PALMER — For local 4-H members trying to juggle school and their animal projects, it was a busy two weeks.

As the Alaska State Fair wound down to its firework finale on Monday, some of the 4-H parents seemed as exhausted as the kids, who were busy in the corral participating in a gaggle of fun games to celebrate the completion of their annual projects.

The 2008 Alaska State Fair was a good one, according to 4-H parents Jenny Wren and Joni Posey. Wren, who is the leader of the Winner Circle 4-H Club, and Posey, who is the goat supervisor at the fair, have spent more than their share of time in the barn watching the youngsters care for their animals.

ROBERT DeBERRY/Frontiersman Rudy Bostwick, 8, left, and cousin Kellcee Collins, 9, compete in the three-legged race during the 4-H Fun Day on Monday, the last day of the Alaska State Fair in Palmer.

Parents are required to be on hand, too. To keep kids in school, there are before-school chores, after-school chores and the evening chores after homework.

“It really has thrown a wrench in our works,” Wren said.

The two leaders and 4-H parent Bob Shumaker bemoaned the Mat-Su School District’s apparent failure to recognize that 4-Hers at the fair are busy learning, working and gaining experience, not just getting out of school. This is the second year Mat-Su Borough Schools have started before the start of the Alaska State Fair. School offices were closed for the holiday; no one there was available for comment.

The change has been a hardship on families, the parents said. The 4-Hers have assigned tasks to complete at the fair, not only for their own animals but for the welfare of the animals and safety in the barn as a whole. Beyond that, there is the prepping and showing of animals, the auction and fund-raisers, education and outreach projects with which the students are expected to be involved.

“I don’t think the schools realize how much there is for the kids to do here,” Posey said.

It’s a great learning experience, Wren said, and one that needs to be recognized as valuable to the students, who learn public speaking, salesmanship, responsibility and a host of other skills and traits through their participation in the fair and 4-H activities year-round.

“If the schools would look at it a little differently, it would help a lot,” Wren said, noting that some teachers try to accommodate students as best they can. Wren opted for home schooling this year because of the situation.

Then there are the surprises. While the Shumakers’ hog Strawberry gave birth on a weekend, it could as easily been a school night during which the gilt spent five hours delivering the piglets. Shumaker’s daughter Lydia, 15, helped with the early morning deliveries.

“That last one would not have made it if we had not been here,” said Bob Shumaker, confessing he was more than a little tired Monday after his Sunday morning vigil.

Shumaker agrees with Wren and Posey: the hard work of the 4-Hers need to be recognized by the school. He suggested students be given credit for their extra-curricular work.

“This program is a great opportunity,” said Shumaker, who has two teenagers at home.

Despite the scheduling struggles, purloined piglets, escapee baby goats and other challenges, the parents said the 2008 fair was a great event.

Wren said the 4-H Livestock Auction saw some slightly lower prices overall, likely because of the economy and fewer bidders.

“This year we didn’t have the number of bidders we’d like to see,” Wren said. “Prices were down because of it.”

The women praised those bidders who did help the students earn a good return on their projects. Some, like Posey’s daughter, Rae, garnered a high price — more than $11 a pound for her grand champion market goat.

“It’s been really pleasant,” Posey said of the fair.