For 15 years, Shawano County Fair time was Melissa time.
Melissa Jo Szucs, a teenager from the town of Richmond, was a lifelong 4-H’er who cherished the county fair so much that she could barely bring herself to leave on closing day.
“Just one more lap?” she would ask, urging her parents to circle the fairgrounds one last time before heading for the exit.
For those who knew Melissa, it is hard to imagine that the county fair will go on without her this year. The little girl with the big smile succumbed to cancer June 18 at age 15.
Family and friends are making sure that Melissa is remembered when the fairgrounds, starting Wednesday, are filled with the excitement, fellowship and traditions that she treasured.
“She really believed that the fair should be every day of the year,” said her mother, Vicky Szucs. “It is kind of like home, and everybody comes home for a few days.”
Inside the Junior Fair Building, where Melissa participated in countless 4-H exhibitions, members of her 4-H club will maintain a heartfelt memorial to her throughout this year’s fair. The special display will feature photographs of Melissa alongside some of her past winning contest entries.
The Wolf River 4-H Club also will unveil a park bench that woodworking club members crafted with an engraved remembrance of Melissa.
Club leader Terri Dallas said the other boys and girls in the club wanted to honor Melissa and share her story with other fair-goers. Having the county fair without seeing Melissa’s smiling face in the crowd will be difficult for everyone who knew her, Dallas said.
“The fair meant so much to her,” Dallas said. “She was everywhere.”
Born in Shawano on Oct. 3, 1999, Melissa was introduced to the county fair almost immediately. Her mother was an active 4-H leader, and her father, Jim, worked as maintenance supervisor on the fairgrounds. She attended her first county fair before her first birthday.
When she was 2 years old, Melissa was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor that was inoperable. The cancer eventually spread and left the young girl unable to walk or use her right hand.
Adjusting to a wheelchair and training herself to be left-handed, Melissa attended Shawano public schools and excelled in her classes. She also joined 4-H and insisted on not allowing health challenges or physical limitations to keep her away from any club activity.
Her parents recall that Melissa outlived many dire prognoses from doctors, and seemed determined to experience a full childhood.
Never did she enjoy life more than when she was immersed in the sights and sounds of the Shawano County Fair. Seeing old friends, trying new foods, attending 4-H functions and watching the crowds brought her a happiness that seemed immeasurable.
“She lived and breathed the fair,” said Terri Brunner, 4-H program assistant in Shawano County. “As long as we were at the fair, life was good.”
Melissa consistently performed well in 4-H competition with her baked goods, photography, bird studies and other projects. She was especially gifted as a visual artist, winning a merit award in 2013 for a self-portrait painting that later advanced to state fair competition.
When health problems put Melissa in the hospital during the 2014 fair, her parents and doctors made sure that she did not miss out entirely. Her face lit up when she arrived at the fairgrounds and saw another merit award hanging from one of her paintings — this one a silhouette of the main character from the movie “The Karate Kid.”
In early June of this year, as she was completing her freshman year at Shawano Community High School, Melissa remarked to her parents that she wanted to get started on a woodworking project for the 2015 county fair. The next day, she was admitted to the hospital again.
Sixteen days later, she died.
Her parents plan to attend the county fair, which opens Wednesday, as always this year, although they recognize how difficult it will be without Melissa. The family has installed a granite memorial to their daughter outside the main office on the fairgrounds. That way, the little girl who loved the county fair will never really have to leave again.
“She can have every day,” Vicky said, “as a fair day.”
