Citizens of the Year winner

RIDGEWAY - One of two Citizens of the Year can also be called the queen of the queens of The Mighty Howard County Fair!

Anna Myers, along with other members of Farm Bureau Women, started the contest in Howard County in 1989 and took care of the competition until the organization disbanded in 2019.

She urged all girls to try out. She organized everything taking place in connection with the contest and recorded all aspects of the event. 

It’s not just the queen contest in which Myers was involved. 

The Mighty Howard County Fair means many things to different people. Some of the younger fair enthusiasts run first to the rides or the animals. Others faithfully attend each grand stand event. 

Everyone usually finds a bite to eat at one of the stands and mosey through the Expo Center and Featherlite Center.

Filled with arts and crafts items over the years, the Featherlite Center and before that a delapidated old building, was Myers’ domain. 

“The Farm Bureau Women are all volunteers. We started out in a booth in the Expo Center. Then we moved to an older building, like a school house. With a June 23 birthday, I usually spent my birthday at the fair, in the 100ºF-in-the-shade-temperatures.”

One of her favorite parts of helping was chatting with the people. “People would come year after year to see if I was still there,” she smiled. “And every year, Ada Walter would get her picture taken with me! She’s over 100 now.”

Myers had fun with the food judges. “We hardly had to buy lunch on the judging days.”

One of the most popular displays lately have been the quilts. In years past, a lot of ladies showed off their fancy work.

She was still active in getting all the categories sorted and put in place in 2019. She never missed a year. 

Then COVID hit, and there was no fair in 2020.

Last year, at the age of 91 (she’s 92 today), she was still helping out, though. “On entry day, I was the straw boss. I just answered questions.” And if she had the opportunity, she could answer a whole lot of questions — 70 years worth!

That’s a lot of information stored in her head.

Myers first got involved with the fair when she was hired at Farm Bureau in 1952. She retired, to the day, in 2002. After that, she worked as a greeter at Walmart in Decorah.

The longer she worked at Farm Bureau, the more responsibility she took on, including writing articles for “The Spokesman.” She kept each scrap of history she could find.

Being salutatorian of the Ridgeway High School Class of 1948 certainly gave her the skills to succeed in life. (As a side note, the valedictorian of the class was Rosemary Vopava, who lives just a few doors down from Myers.)

Her records are currently in transition. A new home needs to be found for them as Myers is getting ready to downsize from her home in Ridgeway. 

In addition, she wrote the history of Farm Bureau and Farm Bureau Women, which has found its home in the agricultural section of the Cresco Public Library.

Her volunteerism is also known to those at Assumption/Notre Dame Church, where she has been a circle leader for different events.

In between all her work and volunteering, Myers and husband, Gene (deceased), found time to have three children, Diane (deceased), Debra and David. She also has two grandchildren and one deceased and three great-grandchildren. 

The couple purchased the home, where she is still living, in 1956 for $1,800. Over the past 66 years, nearly every part of the house has been updated.

For about 20 years, the family ran a gas station, just a block from their home.

Being a supporter of Ridgeway and northeast Iowa, when Myers was approached about selling the property she did not hesitate. “The City purchased the lot for a Veterans Memorial. Of course I said yes. I had five brothers in the service.”

Over the years, she has enjoyed visiting with her Red Hat ladies and collecting Irish items, cardinals and salt and pepper shakers.

One of the biggest changes Myers has seen over the years in agriculture is machinery. “When I grew up, I drove a B-John Deere. In high school, I didn’t go to school for two weeks in the fall when we picked corn by hand. Now the machinery is so big, I wouldn’t even know how to get into it!”

There have been many changes in Ridgeway as well. She recalls at one time, there were four grocery stores — one on each corner of the square. She also remembers the Soda Grill cafe.

At 92, Myers is curious if she is the oldest person living in Ridgeway. She asks if there is anyone older to let her know.

She has spent the majority of those nearly 93 years being of service to others, making her a great Citizen of the Year.