Michael D. Nelson, Puyallup, was elected the 2015 President of the Washington State Fair in Puyallup by the Board of Directors following the annual shareholders meeting yesterday.
Other elected officers include: David R. Campbell, vice president; W. David Schodde, secretary; Candace Blancher, treasurer; and Kent R. Hojem, CEO.
As president, Nelson’s responsibilities include overseeing events at the Washington State Fair Events Center throughout the year, including the Spring Fair, April 16-19, and the Washington State Fair, Sept. 11-27, 2015. In addition to those responsibilities, he is in charge of grandstand entertainment at the Washington State Fair, working closely with the Fair’s booking agent in hiring artists.
Michael Nelson was born and raised in Puyallup, and graduated from Rogers High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration / Accounting from Pacific Lutheran University, and is a certified public accountant. Michael owned Tab Products Company, LLC, a records management sales, service and consulting company, which he sold in 2009. He has been a licensed real estate broker since 2011.
Michael and his wife of 25 years, Janet, have two children, Brenden and Rylee.
Michael Nelson is an active member of Puyallup Rotary Club, Puyallup Rotary Foundation, and two certified public accountant organizations: AICPA and WSCPA. He was on the board of Multicare Good Samaritan Hospital until 2013, and served as a board member of the Daffodil Foundation. Michael has been Vice-chair of the Washington State Fair Foundation since its inception in 2007.
The Washington State Fair has been a part of Michael’s life for many years. While in college he worked part time in the operations department and on interim shows, and worked backstage during the fair in the transportation department.
Over 1.6 million people visit the Washington State Fair Events Center each year. The Washington State Fair is one of the biggest fairs in the world, and the largest in the Pacific Northwest. It started in 1900 in Puyallup, and welcomes over one million guests to the single largest attended event in the state. For more info about the Spring Fair or Washington State Fair, visit www.thefair.com.
