Job seekers lined up Wednesday to start dropping off their applications for the Missouri State Fair.

People took applications off stacks available and sat down at tables, on stairs and outside to fill them out or walked in with completed applications in hand to wait in line to drop them off.

The Missouri State Fair is hiring.

The fair started accepting applications noon Wednesday, and received more than 150 in the first four hours.

Job seekers ranged from teenagers to retirees, from people looking to park cars to those who want to work with livestock.

Wendy Voitl, of Sedalia, said she recently moved to the city and heard about working for the fair from a friend.

“I’m still getting my house unpacked, so he said it would be a good 10-day job,” she said.

She showed up on the first day to try to better her chances of getting hired.

“I figured it would be a better shot at getting on and I’d forget later, so might as well do it now,” she said.

Desirée Smith, of Sedalia, had her form months ago. Smith, a math teacher for the Missouri Virtual Instruction Program, said she hopes for some supplemental income and the chance to meet new people.

She and her son, 15-year-old Michael, want to work at the fair. He will spend part of his summer on an international leadership trip to Austria.

“He hopes to help with expenses,” she said.

Retiree Randy Gerrish, of Sedalia, didn’t know how many times he’s worked for the fair.

“I’ve worked here since I was a kid,” he said.

He said he works at the fair “just for the fun of it.”

“I like flip-flopping around, a little of this, a little of that,” he said.

It will be the fourth year James Nagle, of Sweet Springs, has tried to work at the fair. He has worked in parking in past years.

“It’s kind of fun, being around and helping people out,” he said. “I enjoy it.”

His friend Dave Thomas, also of Sweet Springs, will hopefully work at the fair for his eighth time.

He said he returns because of “good friends that I’ve gotten to know over the years. It’s a lot of fun and you meet a lot of nice people,” he said.

Friends Rachel Cochran and Candace Parish, who will both be seniors at Smith-Cotton High School in the fall, applied for the first time Wednesday.

The two wanted to try for jobs in admissions or at the carnival.

“I’ve been looking for a summer job and I like coming to the fair,” Cochran said.

Cochran said she’s had a tough time finding a job this summer.

“I’ve put in a lot of applications and I haven’t gotten any callbacks,” she said.

JoAnn Cooper, who works in the business office of the fair, said she expects a higher number of applications for the fair’s 850 positions because of the tight job market.

The fair will take applications from noon to 6 p.m.  Wednesday through Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Applicants must bring two forms of identification.

There is plenty of time to get applications in.

“A lot of our superintendents of our different departments won’t start coming in to do their hiring until the end of July,” Cooper said. 

Hiring typically continues after the fair starts.

There are a wide variety of jobs available, Cooper said, like admissions people who take tickets at the gate, jobs in parking, tram drivers, tram hosts and hostesses, carnival personnel and people who work at the livestock shows.

While waiting won’t hurt a job seeker’s application, handing it in early won’t hurt either.

“We’ve got some people, they’ll work anywhere. But if you prefer air conditioning or you prefer a certain department,” its better to get applications in earlier, she said.

Applications for jobs at the fair are available at the Administration Building at the Fairgrounds and may be downloaded from the fair’s Web site, http://www.mostatefair.com/.