Photo by Linda Kor The Navajo County Fair Board and staff includes (front row, left to right) Treasurer Valerie Slade, President Mike Sample, Secretary Redgie Justman, Vice President Rusty DeSpain, (middle row) Olivia Duran-Gonzalez, fair secretary Jme Baloo, members Wes DeSpain, Paul VanZelf, (back row) J.R. DeSpain, Bill Elkins, Jeremy Browning, Leah Thomas, Marshall Losey, Jason Lewis, Mark Reynolds and Tim Kelley, Fairgrounds Foreman Jose Villareal, (not pictured) members Fred Peterson, Heather Scott, Spencer Huish and Melissa Buckley.
By Linda Kor Navajo County residents voted in familiar faces to the county fair board during last week’s annual meeting. Five people already serving on the board with terms that were expiring were the only candidates for five of the seven available positions. Rather than voting in each member, there was one unanimous vote to accept Redgie Justman, Tim Kelley, Mike Sample and Marshall Losey back onto the board. Two more positions remained with the resignations of Anna Amos and Steve Gouker, and following the election, Olivia Duran-Gonzalez submitted her resignation, stating that she would be moving from the area. The election of officers brought only one change, with Justman taking on the secretary position formerly filled by Losey. Sample remains as president, Rusty DeSpain as vice president and Valerie Slade as treasurer. Prior to the election, the discussion focused on the previous year and an overview of the Navajo County Fair. According to Sample, the fair was a greater financial success this year than the previous one, but it continues to show an overall loss. The cost to put on the fair came to $410,355, while revenues generated totaled $400,411, a loss of $9,944. During a recap of the fair events by board members, Jeremy Browning noted that the demolition derby went well, but he’s considering adding a truck category and would like new entertainment options between the heats. Justman related that the number of entries in the open class exhibition were about the same as the previous year. Leah Thomas advised the board that the cantina did well, but that there is a need for new equipment. “I’d really like to find a generous sponsor that would allow us to rebuild a new cantina, it’s something that needs to be addressed,” agreed Sample. Slade noted that locating vendors to utilize the commercial building space is getting more and more difficult. “Since we’re a smaller fair, it’s difficult to compete with some of the larger fairs for vendors,” she explained. Sample added that it isn’t just the Navajo County Fair, “Commercial vendors are on the decline in general. I spoke with other fair boards and they’re having the same problem.” J.R. DeSpain reported that the Little Buckaroo Rodeo was a great success, but that an injury that sent one child to the hospital has him wanting helmets. “The kid is fine, but I want to get some helmets for the mutton rides so that we don’t have any more kids hurt,” he said. Bill Elkins noted that the junior livestock auction did quite well, with 129 market animals entered. “We had 105 animals sold for a total of $127,681, which is $11,000 more than last year,” he related. Paul VanZelf offered a reminder that kids who want to sign up for 4-H need to do so by the end of January in order to prepare for this year’s fair. After reconvening into regular session following the election, the board discussed items for the coming year. Rusty DeSpain introduced the topic of the Arizona Livestock Camp scheduled July 13-15, with the jackpot show on the July 16. “We want to make this more affordable for the kids. We have two major sponsors, O.H. Kruse and SunGlo, who will donate $1,000 each for the camp. I think this will open it up for a whole new group of people,” he stated, adding that the prizes and payouts would be bigger. He asked board members if they would consider opening the cantina, and serving breakfast and lunch for two days during the camp for a nominal fee of $25 per child. He also asked if Martinez Hall could be used for the sheep and goat show, with the steers and hogs to be shown in the main barn. The board gave its unanimous approval to both requests. Board members then discussed possible options for bringing more visitors to the south side of the fairgrounds during the county fair. “It’s hard to draw people to that end and the carnival won’t be happening on that end next year, so we need to start thinking of some ideas,” explained Sample. Some considerations included hosting a pow wow or even a big name concert. “We’ll need to look at the cost for events like these, but I’d like to see something that would hopefully make us some money instead of taking a loss,” said Sample. Board members were tasked with considering ideas and bringing them back for future discussion. The board also discussed the discontinuation of the Ranch Rodeo, which is held on Sunday, the last day of the fair. “Everyone enjoys the Ranch Rodeo, but it’s just not profitable,” explained Rusty DeSpain. One suggestion was to change it to a Mexican Rodeo, or charreada, which includes numerous competitive events. No decision was made, but the item will be considered at the board’s next meeting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 3. Photo by Linda Kor The Navajo County Fair Board and staff includes (front row, left to right) Treasurer Valerie Slade, President Mike Sample, Secretary Redgie Justman, Vice President Rusty DeSpain, (middle row) Olivia Duran-Gonzalez, fair secretary Jme Baloo, members Wes DeSpain, Paul VanZelf, (back row) J.R. DeSpain, Bill Elkins, Jeremy Browning, Leah Thomas, Marshall Losey, Jason Lewis, Mark Reynolds and Tim Kelley, Fairgrounds Foreman Jose Villareal, (not pictured) members Fred Peterson, Heather Scott, Spencer Huish and Melissa Buckley.
