Josh Ryan hasn’t let the coronavirus pandemic stop him from preparing for the Larimer County Fair.
Though there have been no face-to-face 4-H meetings, and questions linger about what the fair will look like this year, the 14-year-old has been doing the best he can to prepare for showing goats and llamas and has been working on rebuilding a tractor — all projects for the 2020 county fair.
He chose to raise and prepare fewer of each species than he had planned, but he is still caring for his animals, keeping records, learning life lessons through the 4-H system. For his family, 4-H is a way of life.
“It’s definitely been different not knowing how fair is going to turn out,” said Josh, who lives southeast of Loveland. “You just have to scale it back since there is no guarantee with fair.”
Josh and other 4-H-ers have missed the face-to-face contacts, the friendships and the mentoring that are the backbone of the 4-H program. Colorado State University, which governs the extension office that runs the program, has prohibited any live contacts until July 1.
Jenny Sparks / Loveland Reporter-Herald
Josh Ryan, 14, stands by one of his goats, Red Leg, as he talks Thursday, June 4, 2020, about his 4-H projects and how they will be affected this year by COVID-19 restrictions.“Everybody is pretty bummed,” said Jenelle Kemper, who is a 4-H photography leader and the mother of two young participants. “They get some really good friendships from 4-H. They get close. These are their people. This is what they understand. They have the same interests. They can’t be together right now. It’s been really difficult.”
This also has made it challenging for some youths with their projects. Those in shooting sports need sanctioned and supervised practices before the fair. Some need help and advice as well as practice with their animals, everything from chickens to goats and alpacas to dogs.
Extension officials have said, in recent public meetings about what the Larimer County Fair will look like this year, that these barriers have been a challenge to participants in the Larimer County 4-H program, which with about 1,000 enrolled is one of the largest programs in the state.
But they and group leaders have been doing everything they can to connect safely, including through online meetings and sessions. And the participants are doing the best they can at home.
“The hardest part has probably been the shooting sports,” Kemper said. “Most of the kids don’t own their equipment. With practices being canceled until July 1, the kids can’t practice.”
Her 8-year-old daughter, Avery, was planning to show chickens, participate in shooting sports and enter in cake decorating. She can practice cake decorating at home, but not the shooting sports, and she needs guidance and practice with her chickens — something she will not get until July 1.
“We are very much undecided at this point,” said Jenelle about whether her daughters, Avery and her younger sister, Lacey, will go to fair if they can’t get enough practice and guidance.
“I don’t know. It seems like it’s maybe not a good year to try it because nobody is going to have the experience. They’re just winging it. It doesn’t seem fair.”
Sharon Shirack, another 4-H leader, echoed that it has been difficult for the participants to not be able to come together to practice, to compete and to learn so they are ready come fairtime.
“When you get to fair, you’re blindly showing,” Shirack said. “The animal has not been around other animals. It’s hard to watch these kids go through it but they have been little troopers.”
Larimer County will have a fair this year, though it will look different due to the pandemic because of restrictions on gathering sizes and because many of the facilities at the fairgrounds are leased out as part of a regional overflow hospital in case of a surge of the coronavirus.
Those planning the fair have said they are devoted to holding as much of a traditional event as they can. But neither organizers nor several 4-H leaders said they could predict how many families will participate this year.
Rob Ryan, Josh’s father, said they definitely will, describing his family as “die-hards.” So Josh Ryan is continuing to live the 4-H life at home, caring for his animals daily, finding as many shows as he can and preparing for the Larimer County Fair, even though it will be different, as well as the Colorado State Fair and the National Western Stock Show beyond that.
He is still learning skills and life lessons from his projects, rolling with the changes and doing the best he can — life lessons as well.
Other participants also are doing the best they can in the situation. And Shirack said she believes that those running the program, too, are doing their best in unprecedented times.
She added, “(The kids) are patiently waiting and hoping something will turn around so they can get back to living the life they love.”
What will the Larimer County Fair look like this year?
With restrictions on gathering size and traditional fairground facilities not available this year, the Larimer County Fair and 4-H competitions will be held differently this summer.
Here’s a look at what Larimer County and Colorado State University Cooperation Extension have planned:
- Some competitions, such as interview judging, will be held as static displays due to lack of space and in-person safety concerns.
- Some competitions, including shooting sports, will be performed live with limited contact and social distancing.
- Animal shows will be held live, though they will be spread over multiple dates to juggle species in limited spaces. Officials have said they will be same-day showings with no animals housed on site.
- Open class competitions, which include photography, baking and food preservation, have been canceled primarily due to space limitations.
Source: Larimer County
Jenny Sparks / Loveland Reporter-Herald
Josh Ryan, 14, on Thursday, June 4, 2020, shows some of the work he has done to rebuild a tractor given to him by his grandmother when he was younger for a 4-H project."still" - Google News
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