Clayton County man helps maintain fairgrounds

NATIONAL - The Clayton County Fairgrounds will be bustling this week as the annual 4-H fair gets underway.

But for much of the year, one man is responsible for the upkeep of the grounds.

John Frink, 75, travels to the site from his home east of Monona. For the past five years, he has spent eight to 12 hours there nearly each day from spring through fall, making repairs and doing general maintenance. It's all on a volunteer basis.

Frink, who has been on the fair's board since the 1950s, said it all started when the board needed some work done on some of the barns.

'I just went ahead and did it, and I've been doing repairs at the fairgrounds ever since,” he said.

Frink, a retired semi driver, does everything from electrical work to repairing buildings to roofing.

'You have to have pride in yourself and your work,” he said. 'My dad told me that if you are going to do a job, do it right the first time. I've always tried to live by that advice.”

Getting help

Recently, Frink had to redo the 4H building for a graduation. The job included putting in new cabinets, counter tops and wall boards.

Frink started the project, but knew he might not finish in time. That's when Darla Kelchen, executive director of the Clayton County Development Group, entered the picture.

'I knew that the local Caterpillar manufacturing plant was looking for a volunteer project to work on,” Kelchen said. 'This seemed like the perfect match.”

On Kelchen's urging, Frink talked to Gail Lindley, Caterpillar's human resources supervisor.

'Caterpillar has a new program for sustainability of the community,” Lindley said. 'We have always donated to different projects and organizations in the area, but we were looking for something that we could really work hands on. After talking with John, I knew this was something we could help with.”

Caterpillar sent 11 volunteers to help Frink complete the project. The cabinets were soon in place and the countertop was set. The team also finished the glass board walls and helped with the electrical work.

'They were a godsend,” Frink said. 'I couldn't have gotten it done in time by myself. I really do appreciate the help I got from those volunteers from Caterpillar.”

Always work to do

After this year's fair concludes, there still will be work to be done. Several buildings are used for winter storage for boats and other vehicles. Frink also will continue to do repairs help people get their items in and out of the buildings.

'There are other good people that help with that,” he said.

Frink said he not only volunteers for sake of the fairgrounds, but also for the 4H and FFA members.

'I'm thankful that we have one of the largest fairs around, even though we have one of the smallest fairgrounds,” he said. 'I really enjoy the kids at the fair.”

'In a way, it's a challenge,” he added. 'I have a couple of health problems, but I will keep doing this as long as I can. In the meantime, if I see a problem, I'll fix it. If I didn't enjoy this, I wouldn't be here.”

l Dave Franzman of KCRG-TV9 contributed to this report.