Veterinarian Jan Pol was a supporter of the Isabella County Fair long before he became a household name on Nat Geo Wild’s “The Incredible Dr. Pol.”
Whether he’s at the fair helping with large animals or being followed by a film crew, Pol has been a fixture at the summer event for youth in 4-H for decades.
On Saturday, he will be at the fairgrounds at North Mission and East Baseline roads with his family to help the Isabella County Youth and Farm Fair Society raise money to construct a multipurpose building and education center.
“A Day With Dr. Pol” is from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and will feature a petting zoo, kids activities and games, autographs and chat sessions with Pol, Dr. Pol T-shirts, community partner displays, a bake sale, a food truck, a raffle and silent auctions, craft vendors and concessions.
Entry is a minimum $10 donation per car or $30 per bus, with access to the fairgrounds at the Baseline Road entrance.
Fair leaders and exhibitors will also be at the fundraiser, where Pol will discuss his experiences, and there will be educational demonstrations, animal demonstrations by fair leaders and youth, a flea market and cornhole tournament.
Pol is not seeing patients at the fundraiser.
Home to a variety of community events, the fairgrounds hosts the annual Isabella County Youth and Farm Fair July 22-30 this year, and fair society members hope to raise enough money to construct the educational building to provide the community with space that is better suited for year-round activities.
Buildings at the fairgrounds are used mostly by 4-H and Future Farmers of America youth, and a new building would provide more opportunities to host educational events, practices and competitions all year, according to Heather Justice, one of the organizers of the event and a former 4-H leader whose daughter, Jessalyn Beers, aged out last year and is an adult leader this year.
Justice said the group has been raising money for the building for a long time and that inflation has minimized what they have been able to accomplish.
To help get to their goal, they decided to come up with something bigger, and since Pol and wife Diane have always supported the fair and youth, they reached out to him for help, Justice said.
“He has always gotten joy from teaching our kids new things about their animals, so he is partnering with us to help raise money to build this new opportunity for Isabella County and our youth,” she said.