Behind the Scenes: Discovering the Heart of the Lincoln County Fair

LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. — "Hop in."

Coroner Dan Heavin had the side-by-side waiting as I made my way over. Before I could ask what the evening had in store, we were already rolling through the Lincoln County Fairgrounds.

I accepted Dan's invitation expecting to spend the evening learning how first responders manage one of the largest events in Lincoln County. With thousands of people filling the grounds each day, I assumed the story would revolve around radios, ambulances, firefighters and the coordinated effort required to keep everyone safe.

That story certainly existed.

It just wasn't the only one.

Throughout the evening, we'd ride with Dan as he answered calls, checked on crews and made his way from one part of the fairgrounds to another. We'd weave through crowds in the side-by-side, stopping wherever the radio or the evening took us. Sometimes we'd respond to a call. Other times we'd simply check in with the people working behind the scenes. Every stop revealed another piece of the fair that most visitors never get to see.

As we made our way through the fairgrounds, one thing became immediately obvious. The Lincoln County Fair has two very different sides. There's the one everyone sees—the carnival rides, food vendors, grandstand concerts and livestock shows. Then there's another fair operating quietly in the background. Most visitors never notice it, yet without it, nothing else would happen.

Our first stop was the incident command area.

Several agencies had established operations there for the week, each playing a different role but working toward the same goal. It wasn't loud or chaotic. Instead, it looked exactly how you would hope an operation like this would look: organized, calm and ready.

Inside the Lincoln County 911 mobile communications trailer, dispatchers worked at their stations while Jim Johnson and others explained how the temporary communications center supports the fair throughout the week. Radio traffic never seemed to stop, yet nobody appeared rushed. Dispatchers calmly handled each transmission while explaining how agencies across the fairgrounds stay connected.

Most fairgoers probably pass within a few yards of the trailer without ever noticing it.

That's exactly how the people inside want it.

Outside, Battalion Chief Ben with the Lincoln County Ambulance District introduced us to the district's medical operation. Medical UTVs sat staged and ready to reach patients in crowded areas where a full-size ambulance couldn't easily navigate.

Nearby was the district's field treatment unit.

We hoped to step inside, but patients were receiving care, so we remained outside while Ben explained how it served the fair throughout the week. Not every patient needs to be transported to a hospital. Many simply need a place to cool down, receive fluids or be evaluated before returning to the fair.

Later that evening, after the trailer had emptied, Ben welcomed us inside.

What looked modest from the outside opened into a surprisingly capable medical unit. Three treatment bays lined the interior, fully stocked and ready for use. Ben explained the trailer is completely self-sufficient, capable of operating entirely from its own generator, and has been deployed during community emergencies, including the flooding in Elsberry.

It's a resource most people will hopefully never need, but one that's ready if they do.

Throughout the evening, we watched crews respond to several medical calls, including someone feeling lightheaded, another person who had fallen and one incident that required a larger response. Whether it was Lincoln County 911, the Ambulance District, the Sheriff's Office or local fire districts, each agency simply did its job. The coordination was almost invisible.

As we continued through the fairgrounds, Sheriff Rick Harrell, Lt. Preston Gebhart and deputies with the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office remained a visible presence while firefighters from the Winfield-Foley and Old Monroe fire districts stood ready nearby.

None of it felt overbearing. It felt reassuring. Thousands of people were enjoying an evening with their families, most without ever thinking about the planning required to make that possible.

With emergency operations quietly continuing in the background, our attention shifted to another side of the fair that few people ever see.

Backstage.

If public safety helps keep the fair running, the Fair Board is responsible for making sure there's a fair worth attending in the first place.

Fair Board Chairman Tim Schroer and Entertainment Chairman Dennis welcomed us into the hospitality area, where conversations centered not on the show itself, but everything that happens long before the lights come on.

I asked Dennis what seemed like a simple question.

"How do you decide who performs at the fair?"

He smiled.

"It's not simple."

The process begins months before Fair Week with long lists of artists. The Fair Board narrows those names while considering schedules, budgets and availability before working through an entertainment agent to secure the show.

Even then, nothing is guaranteed.

Artists cancel.

Tours change.

Plans have to adapt.

Dennis explained that Drake White ultimately stepped in after another act became unavailable.

To the crowd, it was simply another concert announcement.

Behind the scenes, it represented months of planning and relationships built over years.

The hospitality area stayed busy throughout the evening. Volunteers made sure entertainers, first responders, Fair Board members and the many people working behind the scenes had a place to grab a meal and catch a quick break.

As we stood talking, Dan brought up something he had mentioned several times throughout the night. He couldn't say enough about how well the Fair Board takes care of the people helping make the fair happen. Whether it was a quick meal between calls or simply making sure nobody went hungry, he was genuinely appreciative of the volunteers who worked behind the scenes.

Signed photographs of past performers covered the walls around us—Blake Shelton, Charlie Daniels Band, Craig Morgan, Easton Corbin, Rodney Atkins, Kellie Pickler and Neal McCoy among them.

When I asked Dennis if he had a favorite, the answer came immediately.

Neal McCoy.

Not because of the concert itself, but because of how he treated everyone behind the scenes.

That answer quickly turned the conversation from concerts to character.

Everyone seemed to agree that Neal McCoy was one of the easiest artists the fair had ever hosted.

Then someone asked the opposite question.

Who was the least favorite?

The room didn't hesitate.

Trace Adkins.

Stories quickly followed, with volunteers recalling interactions that left lasting impressions for all the wrong reasons. One remembered him refusing to sign the Fair Queen's sash, something she admitted changed the way she viewed him.

It was a reminder that while the audience remembers the performance, the people working behind the scenes remember the person.

Just a short walk away, another group of volunteers was making sure a very different part of the fair continued running.

The volunteer kitchen was busy. Meals were being prepared, plates were being served and conversations carried on between people who, outside of Fair Week, hold very different roles throughout Lincoln County.

Judge Michael Jacobs was among them.

Standing in the middle of the kitchen, he laughed as he looked around the room.

"The gavel doesn't work back here during fair week."

The room erupted in laughter.

It was one of those moments that perfectly captured the spirit of the fair. For one week each year, titles seem to disappear. Judges work alongside volunteers. Community leaders roll up their sleeves. Everyone has a job, and no one seems concerned with who they are the other 51 weeks of the year.

There wasn't much standing around.

There were simply too many people to feed.

Volunteers moved from the grill to the serving line and into the dining area, making sure Fair Board members, entertainers, first responders and fellow volunteers had a hot meal before heading back to work.

As we climbed back into the side-by-side, another radio call came across. Dan acknowledged it, and we eased back through the fairgrounds, weaving between families heading toward the midway and children excitedly pulling parents from one attraction to the next.

Earlier in the evening, Dan had mentioned that if I really wanted to understand the fair, we'd eventually end up at the livestock barns.

At the time, I assumed it would simply be another stop on the tour.

It wasn't.

Walking into the barns, the atmosphere immediately changed.

The sounds of carnival rides and music faded into the background, replaced by quiet conversations, the hum of fans and the occasional sounds of livestock. Families gathered around stalls while young exhibitors brushed animals, swept aisles and prepared for the next day's events.

The rabbit barn had already begun to settle down for the evening. Many exhibitors had finished for the day and were packing up, but a few remained, happy to talk about their projects.

One young exhibitor told me the money earned from selling an animal at auction wasn't earmarked for something fun.

It was going straight into the bank.

The answer was matter-of-fact.

No hesitation.

No dramatic explanation.

Just a young person talking about saving for the future.

It was one of those simple conversations that sticks with you.

Throughout the barns, one message kept resurfacing.

Agriculture isn't just another attraction at the Lincoln County Fair.

It's the reason the fair exists.

The rides, concerts and food may bring thousands of people through the gates, but the barns remain the heart of Fair Week.

Dan smiled as we walked through the buildings.

"I've been telling you," he said.

He was right.

Until you spend time in the barns, it's easy to think the fair is defined by the midway or the grandstand.

It isn't.

It's defined by the young people who spend months raising animals, learning responsibility and preparing for a few days that represent the culmination of an entire year's work.

Those lessons extend far beyond the show ring.

The record-setting livestock auction, which generated more than $1.7 million this year, isn't simply about buying animals. It's about supporting young exhibitors, rewarding months of hard work and investing in the next generation of agriculture.

That's something easy to overlook if you only come for the rides.

As the evening drew to a close, we found ourselves back near the grandstand as Justin Moore prepared to take the stage.

There, we finally met Jessica Zumwalt.

By then, we'd already heard several people mention her homemade cobbler, and it was easy to understand why. The dessert had become something of a favorite among those working behind the scenes throughout the week.

Standing nearby was Jeremy Partl, Lincoln County's interim Highway Department director.

For the evening, though, he wasn't thinking about county roads.

He was working gate duty.

It was another reminder that Fair Week has a way of bringing people together in unexpected ways. Throughout the evening, we'd met judges working in kitchens, highway officials helping at the gates, first responders grabbing quick meals before returning to calls and countless volunteers giving up their time without expecting recognition.

When I climbed into Dan Heavin's side-by-side at the beginning of the evening, I thought I was writing a story about emergency management.

Instead, I found myself writing about something much bigger.

Every stop throughout the night pointed back to the same place.

The dispatchers.

The paramedics.

The deputies.

The firefighters.

The Fair Board.

The volunteers.

The entertainers.

None of them were the reason the fair exists.

They were there to support it.

And at the center of it all were the families, the barns and the young people who had spent months preparing for one week that celebrates agriculture, hard work and community.

That's the part of the Lincoln County Fair most people never see.

And after spending an evening behind the scenes, it may be the most important part of all.

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Primary Sources

• Dan Heavin — Lincoln County Coroner

• Jim Johnson — Lincoln County 911

• Battalion Chief Ben — Lincoln County Ambulance District

• Tim Schroer — Lincoln County Fair Board Chairman

• Dennis — Lincoln County Fair Board Entertainment Chairman

• Judge Michael Jacobs

• Jeremy Partl — Interim Director, Lincoln County Highway Department

• Lincoln County Ambulance District

• Lincoln County 911

• Lincoln County Sheriff's Office

• Winfield-Foley Fire Protection District

• Old Monroe Fire Protection District

• Lincoln County Fair Board

• Lincoln County Fair volunteers

• 4-H and FFA exhibitors and their families (observations and informal conversations)

• Young livestock exhibitors (informal conversations in the barns)

People Mentioned/Observed (Not Primary Interview Sources)

• Sheriff Rick Harrell

• Lt. Preston Gebhart

• Jessica Zumwalt