Shelby & Madison students crowned Junior Fair royalty at 2026 Richland County Fair

MANSFIELD — It was big day for canines and sheep at the Richland County Fair on Sunday — in terms of royalty.

Weston Rehberg, a Shelby Whippet, and Kaley Bowman, a Madison Ram, were chosen as Junior Fair king and queen in competition at the John Hart Building.

The 17-year-old Rehberg, a member of the Roaming Rovers 4-H Club and Shelby FFA, shows market ducks at the fair. He will be a junior this academic year. He is the son of Vince and Jennifer Rehberg.

Bowman, 16, a member of the Wild-n-Free 4-H Club, shows llamas and alpacas at the fair. She will be a junior at Madison and will also be studying radiology at North Central State College. She is the daughter of Stacey and Eric Bowman.

It’s the first year in the competition for both, though Rehberg said his older brother, Warren, was selected king a decade ago.

“I kind of felt like I wanted to follow in his shoes, and my mom was like, ‘Hey, you should do this’ And I was like, ‘OK, I’ll try it.”

(Below are photos from the 2026 Richland County Junior Fair King & Queen Pageant on Sunday afternoon at the Richland County Fairgrounds. The story continues below the photos.)

Bowman said she has attended previous competitions.

“I’ve just always seen the fair queens being crowned and it’s just really inspired me. I want to be a role model to the younger kids,” she said.

Both the new king and queen said they wanted to help junior fair participants connect with the past.

“I just think I want to have a good connection with the kids and I think we could better represent our roots here in Richland County,” Rehberg said. “I think we have so much history that’s untapped and not talked about.”

Bowman said, “I think history is really important and I think that we can just better the fair by learning from our like weaknesses and just better our fair.”

Both will preside over the junior fair this week and will represent the Richland County Fair at statewide events. Their first task after being crowned was to present ribbons at the Bake-a-Rama awards and auction.

What advice will they provide for younger people who would consider seeking the titles?

“I would say just do it. Don’t put it off because you have many years to do this,” Rehberg said. “If you ever have the (idea) of even trying it, don’t put it off. Just go and do it.”

Bowman said she would advise others to be confident.

“You only live once. Try everything you can do,” she said.

Others also selected for royal positions:

— Carson Secriskey of the Roaming Rovers 4-H Club and Shelby High School FFA was selected first runner-up in the king competition.

— Abigail Secrisky of the Roaming Rovers 4-H Club was selected first runner-up in the queen competition.

— Shelby Bays of the Next Generation 4-H Club and Crestview High School FFA was picked as the second runner-up in the queen competition.

Other contestants in the queen competition were Kyleigh Biglin from the Shelby FFA; Maylanna Gamble from the Wild-n-Free 4-H Club; Kassie Kleman from the New Edition 4-H Club; and Devyn McGugin from the All-Star Gang 4-H Club.

— Maylanna Gamble from the Wild-n-Free 4-H Club was selected as the senior canine ambassador. Kinsley Moore from the Wild-n-Free 4-H Club was picked as junior canine ambassador.

— Natalie Adkins from the Shelby High School FFA was selected as senior poultry ambassador. Alivia Hicks from the Ganges Happy Hearts 4-H Club was picked as the junior poultry ambassador.

— Brooklyn Gilger was chosen as the rabbit ambassador.

Shelby High School graduate A.J. Roll, selected as the 2024 Junior Fair king and now a member of Ontario City Council, was the Master of Ceremonies.

2025 Junior Fair king and queen, Trent Rodman and Payton Byrd, also participated in the Sunday festivities, greeting the new members of the royal family with their awards.