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Work Pays Off for Hessel Teen at Beef Expo
The 15-year-old Cedarville High School sophomore won the Reserve Champion title at the North American International Livestock Exposition in Louisville, Kentucky, Sunday, November 11. He then went on to sell his prize-winning steer, Little Phil, for $20,000 Thursday, November 15. Of that amount, he gets to keep $16,000 to put in the bank and save for college, his mother said. Ten percent of the sale price will offset the cost of advertising to recognize the livestock buyers. Another 10% will be donated to a charity called Kentucky Harvest. The charity operates a school program called "Blessings in a Backpack," which is designed to meet the nutritional needs of Kentucky children and families over the weekend, when children are not getting meals in school. Each Friday, volunteers fill qualified students' backpacks with food items to take home. This is the first time the Jaroche family has participated in the North American show, and Andrew's mother, Lynelle, is impressed with how much the show donates to charity. Besides the 10% of livestock sales, buyers donate all the meat from the animals they purchase after processing. "It was heartwarming to know that so much of what they do goes to charity," Mrs. Jaroche said. The show was a great learning experience for the Hessel teen, and he was thrilled with the win and the sale of the animal at the Thursday Sale of Champions. The steer sold for only $3,000 less than the Grand Champion Steer ahead of him. "There's not a whole lot of room for mistakes when you're showing at that level of competition," he said. The North American International Livestock Exposition bears the distinction of being the largest purebred livestock exposition in the world. More than 21,000 entries participated in 140 shows and sales over three weeks. Mr. Jaroche estimated he competed against about 1,000 steers. He showed Little Phil in front of 3,000 spectators in Freedom Hall, the 6,600-seat home to the college basketball team, the Louisville Cardinals. Showing in front of that many people makes him more excited than nervous, he said. Initially, he was overwhelmed by the size of the arena. "But then I just focus on what I need to do," he said. Acouple of the easiest mistakes to make include not setting up his steer at the right time for the judge, or letting someone else position their animal in front of his, so the judge does not have a clear view of the animal. Mr. Jaroche prevailed, however, at this show and the World Beef Expo in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during September, when he won Overall Reserve Champion with Little Phil. A month before the Milwaukee Show, he won Overall Reserve Champion with his other steer, Hitter, at the Michigan State Fair in Detroit. Hitter sold at the State Fair for $7,500. "It's pretty awesome and overwhelming to think we can compete at this level," Mr. Jaroche said of the North American show. He and his family worked hard to get to this point. Mr. Jaroche has been showing animals since he was six, and showing steers since he was eight or nine years old, Mrs. Jaroche said. "This is the farthest we've ever gone," she added. She was sorry she missed the show, but Mr. Jaroche's father, Luke, accompanied him to Kentucky. A former 4-H livestock show participant, Mr. Jaroche has nearly 30 years of experience showing livestock and assisting his children, Andrew and Holly, with their shows. Mr. Jaroche has always encouraged "a little extra effort" with the animals to develop show-quality competitors. Andrew Jaroche spent as many as seven hours a day working with his two steers throughout the summer. During the school year, he works with the animals on weekends, since the school week and after-school sports do not leave much time during the week. The effort paid off, and he plans to use the money earned from the sale for college. "It's just an awesome, awesome feeling to have won," he added. |
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