Engaged local clergy oppose 2012 county fair beer garden

MANSFIELD — A controversy is brewing over a beer garden during the county fair. Several area clergy with drug treatment ministries attended the Richland County Agricultural Society Board’s November meeting to bring a grievance regarding the last year’s beer garden for the Richland County Fair.

The 2011 beer garden drew national attention, and was the first time alcohol has been served in 160 years of the family-friendly county fair. Despite initial reports by the Fair President, a clergy group led by Richland Community Family Coalition Spokesman Benjamin Mutti, presented the Board a report detailing the beer garden’s failure to meet publicly-stated goals.

According to Mutti, “the introduction of a fair beer garden is counter-productive, working against our collective efforts in minimizing the local epidemic of alcohol and substance abuse, and should therefore be permanently cancelled.”

In an interview with WMFD TV-68, Fair Board Manager Dean Wells listed three conditions, that would invariably cancel the beer garden. These included an unsuitable fair beer garden profit (below $10,000), underage consumption, and drunk driving.

Despite claims the beer garden had a net profit of $6,000 and brought increased attendance, the Fair Board President Donna Seibart admitted in response to information requests that “the number of tickets sold, are not recorded.”

In addition, the clergy report reveals that the $6,000 figure did not include additional security costs and by clergies’ estimates, actually lost $181. This statistic is based on records given by the Fair Board.

Pastors attending the Fair Board meeting included: Rich Cloyet, Shelby First Church of GOD, Reverend Doug Tackett of Taylortown Community Church, Reverend Rick Lewis of Shelby Church of God, Reverend John Harris of Lexington Armor bearer’s Ministries, and Reverend Steve Schag of Shelby.

The event originally drew controversy when the Richland Community Family Coalition held a press conference on the Fairgrounds with several pastors and a spokesperson with the Mothers Against Drunk Driving several days prior to the opening day of the Fair.

The Fair Board’s decision to have a beer garden during fair week resulted in several entities passing resolutions objecting to the beer garden. Those governing bodies included: Mansfield City Council, Madison Twp. Trustee Board, Springfield Twp. Trustee Board, Washington Twp. Trustee Board, Mansfield Christian School Board, and the Temple Christian School Board.

The Crestview Ministerial Association also publicly opposed the 2011 beer garden.

Seven area businesses terminated their sponsorship of the 2012 Fair because of the inclusion of the beer garden in 2011 . On the flip side, local businessmen also offered money to the Fair Board of Directors as incentive for not having a fair beer garden.

One example the clergy brought to the Fair Board was of a commercial business trying to mix alcohol and families was the national restaurant chain Chuck E. Cheese. The combination was analyzed in a Wall Street Journal report where documented cases of violence have plagued restaurants in the chain in recent years.

The clergy quoted the Bible in their report warning about the affiliation of alcohol abuse and violence saying: “Who has woe? Who has sorrow or redness of eyes? Who has contentions or wounds without cause? Those who linger long at the wine…it will bite like a serpent, your eyes will see strange things… you shall say ‘when shall I awake that I may seek another drink?”

Editor’s note: the The Richland County Agricultural Society announced the discontinuation of the beer garden for 2012 at the clergy’s request.

The Bottom Line:

The Bible says in Proverbs 23, “Who has woe? Who has sorrow or redness of eyes? Who has contentions or wounds without cause? Those who linger long at the wine…it will bite like a serpent, your eyes will see strange things… you shall say ‘when shall I awake that I may seek another drink?”