Sen. Mike Bernskoetter’s Legislative Column for the Week of July 29, 2019

 It’s Not All Fun and Games – It’s Hard Work Too at the Cole County Fair

As a long-time Jefferson City resident, I’ve been to many fairs over the years.

While each year brings something a little different to the fair, there’s one thing that connects them: hard work.

Sure, there’s fun to be had, but spend enough time at the fair and you’ll see exactly what I mean.

I loved participating in 4-H as a kid, and I always looked forward to the fair activities. One of my favorite parts of the fair are the various livestock and ham exhibitions, where area youths get to show off the fruits of their labors. While the fair gives everyone the chance to see the finished project, many hours of work went into getting these projects ready for the fair. These kids are proud of their work, and why shouldn’t they be? The hard work and dedication these individuals put into their projects is truly admirable, regardless of whether they got a ribbon or not.

Leading up to the fair, I received numerous letters from constituents alerting me to the fact they’ll be showing at this year’s fair. I have to say that I’m quite proud of these young people and the hard work and dedication they put in their projects. My grandson Trent, for instance, won best sale goat for his goat Ricky Bobby. A lot of hard work went into making that happen, and I’m sure that’s true for all the kids involved in the exhibitions.

As I’ve said before, agriculture is our state’s most important industry. It helps feed people throughout the world. It’s great to see the next generation of Missourians taking such a keen interest in it. Organizations like FFA and 4-H do a great job in giving our children hands-on experiences and preparing them to be not only the next generation of ag producers, but leaders as well. After seeing what I did at the fair, I’m confident that if these young people keep up the good work, we’ll be in good hands.

Additionally, while the fair just seems to spring up around this time every year for many of us, a lot of hard work goes into making the fair a reality. Countless hours of planning, organization and coordination goes into pulling off a project of this size for our community, and that shouldn’t be overlooked. I want to thank the Jefferson City Jaycees, fair sponsors and everyone who put in the time and resources to make the fair a reality this year. Without their hard work, our community would not have this great opportunity to celebrate and have some fun.

Again, I want to congratulate all those who put so much into making the fair a success. A lot of hard work may go into it, but I know a lot of fun comes out of it too.

Please feel free to contact my office at (573) 751-2076. For information about my committee assignments or sponsored legislation, please visit my official Missouri Senate website at senate.mo.gov/Bernskoetter.