St. Joseph Fair fires fair director

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY — Missi Tefft, manager of the St. Joseph County Grange Fair — and a fair employee for more than 30 years — has been let go.

The decision to part ways with the 54-year-old Tefft was made Monday during the fair board’s monthly meeting. It came following an executive session that lasted more than two hours and on a motion made by board member Tony Hochstetler, seconded by Gary Clark.

In the absence of two board members, the motion was approved by a 7-5 vote. As board president, Keith Bower did not cast a vote and does so only in the event of a tiebreaker.

Hochstetler said he simply didn’t think Tefft was the right person for the job.

“I didn’t feel she was getting the job done anymore,” Hochstetler said Tuesday. “I feel that she got hired as an event coordinator, then promoted to manager and I just didn’t feel like she was doing the job, and thought it was time to have a change and that’s what happened last night.”

Tefft, a Nottawa resident, was promoted to manager in May 2021. The role was served by committee for the 2019 fair after longtime manager Bill Johnson was dismissed in October 2018.

Her annual salary was about $50,000.

Hochstetler conceded making the motion leading to Tefft’s firing was not easy. Nonetheless, Hochstetler said he honored a commitment made when he joined the fair board last year.

“When I was elected, I told the fair association I was there to represent them,” he said. “And I felt like that was the best thing I could do to represent them.”

He reiterated the majority of the board members present Monday apparently agreed with his sentiment.

Hochstetler said the board will have to begin the process of securing a new manager. The 2023 fair isn’t until September but in the meantime, winter storage starts next week and that in itself requires an inordinate amount of coordination and organization that will be a challenge without Tefft’s presence.

The fair office is closed and without staff for the moment, as a part-time employee quit immediately upon learning of Tefft’s fate.

Board member and former board president Tom Miller said he was disappointed with what unfolded Monday.

“I thought we were headed down the right road … I thought we were back on our feet, doing well this year and the financials were looking good,” Miller said. “This, to me, just came out of nowhere. I kind of thought we had made some strides the past few years but, I don’t know. Sometimes things change but we learn to go on.”

Miller said it’s unfortunate the board didn’t wait until all 15 members were present before making such a critical decision.

Bower said despite the front-office shakeup, he vowed to ensure the integrity of the fair itself and its 4-H programs are not impacted.

“I love the fair, 2022 was a big success and I really was happy with the job Missi was doing for us,” Bower said. “I had absolutely no idea this vote was going to be done. That’s why we’ve been so flabbergasted and kind of scrambling, trying to get things figured out.”

He said discussion related to Tefft’s potential dismissal was not previously brought before the board’s executive committee, which typically handles personnel issues and recommends employment-related matters to the full board.

Board vice president Angie Mingus also chimed in.

“It’s a bit difficult to process when we had a successful 2022 fair, the manager did everything she was asked and was not given reprimands and she’s just fired,” Mingus added. “Despite what happened this week, we need to keep the fair as the focal point and lead by what’s best for the fair, not by emotion.”

Like Miller, Tefft said she was blindsided by the board’s vote. Tefft said she attended Monday’s meeting with no idea her employment would end up being the evening’s biggest news.

“Absolutely out of the blue … that wouldn’t be an exaggeration,” she said, adding she had the night and next day to process the situation before coming to terms with it. “A day later, the word ‘disappointed’ comes to mind because not at any given point in time was there anything expressed to me of any issues, reprimands, anything that needed to be resolved. There was nothing.”

Tefft, who joined the fair in 1990, said she met and even exceeded goals given to her by the fair board. Furthermore, she said, the 2022 fair turned a profit.

She said it’s her understanding the decision was made based more on feelings and personal agendas than job performance.

At any rate, Tefft said she heard from those who voted against her dismissal and she appreciates their kind words.

“To be honest, they’re as confused and befuddled as I am,” Tefft said. “I mean, if there were job issues, performance issues, then there’s a process you put into place, but there is a particular group of individuals who obviously didn’t even give that a thought.”

Tefft said she will make the best of her newfound free time and has no regrets about spending more than half her life affiliated with the fair, which typically draws about 150,000 people over its seven-day run.

“I wouldn’t have been there for 32 years if I was in it for the money and I didn’t love it,” she said.

The fair board’s next regularly scheduled meeting is Nov. 14.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: St. Joseph Fair fires fair director Missi Tefft