For the eighth year, Compeer Financial is helping county fairs across the Upper Midwest improve facilities and attendee experiences. Doing so through its Fund for Rural America, the Farm Credit cooperative’s giving program. In Wisconsin, 20 fair organizations will each receive up to $4,000 to support their fairground projects.
In total, Compeer Financial is awarding $242,000 to 61 county fairs across Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin for a wide range of repairs and upgrades through this year’s County Fair Facility Upgrade Grant Program.
County fairs are rural staples in bringing together people of all ages to learn about and experience agriculture up close. Last year’s fairs saw an average attendance of 42,298. Compeer Financial designated the County Fair Facility Upgrade Grant Program to uplift the rural communities it serves. The grant program is a critical tool that enables organizers to continue offering the best possible experience to fair-goers by funding upgrades and repairs of fairground livestock buildings, 4-H buildings and livestock judging arenas.
What’s Being Funded
With applicants reporting the average age of their fairground buildings as 45 years old, this year’s funding supports critical initiatives focused on enhancing safety, functionality and the experience for animals, exhibitors and visitors. By modernizing electrical and lighting and enhancing safety and hygiene, fair organizers will foster a welcoming and professional environment that enhances the overall experience and helps attract more exhibitors and attendees. Of this year’s 61 funded projects:
- 35 percent are for upgrades to building structures
- 30 percent are for electrical or ventilation upgrades
- 20 percent are for new livestock gates/pens to accommodate increasing numbers of exhibitors and animals
- 15 percent are for miscellaneous updates
Since its establishment in 2018, the Fund has awarded 483 County Fair Facility Upgrade Grants for a total impact of more than $1.6 million that has improved the experiences of fair organizers, participants and attendees. The grant will open for 2026 applications in March 2026.
The Recipients
- Barron County Fair: A sound system and cooling fan in the show ring area.
- Bayfield County Fair: Electrical upgrades, replacing boards and painting in the beef barn.
- Burnett County Agricultural Society Fair: Replacing part of the main livestock and cattle barn roof.
- Northern Wisconsin State Fair Association, Inc.: Tie stalls in the cattle barn.
- Columbia County Fair: Electrical updates for the fairgrounds.
- Head of the Lakes Fair: Upgrading the lighting in the horse barn.
- Dunn County Fair: Repairing pens, updating the wash rack, and repairing walls in the swine barn.
- Grant County Fair: Fencing for the dairy barn.
- Iowa County Fair Society: Repairing bleachers.
- Jackson County Agricultural Society: Electrical updates for the livestock barn.
- Jefferson County Fair Park: Pens for the goat barn.
- La Crosse County Agricultural Society: Upgrading the lighting and electrical in the horse show arena.
- Lafayette County Fair: Roofing, siding and doors in the 4-H building.
- Marquette County Youth Organizations Association: Pens for the small animal livestock barn.
- Monroe County Agricultural Society: Cement for the swine barn wash pen area, manure pit and building posts.
- Rock Country 4-H Fair: Pens and ventilation equipment upgrades in the rabbit and poultry barns.
- St. Croix County Fair, Inc.: Concrete in the multispecies livestock building.
- Sheboygan County 4-H Horse and Pony Project: Updating the wash rack and fixing stall doors and sliding doors in the horse area.
- Vernon County Fair/Vernon County Ag Society: Updating the electrical service in the swine, beef, sheep and poultry barns.
- Walworth County Fair Sheep Committee: A new wash rack for the sheep barn.
About the Fund for Rural America
The Compeer Financial Fund for Rural America is the corporate giving program of Compeer Financial, structured to support Compeer Financial’s mission to enrich agriculture and rural America. Compeer Financial’s Board of Directors has dedicated one percent of annual net earnings to support the Fund’s focus areas of agriculture education, youth engagement, rural development and community enrichment, agricultural advocacy and development, and cooperative initiatives. The Fund is managed by a Board of Trustees, made up of team members and members of the Compeer Financial Board of Directors. Learn more about opportunities available through the Fund.
About Compeer Financial
Compeer Financial is a member-owned Farm Credit cooperative serving and supporting agriculture and rural communities. The $34.7 billion organization provides loans, leases, risk management and other financial services throughout 144 counties in Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Based in the Upper Midwest, Compeer Financial exists to champion the hopes and dreams of rural America, while providing personalized service and expertise to clients and the agriculture industry.
Compeer Financial is the third largest cooperative of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of lending institutions supporting agriculture and rural communities with reliable, consistent credit and financial services. Learn more about Compeer Financial’s patronage program.
