The AgStar Fund for Rural America, the corporate giving program of AgStar Financial Services, is proud to announce it recently awarded $41,700 in grants for its County Fair Facility Upgrade Grant Program. This year, AgStar awarded grants up to $2,500 to fund 17 county fairs in AgStar’s 69 county service area in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The mission of this program is to support rural areas by funding county fair organizations as they maintain or upgrade fairground livestock buildings and judging arenas. “Yearly maintenance and general up-keep of these structures can be expensive and AgStar is happy to provide the necessary funds to keep them running,” said John Monson, Chair of AgStar’s Fund Board of Trustees. “Many of us at AgStar grew up in rural areas and are now raising our own families in the same tradition. We understand how important county fairs are to the culture and fiber of the agricultural community and it’s an honor for us to help.”

The 17 Wisconsin and Minnesota organizations receiving grants this year include: Morrison County Ag Association, Dunn County Fair, Murray County Agricultural Society, Cass County Agricultural Association, Cass County Agricultural Society/Pillager Fair, Rusk County Livestock Committee, Carlton County Ag and Industrial Association, Freeborn County Fair, Washington County Agricultural Society, Itasca County Agricultural Association, Goodhue County Agricultural Society and Mechanic Institute, Martin County Fair, Aitkin County Agriculture Society, Bayfield County Fair, Nobles County 4-H Clubs, Mille Lacs County Agricultural Society and Burnett County Agricultural Society Fair.

Since its inception in 2001, the AgStar Fund has donated more than $3 million to organizations working to improve the future of rural America. The Fund’s mission is to “enhance the quality of life and future opportunities for rural residents and their communities.”