PRESENTS YOUR OFFICIAL GUIDE TO THE TH TH
155
AUGUST 23-29
TRADITION • COMMUNITY • MEMORIES • FUN FOR ALL AGES
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2 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair
We are thankful for and proud to support 4-H Youth Programs!
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155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 3
Welcome to the 155th Oceana County Fair! On behalf of the Oceana County Agricultural Society, I would like to welcome you to the 155th Oceana County Fair! The Best Little Fair in Michigan. We have been busy getting the grounds ready for this year's festivities and hope you are pleased with what we have accomplished. Our fencing has been installed. Our Kids Camp is set up. Our security cameras are in place, and our vision for the future is clear. We are committed to the future of our Fair and the youth that are so very anxious to show their animals and crafts. I was raised in Oceana County and have attended the Fair my entire life. It has been a very important part of my family. Being a part of our Board, and making the improvements we have made has enriched my life beyond words. The smiles on our children’s faces are payment enough for our efforts. This year, you will be able to join our efforts. We are now a membership organization, and you may stop by our booth in the Education Building and become a member of the Oceana County Agricultural Society. We are in need of new, young blood. People who have the common goal of advancing agriculture and making the fairgrounds a beautiful place in
reached the end of their life cycle, and we are looking to the future of our fairgrounds. This is a lofty goal we have, as it is a matching grant, and we must spend down our treasury to make this happen. We are also set to take out a mortgage to complete the project. Estimates are currently in the $350,000 range, and we will see this through. I ask you to stop by the Education Building, join our Society and pick up an invitation to contribute to our new Bathhouse project. Your contribution is tax deductible if given through our Oceana Community Foundation Fund, and there will be more information on giving to this much-needed improvement. In closing, we would like to thank each and every one of you for this opportunity to give back to the place Oceana County Agricultural Society that we love: Oceana County. Vice President Carl Weigand helped break ground on the new Bathhouse project. Sincerely, Carl has been a long-time supporter and volunteer at the Oceana County Fair. our community. Please stop in and join our Fair. The big news this year is we broke ground on our new Restroom/Shower House project. The Department of Agriculture has awarded us a grant in the amount of $100,000 to build a new Bathhouse facility attached to the Commercial Building. Our old restrooms had
Paul Erickson Oceana County Agricultural Society President
The Oceana Echo © is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit newspaper published weekly at P.O. Box 192, Mears, MI 49436 • All rights reserved.
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The Official Guide to the 155th Oceana County Fair Office hours: M & W from 9-3 • Office phone: 231-301-8149.
4 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair
155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 5
Lillian Wasson leads by example with market goat donation to Fairground Bathhouse project By Jennifer Payne
Oceana County 4-H Program Coordinator
For Lillian Wasson, the Oceana County Fair has been a place to learn, compete, make memories and spend time with the 4-H community. This year, she decided to do something different with one of her market goats: use it to help make the fairgrounds a better place for everyone. Lillian is donating a market goat with the hope that its sale will raise money for the Oceana County Agricultural Society’s Bathhouse and Improvement Fund. The Fair has already begun work on the bathhouse project, which will provide muchneeded improvements to the aging facilities. Lillian hopes her donation will help the project continue and encourage others to contribute as well. Her goat “Boots” will be auctioned off at the end of the 4-H Large Market Auction on Thursday, Aug. 27. The auction starts at 7 p.m. The Oceana Community Foundation will hold the proceeds from Lillian’s donated goat until the Fair is ready to use the funds for the project. “I wanted to donate my goat
Lillian Wasson and Boots because I want to help improve the fairgrounds for everyone,” Lillian said. “I’m excited to see the project completed, and I hope other people will consider donating too.” Lillian is an active member of the Oceana County 4-H community. She serves as a member of the Oceana Youth 4-H Council and on the Michigan 4-H State Leadership Council. Through these leadership roles, she has found opportunities to serve her community and advocate for youth.
Donating a market animal is especially meaningful because of the time and commitment that goes into raising it. Lillian has spent months caring for, feeding and preparing her livestock for the Fair. Rather than keeping the proceeds from this goat, she chose to turn her hard work into an investment in the place that means so much to her and so many other families. Now, she hopes others will follow her lead. The Bathhouse project will benefit 4-H members, exhibitors, volunteers, families and the many people who visit the Oceana County Fairgrounds throughout the year. Every contribution can help move the project closer to completion. Community members who would like to support the Bathhouse project can make a donation to the Oceana Community Foundation, designating their gift toward the Fairground Bathhouse and Improvement project. Lillian is excited to see the project finished and hopes her market goat can be more than just another sale at the Fair. She hopes it will inspire others to give what they can and help build better facilities for generations of fairgoers to come.
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6 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair
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155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 7
New large animal scale arrives at the Oceana Fair The Oceana 4-H Market Livestock Committee is excited to announce the arrival of a new large animal livestock scale, just in time for this year’s fair. The scale arrived a few weeks ago and has been placed and calibrated inside the Beef Barn. The new scale will be a valuable addition to the 4-H livestock program and provide improved equipment for youth exhibitors as they weigh and prepare their livestock projects. This project became a reality because of the incredible generosity of our community and supporters Committee would like to Michigan Farm Bureau and of Oceana County 4-H. extend a heartfelt thank Michelle Holladay; Oceana The Market Livestock you to: Shelby State Bank; County 4-H Youth Council;
Great Lakes Energy’s People Fund; Hidden Electric; Janet’s Roofing; Side Step Farms; Howard’s Lawn Care and Plowing, LLC; and the Jorissen Family. The committee is incredibly grateful to each sponsor for investing in our youth and agricultural community. Their support made it possible to purchase this much-needed equipment, which will benefit Oceana County 4-H livestock exhibitors for years to come. The new scale is ready to go, and the 4-H Market Livestock Committee is excited to put it to use during this year’s fair!
8 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair
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155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 11
2026 Fair Open Entry Information
By Stacia Erickson
Oceana County Agricultural Society Secretary
“May my children and I enter things in the Fair without being part of 4-H?” The answer to that question is yes! The Oceana County Fair is private property and not a 4-H Fair. The Oceana County Agricultural Society tries its best to accommodate all its guests, including, but not limited to, 4-H. Children and adults may enter items as “open” participants, not as 4-H, and the Oceana County Fair Board welcomes and encourages everyone to enter. Children and adults can bring their entries to
the adult or youth exhibit buildings on entry day, this year on Monday, Aug. 24, fill out the entry sheet and individual cards for animals to apples and (almost) everything in between! Fair books with numbers and categories, for all entrants, both open and 4-H, will be available on entry day at the educational and adult exhibit buildings. There are specific requirements for entries, so it is important to check before bringing your entry. It is also a good idea to bring a few extra samples, just in case you need more than one or something happens to a portion of your entry. There is also a small entry fee for adults for each item.
All exhibitors are responsible for the care and maintenance of their animals while at the Fair until being released on the last day. All exhibitors who fail to keep their animal and stall in neat condition to the satisfaction of the Superintendents will be asked to remove their exhibit/project from the Fair and will forfeit all premiums. This includes the final stall cleanup in which the stall is left in the condition in which it was first assigned. Here is a Fair book example: adult open entry; DEPARTMENT B — HORTICULTURE, Superintendent: Lindsey Merten, entry fee $.25 each class. 1. Only one entry per
class, per exhibitor. 2. All exhibits must be grown by the exhibitor. 3. Consult Bulletin 397 available at the MSU Extension Office (and online) on how to prepare vegetables for exhibit. 4. Number of items required for the class are noted in parentheses. 5. All vegetables should be free of insects and disease as well as damage. All vegetables should be fresh, clean, trimmed and uniform in size, shape, color, maturity and type. 6. Entries should be presented on a white, 9-inch or 10-inch paper plate. Entries must be created or grown by the individual who enters them in the Fair.
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155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 13
Judie Burmeister reflects on 7 decades with the Fair By Sharon Hallack
The Oceana Echo Community Correspondent
This year the Oceana County Fair (OCF) celebrates its 155th year. Judie Burmeister, of Shelby, has been a part of the last 72 of those years! That’s a lot of fairs! From her earliest memories as a child of five to serving for nearly 40 years on the Oceana County Agricultural Society (OCAS), her years of involvement, commitment and service are a great example of Oceana County’s famous community spirit. Raised in Grant Township, Judie is the daughter of the late Albert and Elizabeth (Foster) Wagner. She and her husband Dale, the son of the late Walter and Lucille (Gifford) Burmeister of Shelby, met at a dance at the old Shelby Pavilion and were married in June of 1962. Following their marriage, the Burmeister and Wagner farms combined and became Lakeshore Farms Inc. They, along with their children Alan (1963-2025) and Tracey, have raised a variety of commodities, including fruit, Christmas trees, small grains and hay, and beef cattle over the years. They recently sold the farm to Alan’s son Kevin, who is continuing the family’s farming legacy in Oceana County. And as if running a large farming operation weren’t enough, both Dale and Judie have been active with many community organizations for most of their 64 years of marriage. Judie
was employed part-time for the MSU Cooperative Extension office from 1986 to 2010 and was involved for many years in the 4-H program, not only serving as a leader, but on the 4-H Youth Council, the Horse Developmental Committee and the Market Livestock Committee. One of Judie’s earliest memories of the fair was going with her grandparents, John F. and Mamie (Churchill) Foster. Because her grandmother couldn’t walk well, they were allowed to park up next to the Education Building. “That was before the fairgrounds had any handicap parking spaces,” remembered Judie. “Grandma loved to watch the horse races, and we’d bring a picnic.” Growing up, Judie was part of many different 4-H clubs, an involvement that she passed down to her children, her grandchildren and now her greatgrandchildren.
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For Judie, the 4-H club that she probably has the most memories of was her horse club. “My dad had a passion for horses. He was from Nebraska, where he owned and rode a lot of horses. I don’t remember a time I didn’t have a pony or a horse. My Grandma Foster used to make my mother hide my bridle until after I’d practiced my piano and ballet lessons,” Judie said with a smile. “I became a charter member of the Stony Lake Riders 4-H horse club as a young girl. But after I was married, I couldn’t be a 4-H member anymore. So our leader, Ken Stevens, asked me if I’d be the club’s junior leader. Eventually I became the club’s leader and accumulated nearly 50 years in that role.” And 13 of those years were with her daughter Tracey as a member. “Growing up, horses were everything; our entertainment, our transportation and our 4-H projects. I’ve probably owned 10 different riding horses or ponies throughout the years,” she said. “My main 4-H horse was a former racehorse who was a descendant of the famous racehorse Man o’ War. He was all-go, and I was warned to never let him run unless we were on the track. But Tracey and I also rode Pony of the Americas breed ponies too.” During her years in 4-H, and as the leader of Stony Lake Riders, Judie spent a lot of time in the horse barns during fair week. She can remember there being as many as 80 saddle horses in the barns at one time. “But times have changed. Nowadays horses are more for
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14 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair show; they cost a lot of money. The draft horse barn has changed too. We used to have all kinds of breeds represented; now we have to get entrants from out of the county.” Clubs and participation by 4-H equestrians aren’t the only things that have changed at the fair - the entertainment has changed too. “I can remember the wrestler Bobo Brazil, a Black fellow, who had to use a different restroom than everyone else,” Judie recounted. “But he was quite the wrestler, and later he went on to break wrestling barriers for those who would come after him.” Musical performances at the grandstands have evolved with the times too. From Minnie Pearl of Grand Ole Opry fame and Flatt & Scruggs, a famous bluegrass duo in the 50s, to local high school bands or garage bands. Prior to the 60s, thrill shows were very popular, like daredevil driver Lucky Lee Lott, who would circle the track, then drive through a gasoline fire in front of the grandstands. It wasn’t always a paid performance that got people’s heart rates up either. “Probably one of the most heartstopping moments for me came one year when the horse clubs were doing their annual quarter-mile race around the track on a Friday afternoon. One of the horses jumped the track fence and landed on a car hood. Neither horse nor rider were injured, but needless to say that was the end of 4-H club horse races.” Gone are the days when Judie spent every day, all day in the barns during fair week. Since 2020 Judie keeps busy in
the fair office located at the center of the fairgrounds, “usually trying to find Paul (Erickson),” she said with a chuckle. “The board used to pay someone to do the job, but 40 years ago when I joined the board, I told them I was going to be a working board member, so when the position became available, I told the board I didn’t want to be paid.” In Burmeister’s tenure, she’s seen her share of changes to operations, too. “There are definitely more rules (and) more animal diseases to be aware of. We use cell phones more than the intercom. The carnival operators take credit cards, and we have a couple of ATM machines on the grounds during fair week. The recently added ‘Kids Camp’ has been a great change too,” she noted. On the OCAS board for nearly four decades, Burmeister has had the opportunity to work with numerous fair board presidents, board members, building superintendents, 4-Hers and their families. She’s also had a frontrow seat to numerous infrastructure changes. “I’m thrilled the fairgrounds are being used more,” she said. “We have not only hosted many community events and fundraisers, but in the past few years, we’ve been able to add regular horse events, and more recently the NAF kickoff event with the crowning of the Asparagus Queen. I hope that once we have new bathroom facilities, even more people will utilize the grounds.” Burmeister has definitely proven her ability to lead and work with all kinds of people through the years. In the process, she has set a great example for the younger leaders and stakeholders as they
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take on more and more leadership roles. Now the grandmother of three grandsons and the great-grandmother to five great-granddaughters and one great-grandson on the way, the Burmeisters are enjoying this phase of life. They are able to winter in Okeechobee, Florida, for six months of the year and can keep up with their greatgranddaughters’ sports competitions via internet applications. While she’s thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the Oceana County Fair for over seven decades, she adds, “We need new people. Annual memberships are available for a nominal fee, and after one year of membership, they can run for the board. We’d love to have some younger people join us. The OCF is a privately funded, nonprofit organization. It receives no tax money to operate. We rely on revenue from memberships, those who use the grounds, grants and private donations to be able to operate. If you know or see a fair board member, thank them.” With that said, The Oceana Echo extends its thanks to Judie, as well as all current and past fair board members. The Oceana County Fair is woven into the fabric of this community, and we appreciate the time and effort of the many individuals who have kept this organization and tradition alive and well for the past 155 years! For more information about the OCF and its operations, please visit https:// oceanacountyfair.org/ or find the OCF on Facebook at “The Oceana County Fair.”
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155th Oceana County Fair • August 21, 2026 • ECHO 15
Oceana County Fair, thanks for providing joy to the community for over a century and a half.
16 ECHO • August 21, 2026 • 155th Oceana County Fair
Over