Flathead County commissioners appointed two new members to the Flathead County Fair Board earlier this week, giving the board enough members to resume meetings and restore decision-making capabilities.
C.M. “Butch” Clark and Wes McAlpin received unanimous votes from the commission, chosen from a pool of 16 applicants.
McAlpin, a regular in the 4-H scene and a Department of Natural Resource and Conservation employee, will take over a term that expires Dec. 31, 2010. Clark, a Flathead Valley rancher and Kalispell business owner, will fill the term expiring on Dec. 31, 2011.
Commissioners Jim Dupont and Dale Lauman said McAlpin’s years of service in 4-H would serve the fairground well.
“I think Wes would do a great job representing the 4-H element on the Fair Board,” Lauman said.
According to his application, McAlpin has been involved in 4-H programs in Lake County since the 1960s and 1970s when he participated in his youth. McAlpin stayed active in 4-H as an adult, becoming a project leader, showmanship judge and livestock scale operator and is currently the vice-chairman of the livestock committee.
McAlpin works as a water resource specialist for the DNRC in Kalispell.
“I am keenly aware of the rich history of the Northwest Montana Fair and would like to see it continue and thrive for years to come,” McAlpin wrote.
Lauman also said Clark was a good choice because of his business sense and history as a rancher.
In his cover letter, Clark wrote that he and his wife currently employ 32 people in their Kalispell businesses. He also wrote that the fair is a vital part of the county, both in heritage and the economy.
“The Fairground is an integral part of the County’s economic engine, not only at fair time,” Clark wrote.
Other applicants for the board were Terry Fosbery, Phillip Guiffrida III, Edwin Hankinson, Don Hines, Jack Jones, Chuck Pierce, Ron Schlegel, Ronald Thibert, Marcie Riley Young, Bill Voermans, Chuck Warren, Craig Witte, Jeffrey Jung and former fair manager Jay Scott.
Three of the 16 applicants for the two open board seats wrote to the commissioners that they would only accept a board appointment if the county removed all current board members and reinstated Scott as fair manager.
The Fair Board has been in considerable flux since its February decision not to renew Scott’s contract. Paul Atkinson vacated his seat the night of the decision and board member Susan Munsinger resigned in March. Board member Ted Dykstra Jr. left his seat to become the interim fair manager until a new manager is hired.
A group of valley residents dedicated to reinstating Scott as fair manager has called for the resignation of every board member through newspaper advertisements and at public meetings.
The remaining active board members – Joy Struble and Butch Woolard – did not make a quorum and were unable to vote or make decisions on behalf of the board. With the selection of two new members, meetings can resume.
The Fair Board meets the second Thursday of every month.