Having served for four years as the president of the La Porte County Fair Board of Directors, Steve Mrozinski has been closely involved with the ongoing planning and execution of one of the most popular county fairs in the Region. In Mrozinski’s view, the La Porte County Fair, which will be held from July 6 to 13 this year, brings the community together in a very special way.
“We want to make the La Porte County Fair bigger and better every year,” Mrozinski said. “Our goal is to get people to come see what we've already done and what we are doing. We’d like families to bring their kids to enjoy the Fair week, so we make sure that we have the right entertainment there for everyone. We also want people to come and see the 4-H projects that the kids of the community have put so much time into. Being a part of it all has been great.”
When he isn’t going about Fair Board business, Mrozinski works as the manager at the Rolling Prairie location of Keystone Cooperative, an organization that provides farmers throughout the Midwest with vital resources and new agricultural strategies. Come December, Mrozinski will have worked a total of 40 years as the manager of the Rolling Prairie location.
In 2018, Mrozinski became a member of the La Porte County Fair Board of Directors. He received the nomination for Fair Board president and ascended to the position in 2020. About four years ago, the Fair Board, under Mrozinski’s direction, had a new cattle barn constructed at the La Porte County Fairgrounds. Mrozinski will also oversee the demolition of the Fairgrounds’ old grandstand as well as the construction of a new one later this year.
“Everything we build is constructed on La Porte County land, so the county officially owns it,” Mrozinski explained. “We’ve worked very well with the county on a number of different projects at the Fairgrounds. For example, we're adding on to our campgrounds out there so we can offer year-round camping. The cooperation between the Fair Board and La Porte County has truly made the Fairgrounds what they are today. The improvements we've made out there together are just awesome.”
The Curious Kids Trail, one of the many attractions to be featured at the Fair this year, lets young fairgoers drive mini tractors and learn about the various products that are made in La Porte County. Mrozinski considers such educational aspects of the Fair to be very important.
“It’s great when the kids of our community participate in the La Porte County Fair,” Mrozinski said. “We’ve had 700 or so kids do 4-H in previous years, but this year we expect to have about 1,000 kids participate. All the kids get to see all the different projects that others have done and that can inspire them to try their hand at something new.”
When he wants to unwind, Mrozinski enjoys showing his 12 draft horses at state fairs. He also serves as a judge in various events while attending state fairs. While Mrozinski enjoys participating in other fairs throughout Indiana, the La Porte County Fair lets him engage with his community on a deeper level.
“I want to show everybody that we on the Fair Board want to get more people active in the community and help La Porte County grow,” Mrozinski said. “Whether we’re donating meat to local food pantries or holding food drives, the Fair Board tries to stay involved and do as much as we can to help people throughout the whole county.”
As the La Porte County Fair draws closer, Mrozinski and the rest of the Fair Board continue to find ways of making the next chapter in the Fair’s 180-year legacy both memorable and fun for its attendees.Like this comment