Youth News
Sydnee Gerken of Kingfisher FFA Wins Top Honors in AFR Youth Ag Achievement Contest at OYE
Tue, 22 Mar 2016 15:18:02 CDT
American Farmers & Ranchers partnered with the Oklahoma Youth Expo to host the Youth Agricultural Achievement Contest, March 17. The contest recognizes Oklahoma youth who excel in showmanship skills and demonstrate superior knowledge of the livestock industry including production, management, processing, and end product utilization. The top 12 finalists received over $5,000 in scholarships.
The top 12 winners are: 1st place, Sydnee Gerken, Kingfisher FFA; 2nd, Rhett Pursley, Locust Grove FFA; 3rd, Jill Mencke, Hennessey FFA; 4th, Chesley Comstock, Woodward FFA; 5th, Dawson Haworth, Fairview FFA; 6th, Brayden Foley, Kingfisher FFA; 7th, Layne Kisling, Chisholm FFA; 8th, Samantha Williams, Stillwater FFA; 9th, Brittny Richards, Oktaha FFA; 10th, Lexi Lerblance, McAlester FFA; 11th, Nicole Stevens, Yukon FFA; and 12th, Matt Lancaster, Cherokee FFA. Pictured here are Sydnee Gerken and Rhett Pursley waiting to hear which name would be called as second place winner, meaning the other would be first.
This year's contest featured 84 Oklahoma high school students. Competition is open to high school juniors and seniors who are exhibiting animals at the Youth Expo. All contestants completed a written exam with questions pertaining to all phases of the livestock industry. Each participant was also evaluated on their showmanship ability with their animal. Combined test and showmanship scores determined the Top Ten contestants, who then participated in a personal interview. This year there was a three way tie and we interviewed the top 12. Questions pertained to the applicant's livestock project and the current livestock industry.
"American Farmers & Ranchers is proud to sponsor this and many other youth programs across our state," said Terry Detrick, president of American Farmers & Ranchers. "Investing in the youth of Oklahoma and being a part of the Oklahoma Youth Expo is extremely important."
We are proud to once again have a lot of photos helping tell the story of the 2016 Oklahoma Youth Expo. Already posted are more than 2,000 photos from the 2016 OYE, spread out over the entire event- and you can check them out on our FLICKR page that is located here. Exhibitors and their families are welcome to download their favorite pictures from our 2016 OYE Flickr Album.
Our Coverage of the 2016 Oklahoma Youth Expo is a service of ITC Great Plains, Your Energy Superhighway- learn more about this high voltage, transmission only utility and their committment to the communities they serve which is the cornerstone of their business- click here for their website. We also salute the title sponsor of the 2016 OYE, McDonalds- click here to learn more about how McDonalds is a leader in sustainability.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
