The 109th Franklin County Fair opened Monday, celebrating another year of agricultural heritage, 4-H youth competition, festival rides and greasy fair food.
Franklin County Fair Board President Gary Fellure welcomed attendees at the county fairgrounds in Hilliard to celebrate a new year of the fair. While Fellure said much of the fair is the same as prior years, he showed off renderings for a new 4-H building and expedition center that will be built at the fairgrounds in the coming years.
'What's new? What's different?" Fellure asked. "Well, there's different faces. There's a different generation. As you walk through the barns or the exhibits, faces have changed, but it's all the same."
"4-H, it's why we're here, it is why we support this, it's why most of you are out here to support these kids because generation after generation that we put out here is responsible human beings with growth," Fellure said.
At the opening ceremony, fair attendees celebrated several "Cream of the Crop" awardees and watched as Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin held a swearing in ceremony for three crisis K9 officers.
The three dogs, Koda, Legend and Maverick, joined a team of nearly 20 dogs employed at the sheriff's office. The animals work across several units, including the bomb squad, law enforcement and as therapy dogs.
The fair runs from Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
