Advertisement “I’ve been volunteering since I was a kid in 4-H, and I’ve been parking cars out there since I was 16 or 17,” he said.
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Arlan Schmidt, left, and his son Jeff have devoted countless hours to making the annual La Crosse Interstate Fair a successful event.
Photo by Michael Martin |
Schmidt, branch manager of First National Bank in Holmen, is also president of the La Crosse County Agricultural Society, the organization that oversees the fairgrounds.
His father Arlan, CEO of First National Bank in Bangor, has been business manager of the fairgrounds since 1990 and has helped usher in an era of popularity and financial stability after a time when the fair’s continued existence was far from certain.
“When I started I think we had about $100 in the bank and two bills due that were more than that,” Arlan recalled. “We were in debt, and we didn’t have the cash flow we do now.”
Despite the fact that the fair has grown substantially, neither Schmidt is complacent about its future.
“Someone once told me that the fair is like an alligator,” Jeff said. “If you don’t continue to feed it, it will turn on you. By that, he meant you have to keep investing in it.”
With more than 20 buildings — each of them with roofing, electrical and other needs — there’s a lot of investing that has to be done to keep things from deteriorating like they have at other less successful fairs around the state.
Both Arlan and Jeff meet regularly during fair week. “Every morning Jeff stops at my office and we talk about what needs to be done,” Arlan said. Like the other members of the fair board — and the dozens of volunteers whose efforts ensure the fair’s success — the Schmidts work without pay.
The two have different responsibilities during fair week. To oversimplify a bit, Arlan’s job is to makes sure everyone gets paid on time, while Jeff’s main duty is taking care of all the exhibitors and vendors, making sure they get set up properly
“It takes a lot of volunteers and a lot of man hours,” Jeff said. “The more you do it, the easier it gets, but it was pretty overwhelming at first.
As you might expect, Jeff’s most stressful days come early in the week. “People will ask ‘Did you do this? Did you do that? Is the water ordered? Are the tanks pumped out? Do the lights work? Does the P.A. work?’ You don’t realize how much work there is until you’ve done it.”
Arlan, on the other hand, has done most of his work before fair week. “I do leases, insurance coverage, things like that,” he said. “I get all the judge’s checks ready ahead of time (minus the exact amount) so that we can pay them right away when they turn in the number of hours they’ve worked.”
Arlan said he could not even begin to estimate how much time he has put in on the fair since 1990. “I couldn’t tell you how many hours, but it’s been mostly enjoyable. I guess I like the people most of all.”
Jeff is in the last of two three-year terms as Agricultural Society president. He will step down in November, when a new president is named. Being president is a job that encompasses more than just fair week.
“It’s a big-time commitment,” Jeff said. “It’s not just the five days of the fair — it’s the other 360 days of the year.” Asked why he does so much for no pay, Jeff pointed to his own background.
“Just growing up in 4-H and seeing other people do the extra work made an impression,” he said. “If people don’t step up and do it, then the fair could be a thing of the past.”
Now that he has a 2-year-old son of his own, Jeff said he would like to see his son have the same opportunity to grow up with 4-H and the fair. That kind of continuity is what he is most proud of.
“Just to see that we’re keeping it alive is important to me. I’ve heard the stories about when it was down and out,” Jeff said. “It just takes a tremendous amount of volunteers to keep this going. Without them, we would not have a fair.”
