Jefferson City's Jaycees have been organizing and running Cole County's fair for 6½ decades.
It's always been a combination of entertainment and contests - and always with the intention of people having fun and making good memories.
This year's event - running from Monday through Saturday (July 27-Aug. 1) - will be no different.
While the Jaycees organize the fair, making sure there's a carnival, rides, food, drinks and musical acts, many of the contests revolve around youth activities of the 4-H and FFA programs.
Those include events where youth show (and sometimes sell) animals they have raised during the past year - including beef, swine, goats, lambs, sheep, rabbits and poultry.
And in recent years, there's been a special "Making Memories at the Fair" event, which this year will be from 9 a.m.-noon on Thursday, July 30.
"We showcase lots of different organizations at that event," said Jenny Flatt, the University of Missouri Extension Service's youth development specialist for 4-H programs in Cole, Callaway and Osage counties. "We bring in day cares and encourage people to come in."
A write-up on the 4-H webpage explains: "All kids and senior citizens are invited to a relaxing morning at the Jefferson City Jaycees' Cole County Fairgrounds.
"Families, Camps, Homeschoolers, Day Care Facilities and other groups are encouraged to attend. ...
"Young children and adults are invited to learn about sources of food and clothes, agricultural commodities, conservation, safety and environmental quality through activities and displays. You can see 4-H Lego Robots in action, participate in hands-on learning experiences, demonstrations and tour the 4-H and FFA exhibits."
Flatt said: "While a lot of our fair is focused around livestock and some of the more traditional projects, there are opportunities for us to do robotic sorts of things."
Visitors to the "Making Memories" event are encouraged to "see small animals exhibited by our 4-H members and even watch the dog demonstration!"
Those bringing groups with more than 10 people are asked to contact the Cole County Extension Center at 634-2824, or by email at [email protected].
The ultimate goal of the 4-H projects, Flatt said, is "mastery."
"Some people think "mastery' is a ribbon, but it's not necessarily that blue ribbon earned at the fair," she said in a recent interview. "For us, mastery is that you've learned something across time.
"And the way we exhibit that mastery may be through robotics competitions. It may be through livestock sorts of projects and exhibiting them at the fair."
The exhibits are open to the public throughout the fair.
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