Hard work abounds at fair

PONTIAC – If you want to see the result of hard work, visit the Humiston Building at the Livingston County Ag Fair.

Grace Kaisner was waiting in line near the building Wednesday preparing to enter cooking 101 and floriculture projects.

“I did cake decorating on Monday then on Friday, I have live cake decorating and I’m going to auction that cake off,” Kaisner explained.

This is the fifth year for Logan Elder to do woodworking. He made a flag and hopes the entry makes it to the State Fair.

“I have a lot of experience with peers that have helped me,” Elder said. “I’ve learned to ask questions.”

Elder thought woodworking is a good fit since his uncle is a woodworker. With his uncle’s help, he keeps getting better each year. The fun doesn’t stop there as Elder also shows pheasants and quail. He has shown pheasants for six years and quail for two.

Mackenzie Mantia could be found nearby passing out suckers as she campaigned for fair queen Wednesday morning. These weren’t just any suckers – they had horses on them to reflect her fondness of the animals.

“I go around and let the little kids know that I’m running so that they can go vote for me,” said Mantia who enjoys the challenge of raising horses.

She said sometimes they behave like they do at home and other times they are just “nice.” Mantia enjoyed her time running for queen and has the experience since she rain for Grundy County Fair queen in the past.

It isn’t all fun and games at the fair as it has been extremely hot and taking care of the animals is a top priority. Fair participant Ashlyn Kratochvil is not only keeping her animals cool but also trying to stay properly hydrated herself. Ashlyn’s siblings, Ainsley and Acer, have been busy making sure the dairy barn is comfortable. Meanwhile, Ty Harms stays cool by eating plenty of ice.

“To keep the animals cool, I will keep a whole bunch of fans on them and spray them down,” Harms noted.

Ty’s brother, Parker, is just "cool" – so insert teenage joke here.

“I usually just cut all the sleeves off of my t-shirts so I’m usually pretty cool,” Parker quipped.