“Kick up your Heels” was the theme for the 2016 Berrien County Youth Fair and if you forgot your boots — you had wet feet.  With over eight inches of rain throughout the week — memories were made!
Some interesting facts were learned – goats do not like water, how to work together to get water flowing in the right direction and you can float on inner tubes in the yellow parking lot.
Although we had a wet week with some schedule changes and cancellations, volunteers, exhibitors and fair goers worked together to make the best of the 2016 BCYF.
Our attendance was 118,409 (down 6,604) from 2015. Exhibitors were up at 2,204 with exhibits up at 11,980.  Poultry exhibits were back this year, but access to the swine barn was limited to exhibitors and two designated adults per family due to swine influenza outbreaks at three county fairs prior to BCYF.
We ended the week with healthy pigs, healthy exhibitors and healthy fair goers. Our precaution paid off.  Thanks for the support of all our auction buyers — $505,393 for small and large animals.
Goats in the tent next to the poultry barn were moved to higher ground in the llama tent on Friday after two sessions of flooding.  We may plan to have ducks in that tent area for 2017.  All areas benefited from the installation of our upgraded storm drain though the equine area (tested and it worked!) and the water containment project undertaken this summer by RESA.
Thanks to RESA for letting us utilize their parking lots on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday when our grass lots had taken a beating creating mud and ruts.  The equine show rings were soggy throughout the week, but most classes were run between raindrops.
We hope everyone noticed several improvements: the horse restroom received a total facelift (painted inside by Benton Harbor Kohl’s employee volunteers and new fixtures), BCSD Mounted Division Barn has new concrete approach and inside the barn (their volunteers poured the concrete and provided the picnic tables), the M-139 fence project was completed with the last brick pedestal at Gate 2 complete (donated by the Ron Keigley Family) and black chain link fence from M-139 to the Gate 2 ticket booths (In memory of Tim Pullano – a grant from the Greater Berrien Springs Endowment) and the Al Barbott Memorial Mall Stage has a roof covering (thanks to memorial and volunteer donations to help make this happen).
What a week it was. We extend a huge thanks to our board members, staff, superintendents, assistant superintendents, special attraction coordinators and volunteers who went above and beyond to make the 2016 BCYF a great success as always – we could not do it without your passion for the youth of Berrien County.  Our mission is “Developing the character of the community by developing the character of our youth.”
Mark your calendars for the 2017 Berrien County Youth Fair – Aug. 14-19.  Our theme for 2017 is “Fairadise” – hopefully that means sunny days and cool nights!

Karen M. Klug is the Berrien County Youth Fair secretary and executive director.