Teens who want to be involved in the 2011 Merced County Fair are encouraged to apply for a seat on the Junior Fair Board.

The fair is recruiting teens who want to volunteer their talents for a year by serving on the 12-member Junior Fair Board. The fair also is looking for a new Community Advisor to work with the Junior Fair Board.

The deadline to apply is Friday, October 8 at 5 p.m. Application forms are available at the Merced County Fairgrounds Office, 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Merced, and can be downloaded at www.MercedCountyFair.com.

Candidates must live in Merced County, be 14 to 19 years of age as of Jan. 1 and have a GPA of 2.0 or above to be eligible to volunteer. Junior Fair Board duties include sharing ideas on what teens want to see and do at the fair, assisting with pre-fair planning, set-up and helping during the fair. Applicants don’t need any experience at the fair, such as showing an animal or entering an exhibit.

Serving on the board fulfills high school community service requirements. Meetings are the second Tuesday of each month and as needed as the fair gets closer. Each Junior Fair Board member is entitled to free parking and admission for one person and one vehicle during the fair, which is June 15-19.

Junior Fair Board applications must be physically received at the Merced County Fairgrounds, 900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Merced, CA 95341 no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, October 8. Applications may be hand-delivered, sent by the United States Postal Service or other courier service and should be addressed to “ATTN: Junior Fair Board Advisors.” Applications will be stamped with the exact time and date of receipt and no late applications will be considered. Faxed or electronically transmitted documents won’t be accepted.

For more information, call the fair office at 722-1506.