The Ohio Guernsey Breeders’ Association invites their Guernsey friends to Join the Guernsey Scene in 2015 as they host the National Guernsey Convention, June 16-20 in Walnut Creek, Ohio.
Located in the heart of the world’s largest Amish community, convention events will be split between the Wallhouse Hotel and Carlisle Inn. Registration for convention will be located in the Carlisle Inn.
Convention activities get underway on Tuesday, June 16 as Guernsey enthusiasts begin arriving in Ohio. Highlights include an open house at the American Guernsey Association headquarters and visit to Land of Living Farm, owned by John and Bonnie Ayars for lunch, a tour of the farm and discussion on topics including why Guernseys work in a mixed herd, finding markets and new adventures and why they love the life.
Visitors are encouraged to visit the Guernsey headquarters to view antiquities either before or after visiting the Ayars farm. (The Guernsey headquarters are not wheelchair accessible and the stairs may be hard to navigate.)
Wrapping up the day’s activities will be a “Welcome to Ohio” dinner with David Kline, a Holmes County author and Guernsey breeder, while the juniors will enjoy a pizza party and game night.
Wednesday, June 17 features a full slate of AGA committee meetings and Guernsey youth Activities, starting with the Quiz Bowl contest, followed by public speaking contests and interviews for the queen contest and outstanding Guernsey youth. Wrapping up the day’s activities will be a trip to Acres of Fun for the juniors and a trip to the Carlisle Inn in Sugarcreek for the dinner theater musical “Half-Stitched”.
Thursday, June 18 offers a variety of activities ranging from scholarship interviews and the Guernsey Foundation meeting to educational seminars and the Young Dairy Leader Seminar. Leading off the educational seminars will be a panel discussion on “Getting Cows Bred” presented by Dr. Todd Plocher, Salem, Ohio, Jason Yurs, Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin and Neil Jensen, Comstock, Wisconsin, followed by a presentation by Chuck Sattler, Plain City, Ohio on “Genomics-The Future of the Breed”.
Other activities include an open house and lunch at Spring Walk Farm, hosted by Bill Wachtel and family, followed by a visit to Lehman’s Hardware and the Kidron Auction. The day concludes with dinner and the awards program, followed by keynote speaker Kent Knappenberger, a Guernsey enthusiast and recipient of the Grammy’s 2014 Music Educator Award.
Friday, June 19 activities include a visit to Pine Grove Guernseys, hosted by the Rueben Miller family, and tours of Behalt and Heini’s Cheese before heading to Springhill Farm for lunch and a preview of the consignments for the 2015 National Guernsey Convention Sale. The day’s activities wrap up with dinner and the Youth Celebration at The Farm at Walnut Creek, before returning to the Carlisle Inn for a dessert bar and an auction to benefit Guernsey youth activities.
The convention wraps up on Saturday, June 20 with the annual meetings of the American Guernsey Association and the American Guernsey Youth Association, followed by lunch at Springhill farm and the 2015 National Guernsey Convention Sale.
Convention guests are encouraged to visit other area highlights that are not included in the convention program, including the Berlin shopping area (Helping Hands Quilt Shop, Schrock’s Amish Farm Village, ‘Tis the Season, Wendel August Forge), Guggisberg Cheese, Coblentz Chocolates, P Graham Dunn, Breitenbach Winery, Warther’s Museum in Dover, Smucker’s, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, First Ladies’ Library and Museum, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Due to limited parking at the various tour stops, bus transportation will be provided for the convenience of convention guests.
A complete schedule and registration form appeared in the May issue of the Guernsey Journal and on the 2015 National Guernsey Convention Facebook page.
If you are planning to attend the convention and have not yet made your hotel reservations, please contact Blaine Crosser for information on hotels in the area. A stronger than normal number of registrations for the convention and demand for hotel rooms has resulted in the designated convention hotels filling early. The convention planning committee has made arrangements with neighboring hotels to make additional rooms available.
For additional information, contact Blaine or Gail Crosser at 740-666-5491 or Julie Renner 330-466-0338.