A formal reopening of the grandstands at the Navajo County Fairgrounds in Holbrook held Sept. 8, included representatives from throughout the county, including (front row, left to right) Paige Peterson of the Navajo County Finance Department, fair board secretary Jme Baloo, fair board member Valerie Slade, District III Supervisor Jason Whiting; fair board President Mike Sample, District IV Supervisor Steve William, Finance Director James Menlove, (back row) County Manager James Jayne, Clerk of the Court Deanne Romo, Navajo County Assistant Manager Paul Watson, District II Supervisor Jesse Thompson, Facilities Management Director Bret Starns and Jose Villareal of Facilities Management.

District III Navajo County Supervisor Jason Whiting (left) offers his thanks to county employees involved in the reroofing of the Navajo County Fairgrounds grandstands, including (second from left to right) Leanne Baker, Mike Sandoval, Joel Johnstun, Wayne Malone, Jared Daly, Bret Starns, (not pictured) William Rannow, Jose Villareal, Roger Smorong, Carlos Attakai, Tim Otterback and Travis Font.

The Navajo County Fairgrounds will be hosting the 84th annual county fair this month and preparing for that event means constant upgrades and improvements to the grounds.

The grandstands at the fairgrounds were originally built 76 years ago and recently a plan was made to have the roof replaced after so many years of exposure to the weather. A careful inspection of the roof revealed that the trusses were also in need of replacement as they posed a potential safety hazard.

During a meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, District III Supervisor Jason Whiting stated that he was informed, although he had not confirmed, that the wood used for the original grandstand was donated by Whiting Bros., a company owned by his family. He was also told that the JR DeSpain family volunteered their time and energy to help build the grandstands all those years ago.

He then shared his gratitude after he went to his office to discover that a wall hanging displaying the generations of his family had been hung on his wall including a piece of the wood used in the original grandstands construction.

He then expressed his appreciation to those employees who took it upon themselves to ensure that the project was done in a timely fashion in order to ensure the safety of those attending the fair.

The employees acknowledged for their work on the roofing project included Michael Sandoval, William Rannow, Joel Johnston, Jose Villarreal, Roger Smorong, Carlos Attakai, Tim Otterbeck, LeAnn Baker, Travis Font, Wayne Malone, Bret Starns and Jared Golly.

Whiting presented each of these employees with a certificate of appreciation and noted, “These employees already had a full plate, but managed to put this together within three weeks. With the issue of the safety factor and making the citizens a priority, the employees came together and put this all together in time for the fair to begin, and we are very grateful for their efforts.”