The extreme heat of this summer did not diminish the enthusiasm of the young 4-H’ers excited to compete in another very successful Western Ontario Junior show.
The 15th anniversary of the event saw 86 individuals compete at the Outdoor Farm show site in Woodstock on July 11 and 12, 2016.
As in past years, another great group of youngsters under the age of 14 descended upon the Outdoor Farm show site in Woodstock to diligently prepare their 4-H projects and set up their club exhibit areas prior to a great day of showing. Once settled in, the first day included workshops on how to wash and feed your show animal, preparation of a bedding pack, and a hands-on session with a fitter. We were also fortunate to have a Nutritionist from Purina present to discuss how to feed your show calf. Again past participants of the event enthusiastically returned as fitters for the show, working with each 4-H’er to clip their animal, while others assisted in putting together a fun program for the entire group. The educational portion of the day finished off with Doug Karn conducting a showmanship clinic for all in attendance.
The final day of the event was the much anticipated show. Judge Kevin McGrisken from Melancthon, Ontario handily evaluated the 86 exhibitors despite the extreme heat that was endured that day! The day began with the Sr. and Jr. Showmanship competition, followed by the conformation classes. First place Senior and Grand Champion Showman went to Keeton Jones of Oxford and second place Senior and Reserve Champion went to Kyla Lewis of Middlesex County. The winner of the Junior Showmanship and Honourable Mention was Brayden Haderlein of Oxford while second Junior went to Ethan Bloomfield of Middlesex.
Grand Champion and Reserve for the day both came from the Int. Calf Class. Champion was Sleegerholm Gunman Natasha, first place Int. Calf for Kyla Lewis of Middlesex and Reserve went to Karlinrock Brewmaster Glenna, 2nd place Int. Calf for Emily Smith of Oxford. First place Sr. calf and Honourable Mention was Glenholme Impression Jorgie for Keeton Jones of Oxford.
A highlight of the event is the draw for the tack box, with this year’s winner being Claire Stanton of Middlesex. Major sponsor of the event, Bruce Witmer was on hand to make the presentations to the winners of the day, and a presentation was also made to Bruce to thank him for his generous financial support of this show for over 15 years. A previous presentation had been made to the Outdoor Farm show for allowing this event to take place at their site.
All participants received prizes provided by the sponsors leaving no one empty handed from the day. Thank you again to all the participants, parents, leaders, committee members and sponsors that assisted in again making this show a great success
