Lodi transplant appointed to county fair board by governor
Lodi’s Emma Fete was recently appointed to the San Joaquin County Fair Board of Directors by Gov. Jerry Brown.
As a 4-H program advisor and as a resident of the county, Fete said she understands the importance of the fair and the fairgrounds in the community.
“I also really value both the fair and the fairgrounds, and the community space and the community asset that it could be and that it should. I’m hoping being able to serve on the board will provide that community resource.”
Fete will join eight other board members in providing direction on the operations as well as the future of the county fair and the fairgrounds.
“My main goal is to be able to help guide what I see is a really valuable community resource that seems to be in need of some extra help,” Fete said. “Everybody has ideas about how they can make something better, make something different, and really it’s about being able to recognize the value of other people’s ideas and being open to change and able to recognize wisdom from all quarters,” she said.
Originally from Ohio, Fete said the county fair was a staple of her childhood. She hopes to make the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds and the annual fair a valuable community resource and partner.
Fete has been a 4-H youth developmental advisor at the University of California Cooperative Extension since 2017. She was a graduate teaching assistant and instructor at Ohio State University from 2012 to 2017. She earned a doctorate’s degree in philosophy and a master’s degree in communications from Ohio State University. Fete moved to the area from Ohio in 2017 to pursue her career.
“I’m happy to be taking part in a new community and serving my new community which I’ve fallen in love with. As you know Lodi is a lovely town, and I sort of ended up here by accident, but I’m happy I did,” Fete said.