The Ring of Dreams, which experienced a successful debut last year, returns to the Wood County Fair on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. inside the Pratt Pavilion.

The event, which was inspired by a similar one at the Henry County Fair, allows individuals ages 5 and up with developmental disabilities to show an animal in a good, fun environment while making friendships with their mentors.

“Last year was better than I could have ever expected,” said Amanda Barndt, who serves as the host of the Ring of Dreams show.

The initial event had 42 participants and 25 mentors. This year, those numbers have increased to 54 and 45, respectively.

Categories include rabbits, pigs, sheeps, goats and cows. The cows are a beefeater, so they’re under a year old and smaller in size.

“The most special thing about it is the agricultural community has always been welcoming of anyone and everyone who wants to come around and be a part of it,” Barndt said. “Anyone who wants to be part of our world is welcome, and that is shown pretty clearly in this event.

“The stands will be absolutely packed with people who are supporting this show as spectators but then to see the patience and calmness and kindness of all the junior fair kids who partner with a participant and to see the friendships form and everyone work together is just really incredible.”

During the show, Bowling Green High School’s FFA advisor Stephanie Conway will serve as the judge. She will ask them their name, what they’re showing, what the animal’s name is and if they’re having fun.

“She obviously has to be able to read the room, so some of them she’ll only get a grin out of and some she will have a full conversation with.”

The community’s support is a big reason for the success of this event, per Brandt.

All of the participants and mentors will have matching shirts on but will have different colors to tell them apart. The community paid for those in full.”

The Ring of Dreams is doing memorial keepsake picture frames for participants this year, which BGSU has helped with. There’s also a handful of food stands, and participants will receive coupons for lemonade, slushies and hamburgers.

Barndt’s family also buys the medals that participants will receive.

“We’ve seen (last year’s participants) throughout the year with those medals still on, so that’s super neat to see,” she said. “We just had to do it again.”

Barndt, who serves on the Wood County Farm Bureau, said she takes joy in seeing the happiness that this event brings.

“To see a lot of these participants around town, they remember me, they know my face,” she said. “They come running up. Most of them give me a hug or at least say hi, so that’s made it really special. Honestly, the only motivation in getting it off the ground is I thought Wood County could really benefit from a show like this.”

Paul Perry, who serves as the second vice president of the Wood County Senior Fair Board, is also excited because the fair has partnered with the Wood County Board of Developmental Disabilities this year to sponsor the day of the Ring of Dreams, which is Aug. 1.

From 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., the fair is hosting a bunch of special events for individuals with developmental disabilities. They’ll be able to get into the fair for free and experience several activities such as fairground tours.

“It’s not just the show,” said Perry, who also has a son and daughter helping out at the Ring of Dreams show. “We’ve broadened it up to making it a whole day at the fair.”

For anyone interested in attending, Barndt highly recommends coming early as the stands were packed last year, and with increased participation, she expects even more of a crowd this year.

“When they’re inside the ring, when those individuals are showing, there’s smiles for miles,” Perry said. “It’s just such an uplifting event. I can’t say enough about it.