Hope everyone had a great weekend. We here at CCB are looking forward the Fourth of July events coming up this weekend. As always, I’m looking forward to the turtle races. Our stable of red-eyed box turtles have been training hard. I am considering a few equipment changes this year such as blinkers on a couple of our entries who seem to be more concerned about what’s going on around them rather than focusing on the line in front of them. Our box turtle racing facility here at the compound is setting a new standard that will ensure the compound’s legacy as a turtle racing dynasty (okay, actually this is our first year). I’ve reached out to Bob Baffert (trainer of this year’s Triple Crown winner) to enlist his professional assistance as a terrestrial turtle racing trainer, but so far he hasn’t gotten back to me.
But, in the midst of all of the July 4th goings on, there was an interesting piece in the Woodward News late last week. Let me preface this, by asking you, fair (pardon the pun yet to come) readers of CCB (all four of you at last count, including the guy who sends me threatening emails every day…he’s back!), if you’ve ever read something and then realized that something about what you read was a bit disturbing, but you couldn’t put your finger on it? The Woodward County Fair Board finally announced the hiring of a General Manager for the freshly renovated County Fair Grounds buildings and brand new Events Center. They’ve desperately needed that to ensure that the new facilities get the most use and bring increased revenue from tourist/visitor buckage to the city and county. The Fair Board began advertising for the position of General Manager sometime in May, I think. They were looking for someone with a lot of experience in everything from events coordination to facility management to marketing experience. The veritable blue plate special of General Managers. I even discovered the job announcement ads were running in Texas…they certainly cast a wide net. Why do I know so much about the hiring search? Admittedly, I submitted an application for the position. I received a very nice rejection email from someone on the Fair Board the day before the selection of General Manager was announced in the paper. I actually appreciated that…it’s more than I can say for the last three publishers that I approached about publishing my book. Two of the publishers actually indicated they wanted me to forward the entire book, which I did. After months of hearing nothing and after repeated inquiries as to the status of the manuscript, I’ve finally decided to publish through Amazon.com…the book will be available soon through Kindle. But, I digress… In the Woodward News article last week, it identified the new General Manager as Andy Maher and discussed some of his qualifications for the position. There were quotes from the chair of the hiring committee regarding Mr. Maher and his ideas for ensuring the Fair Grounds facilities are booked every weekend. There was even a quote from one of the County Commissioners that Mr. Maher has traveled a lot and knows people worldwide. That seemed kind of an odd thing to say, I’m not sure Woodward County will be able to attract a French croissant makers convention to Woodward County, but what do I know. Frankly, if he’s hoping to attract business from overseas, I’m holding out hope for the introduction of Japanese Sumo Wrestling to Northwest Oklahoma. Let me say, that despite the fact that I wasn’t selected for the position, I am happy to see someone hired who can help move Woodward and Woodward County forward. I was planning to write a blog post that highlighted the benefits of having a full-time, we’re-not-kidding-this-time-manager at the Fair Grounds. It is definitely win-win. But, there was something about the article that tripped something in my brain that didn’t really jump to the forefront…until today. As I was doing some research for the posting, I found a Woodward News article that was published in February 2015, when the Fair Grounds renovations were nearing completion. The County Fair Board was meeting with the Woodward County Commission to discuss future plans for the Fair Grounds facilities including the brand new Events Center. According to the article, much of the discussion that day centered on marketing the facilities and even working hand-in-glove with the city’s Convention and Tourism Bureau. And there it was…a quote near the end of the section about the County Fair Board from the Chairman of the Woodward County Fair Board, Andy Maher, who indicated the board was feeling a bit overwhelmed. Probably not the right thing to say when the Fair Grounds renovations have been paid for with bond money. So, the same guy who as Chairman of the Fair Board was feeling overwhelmed was hired into the position of General Manager of the Fair Grounds? Is that legal? I’m sure the County wouldn’t have moved to hire Mr. Maher if there was a legal issue. Is it ethical? I’ll just say, yes, this is after all Oklahoma, where state Corporation Commissioners receive sacks of cash from the people they’re supposed to be regulating. I wonder if he’ll have to resign his position as Chairman of the Fair Board? Back in the 1980’s I worked for a Navy four-star who measured his day by whether or not his name appeared on the front page of the Washington Post…the best days were those when his name was nowhere to be found. It just seems to me that Woodward County is walking a line here, but then again, it is Oklahoma. Just sayin... I wish Mr. Maher the best in his endeavors to make the Woodward County Fair Grounds a world-class entertainment and event venue. Comments are closed.
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