The fairgrounds may make it feel like Christmas, but the colors you see decking the halls that are exciting Kewaunee County Fair exhibitors are purple, pink, and blue. The Kewaunee County Fair officially opened on Thursday, though many of the judged events began earlier this week. While many of the projects exhibited have been awarded a technicolor variety of ribbons, the journey to Luxemburg began well before that. For Sarah Doperalski, the inspiration for some of her projects began shortly after her grandmother passed away. One of her merit award-winning projects arranged some of her pieces of jewelry into the shape of a heart to form a piece of artwork that will last much longer than fair weekend. Doperalski says the awards make those projects that much more meaningful.

Evie Micolichek has been planning for this weekend for several weeks as she balances her Junior Fairest of the Fair duties with taking care of more than 30 rabbits. She was able to earn several top breed awards with her rabbits in the morning and afternoon before overseeing the hog show Thursday evening. She is looking forward to seeing everyone’s projects in her official role.

Jakayla Steinhorst understands Micolichek’s life this weekend better than most, as a former Junior Fairest herself. She has had to balance her work, school, and FFA commitments in addition to her animal preparation, which resulted in one of her steers earning a reserve champion designation. Even when those nights ended past 11 p.m., she knew it would be worth it in the end.

Despite their different journeys, all three agreed that their favorite part of the Kewaunee County Fair is interacting with their fellow exhibitors and visitors. The Kewaunee County Fair runs through Sunday.