Meet the Board: Jocelyn

Hi!  I am Jocelyn Leavitt, and my first fair as a member of the Board was 2010, however I have been involved with it for years.  I grew up on a dairy farm north of Glenwood. I was an active participant in the Pope County 4-H program as a youth. I have two sons, Eathen who is a cloverbud in 4-H now and Reed who is a gardener in training. I hope to instill in them a love of animals, horticulture, and community.  

Being part of the board gives me a chance to be part of something special, as it brings joy to many people.  I serve on many committees, but especially enjoy the Demo Derby and Kid's Day.  

My favorite fair food is a toss up between taco in a bag and nachos....yum! Can't wait!! I love the Grandstand events, but watching those who bring in item for judging, to see how proud they are of their accomplishments, that brings an instant smile to my face.


I have so many good fair memories. I think the best one is the lasting friendships that are created. Because with these friends, talking about the good ol' times, keeps my love of the fair from fading.


 If you see me at the fair, stop and say hi!

Water Water Everywhere

The 2010 Pope County Fair will go down in memory as a very wet one. 

 Thanks to everyone for sticking with us even when we had to cancel or postpone events due to the weather.

Memories were made despite the mud!

Please come back and see us next year!!

Meet the Board: Jennifer

Hi everyone in blog land!  My name is Jennifer Olson, and I am the secretary of the Pope County Fair Board.  This is my second year serving on the board, but I have been involved with the fair forever it seems!

I spent 13 years as a Pope County 4-Her, showing every animal I could and displaying bunches of exhibits in the 4-H building too.  After my sad last year in 4-H, I worked at the Extension office for a while, both as an intern and as support staff.  I now enjoy serving on the board with several committees including Kid's, Armed Services and Senior's Days, Open Class, Ranch Sort and Donkey Races.  When it comes to livestock, I am superintendent for Small Animals, Goat, Lama, Poultry and Rabbit.  I also help with much of the general behind the scenes coordination for the fair.

Other than the fair, my interests include gardening and marketing my produce in Glenwood and Brooten.  I also serve as a member of Pope County Fresh, the local foods initiative.

My husband James and I officially started dating many years ago at the Pope County Fair Tractor Pull, so that event always holds special significance for us, however my heart is still in the barn with the exhibitors.  My fondest childhood memories all involve 4-H and the accomplishments I had and the friends I made there.

We have another great year planned and I can't wait to see you all at the fair, enjoy an extra fresh squeezed lemonade for me!

Meet the Board: Greg

Hello and welcome to the Pope County Fair blog!  My name is Greg Weidauer, and I am the Vice President  of the fair board this year. 

I am originally from Northwest Iowa where we raised row crops and had a diversified livestock farm, where we had a commercial cow calf operation and feed yard, along with a farrow to finish operation .  I attended NDSU, majoring in Animal and Range Science. I am currently employed as a conductor for the Canadian Pacific Railroad here in Glenwood.  I live Northwest of Starbuck with my wife, Liz, and our two children, Colin and Sara where we raise purebred Dorset and Shropshire sheep.  I am a member of the Glenwood Masonic Valley Lodge #174, and also a member of the Minnewaska Baseball Association where I help coach youth baseball.  I coach youth football in the fall. 

I serve on several livestock committees including sheep and swine.  I am also the superintendent of the beef, jackpot lamb and jackpot steer show.  The "barns" hold my fondest memories from my time in  4-H as a youngster in Iowa. 

I would like to congratulate the new Miss Minnewaska Queen, Alecia Johnson, and her Princesses, Jill Cihlar and Shayla Paulzine.  All three of these ladies are active with Pope County 4-H. 

I am looking forward to visiting with old and new friends over a bag of mini doughnuts at the 2010 Pope County Fair!

Crashin Combines

A combine demo derby is in the plans for this year.  This is something we have never had at the Pope County fair.  It will look a little something like this:

Who has an old combine in the woods?  Ready to paint it up and get it running?  Has anyone ever been to one of these events before?

Contact Peder Gerde at 320-766-2875 or go to www.popecountyfair.org for more info or to register!

Pitchfork Princesses (and a Queen too!)

Congratulations to Alecia Johnson, Jill Cihlar and Shayla Paulzine.  

You will do a great job representing Starbuck and Pope County as Miss Minnewaska Royalty!

All three of these girls are Pope County 4-Hers and know their way around a barn!  Look for them at area parades and other special events!

Meet the Board: Paul

This is the first in what will hopefully be a series of Meet the Board posts.  Hopefully it will help you get to know the people who put the fair on!

Hello on a warm evening. My name is Paul Koubsky, your Pope County Fair Board President for the year and I’m looking forward to another exciting year! A little about me and my family, I was born and raised in Pope County, I graduated from Glenwood in 1987 and attended U of M Waseca before returning to the family farm.

 Agriculture is very much in our family. My family dairied until 1991 when we transitioned to beef cattle, we now run a 150 cow-calf to finish operation and 850 acres of grain. We also are actively raising sheep which started as a family venture/adventure in 1980 with 12 ewes and 1 buck. Today we're lambing 120 ewes. My wife, Barb, and children, Haley, Kyler, and Lacey are very involved in 4-H and FFA. 

Along with this I still try finding time to do a little trucking across the country. The fair has always been a meeting place for friends and family throughout the years for me. Livestock is truly our life line, but our kids have a great time showing (and hopefully learning) at the fair in both livestock and static projects. 


I never realized how much leg work and planning goes into this great family get together until being on the board. I’m excited about the great team we have in a board, a lot of great ideas have come forward this year.  One of the events I will help coordinate is Donkey Races.  My other committee responsibilities include working with the carnival and jackpot sheep show as well as being superintendent for sheep and swine. We’re always looking for input and I hope to see all of you at the fair!