District 3: First Place
Larry Parr
La Farge, Wi 54639
I Always Wanted To Be A Cowboy – Wis State Fair Story
I think many of the young boys back in the 50’s and early 60’s had a desire to be a cowboy and I was one of those. TV shows back then had many cowboy and western themes and one of the favorites was The Roy Rogers Show. These shows had impacts on many as to heroes and roll models for us young lads.
Our family made an annual event to attend the local Vernon County Fair and at least one if not both the Wisconsin and Minnesota State Fairs. For us this was the big treat, big vacation and event of our early childhood days. I am not for sure on the year I think it was 1957 as a 5 year old our family traveled to the Wisconsin State Fair for our annual vacation. This was going to be a very special treat as we had tickets to see the Roy Rodgers and Dale Evans grand stand show. My older brother and I where as excited as could be (younger sister not so much). We were going to see in person one of the most popular TV cowboys in history.
We got to our seats and the show started. All I remember about the show was it started to rain. I have no memory of any of the show. I think it was shortened due to the storm. After the show my father led us to get as close as we could to the stage and maybe get pictures with Roy and Dale and just as we got to within a few feet of the stage, a crew member said that’s it no more pictures. We have to leave to get to our next event. And to this day, as clear as could be, I heard Dale say “What about the little boy on crutches”? That was me!
Roy said yes we want to get his picture so with help from the stage crew I was rushed to center stage Roy knelt down and there I was standing next to my cowboy idol. My dad took the picture that to this day I cherish as one of the many memories I have of the Wisconsin State Fair.
District 3: Second Place
Jolene Martin
The fair has always been a big part of my summers since I can remember. This summer at the Lafayette County fair will probably be the most unforgettable night ever. On July 16th 2015 at approximately 8:30 at night my daughter Ashley was proposed to in the middle of the dairy show. She met her future husband 10 years ago showing dairy cattle and they had always joked around who would leave the show ring holding the first place ribbon. Ashley was called out to the middle of the show ring not having a clue that Adam Moore would get down on one knee and ask her to marry him in front of many fair goers. Adam told the audience that it was only fitting that he ask Ashley to marry him in the same place that they met and showed dairy cattle together. Instead of a blue ribbon in hand, Ashley walked out of the show ring with a diamond ring on her finger and holding hands with her future husband.
District 4: First Place
Judy McGlin
Forest Jct, WI 54123
When I was the 1983 Calumet County Fairest of the Fair – I had a State Fair Fairest reunion to remember for a lifetime. My boyfriend at the time had a friend that was attending UW Milwaukee so the boys got together to enjoy the fair with some beer and cheese while I was on tour with the other fairests enjoying the cream puffs. We made a plan on when and where to meet since this was before everyone having a cell phone. The time came and went and I was getting upset. After waiting a time I left leaving him at the fair. I wasn’t really worried because he was with his buddy or so I thought.
He had a few too many brews and got separated from his buddy. Now without a cell phone, cash, or a credit card, he didn’t have a way home or a place to sleep. So he calls collect and I had told him to figure it out. He found a place to sleep: – Yes on the fairgrounds – The storage closet for the DNR bathrooms. The next day he got money wired for a bus ticket home.
Now for the big question did we break-up? No way – He married his Fairest of the Fair and we’ve been married for over 29 years. Lesson learned, know where and when you are leaving and have a backup plan.
District 4: Second Place
Chuck Kopsell
Delavan, Wi 53115
My Fair Story
This was my 39th year as ring man for the 2015th Walworth County 4-H Beef show. The day before the show I was talking to some of the exhibitors that my back was bothering me and I hoped I would be ok as the ring man for the 4-H beef show the next day. A girl heard me and asked aren’t you going to be in the show ring? I said I hope so. She said she was showing her light weight steer first and maybe I could take a rest, then come back for her heavy weight steer so I could see her show her steers. I said I will be in the ring for the whole show. She asked me if I remembered her showing her first steer 8 years ago. I told her I didn’t remember her. She said my name is Brittney and the first time she showed her steer he was acting up and that I helped her settle him down. She ended up winning that class. Her mother took a picture of her and I together. She said she still has that picture sitting on her dresser at home. I told her that was very nice and it made me feel very special.
I started telling Brittney that this winter we were going to Texas to help our Granddaughter who was going to have a baby. Brittney then said “you’re the best Grandpa ever”
After the show Brittney wanted a picture of her and I together in front of the sign 2015 Walworth County Fair so she could put it next to her other one from 8 years ago.
This was a very special moment for me at the Fair this year.