Junior Fair Board puts on Fair Friends event for children who have a disability

MEDINA — Kids who have a disability could experience a version of the Medina County Fair that is more tailored to their needs at the Fair Friends event on Sunday. The Junior Fair Board puts on the annual event, whicha has ran for six years. Junior Fair Board Treasurer Gabriella Izzo said the event is for anyone with a developmental disability who is between the ages of four and 22. "It offers a fair-like experience that is catered to them, so that they can experience the fair just as they would at the actual fair," she said. Those who stopped by could eat fair food, make lemonade, decorate cookies, visit a music therapist and meet animals like sheep, pygmy goats, horses and poultry. There were also carnival games and sensory tables spread throughout the Medina County Fairgrounds. "I'm just trying to walk around and make sure that everybody has what they need and that everybody's having a good experience," Izzo said. The Medina County Board of Developmental Disabilities also provided a mobile changing unit for the event. The changing unit has features like a platform chair to enter the vehicle, an adult-sized changing table, hygiene supplies and a team of professionals who clean the unit between uses. Junior Fair Board adviser Becky Gall said the event allows the board to share their love of the fair in a more quiet and less busy environment. "We hope that they can get an experience of the fair, learn what 4-H is and what they would do with a 4-H or (Future Farmers of America) project," Izzo said. "We hope they get to learn a little more about it." This year's Medina County Fair will run from July 28 to Aug. 3. For more information regarding this year's fair, visit medinaohiofair.com. Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.