This article was awarded the blue ribbon in the Creative Writing category at the 2023 Kenton County Fair
“Mr. Riley asked each member about their project they were going to take to the fair. And we discussed the plans of the skating party. Billy Lawler made the motion to adjourn the meeting. Bobby Jackson second it. We adjourned the meeting to enjoy homemade ice cream,” read the minutes of the July 29, 1957 Kenton and Community 4 H Club.
There in my 79 year old aunt’s perfect handwriting, memories of the past summers during the week of the Kenton County Fair leapt off the pages. The names of those that have passed, now carved on the wooden benches that grace the fairgrounds, came to life through my aunt’s 4H scrapbook.
As we flipped through pages, you could smell the old from a simpler time. “A simpler time, not necessarily a better time,” Pat said, “each generation has its pluses and minuses.”
One of the photos from her scrapbook stood out to my daughters and my older sister
that day. There is our Aunt Pat, crowned the 1961 Kenton County fair queen. But more intriguing than the original rhinestone crown that still sparkled and pink sash she adorned that day was how her dress stood out from all the others. There she stood in her dark plaid straight dress among all the contestants who were wearing their big, puffy prom dresses.
We had to ask, “Aunt Pat, what’s up with the dress? Yours is so different from the others.” And in that moment our Aunt Pat turned back to the age of 17, recalling the week of the fair.
“You see,” she said, “I wore my fancy dress to the prom with my sweetheart at the time. When that relationship didn’t work out because he became a Baptist Minister and I was Catholic, I didn’t want to tarnish the memories of my special dress by wearing it to the fair.”
She went on about being 17 years old in 1961 in rural Kenton County. No air conditioning, wrapping her hair in curlers on Saturday while delivering eggs counting down the minutes to unroll them so she could go out that night. Juggling playing sports for fun while maintaining life on the farm and hearing about her “most important award” winning the Grand Championship for her dairy cow and being presented with a silver milk pitcher from the Kroger Company.
Along with Aunt Pat’s dress, there were other nuggets she left us that day. My teenage daughter asked, “What’s the biggest difference between us as 17 year olds in 2023 and you being 17 in 1961?”
While holding her original 4H scrapbook in hand, she said the following words that will
always stand out in our minds, “Our world was small and limited. We were citizens of Kenton County. Your world has expanded and you are citizens of the world.”
She went on, “The main thing is that this isn’t our permanent home. It’s what we do here while we’re here that’s important. To make the best of our time to contribute and not just take. To take care of one another and agree to disagree. There’s too much anger in the world.” She recalled her dad only getting angry when the horses got out.
I asked what the number one lesson that stands out to her. “Put your phone down,” she said.
So that’s what we did. That Sunday afternoon with Aunt Pat, the 1961 Kenton County Fair Queen, we put our phones down, ate Hickory Nut Cake, a recipe from Aunt Helen Kloentrup’s cookbook, and listened, and simply took care of one another that day. Besides Aunt Pat’s fair dress, I now have another moment in memory that will forever stand out. That night, I got online and shopped for a homemade ice cream maker.
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