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County fair more than livestock for city teens

Mason family proves acreage not required for participation

Rebecca Stewart, 16, holds her favorite mini lop show rabbit, Twixie. She and her brother, John Stewart, 18, of Mason, have been showing animals at the Warren County Fair for several years. Staff photo by Gary Stelzer

Gary Stelzer/MBR Rebecca Stewart, 16, holds her favorite mini lop show rabbit, Twixie. She and her brother, John Stewart, 18, of Mason, have been showing animals at the Warren County Fair for several years. Staff photo by Gary Stelzer

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By Eric Schwartzberg, Staff Writer Updated 8:07 AM Thursday, July 15, 2010

MASON — The week before the Warren County Fair, things are hopping for the Stewart family.

Rebecca, a 16-year-old Mason High School junior, is busy preparing her breeding rabbits, while brother John, 18, is prepping his breeder calf.

The siblings entered 4-H eight years ago and grew more involved with each passing year, even with only a third of an acre at their disposal, according to their mother, Elizabeth Stewart.

“A lot of people think (to be in)  4-H, you’ve got to be farmers,” Stewart said. “We live in town ... and there are ways to do it.”

Those ways include John working on the farm of an area family in exchange for them “hosting” the breeder calf he owns and tends. There’s room for Rebecca’s rabbits at home, but goats graze at a relative’s place, not their backyard.

In past years, the two siblings have entered not only rabbits and a breeder calf, but also pigs, goats and ducks. They’ve also entered general competitions, such as archery, insects and small engines.

Both teens serve on the Junior Fair Board, and Rebecca serves as co-junior superintendent of the poultry committee.

However, the camaraderie is what makes the fair more than just a showcase of livestock and various projects.

“It’s the one week of the year that you’re able to spend time with everyone, really the only week that you see all those 4-H friends,” she said.

Stewart said she and her husband, Jim, grew up in Mason when it was rural. She said 4-H and the county fair help her children connect with a rural way of life.

“Even though we didn’t live on farms, we had that rural lifestyle,” she said. “It (4-H) has been a blessing because we’ve always wanted to live out in the country ... 4-H kind of gives you a little taste of it without having the opportunity of growing up on a farm.”

While Stewart cites leadership and responsibility as qualities 4-H has instilled in her — especially around fair time — Jonathan said the organization’s biggest impact on him often comes from the bonds it helps create.

“I’ve made friends in 4-H that I know I’ll have for a long time,” he said. “I’m closer with the friends I made in 4-H than with my friends from school.”