Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 14, 1980)
Page C-Special Fair & Rodeo Sctton Fair Auction Night Everyone knows that the big night for 4-H and FFA livestock exhibitors at county fair is Auction Night, when the market animals are brought out for auction. Beef, sheep, and swine, each carefully groomed and fatten ed, are ready for market. There's always a good sized crowd around the sale ring, and bidding is usually brisk. Champions sell first; then ! ' -VI i if vnar Freezer." fffik youi m Fill Yottr jj anCt r Stipf Prize-Winning Beef, Sheep and Swine Raised By Our Community Youth! I JMftEO STOCK I MM ymK auction WEDNESDAY, AUG. 20 j I ljJjP"""" Covered Shew Ring-Fairgrounds H sum rfrrYslfl F"(v (?fPJI?',f A D 1 I I JJ JjgglLka sCHWi(4iil J fS L I 441 N. Main HPP-er " ""fcv V 676-9463 676-9481 Jfj ' hTtt " " iitfCif--" i T" wwr-riiMii'Aiirfr 1 tutMl ,, y ' t w jr- ' the reserves. These set the ceiling for the rest of the animals that follow, so excite ment is great as they start the bidding. Those who have not had a "behind the scenes" look at all the leads to a market animal sale might wonder at the prices, or the excitement. Many hours of work have gone into preparation for this night. There are hours of labor, "i-- big one for 4-H and training, and divisions by members, not to mention the initial investment in the ani mal. There are manv more hours of preparation for the sale by the committee from the Live stock Growers Association, sponsors of the sale. Add to that the time of extension staff in registering, preparing sales slips, weighing animals and other assorted details plus the time spent by devoted volun teer 4 11 leaders and parents helping and guiding the mem- Hrs, as well as hours at county fair serving as super intendents of the animal divisions, and you have quite a bit of work. "The auctioneer donates his time as do the helpers in te ring who are there to be sure to catch every bid. Volunteers from First National Bank til il . xiH - it...- - Tufa injnaattsaei FFA clerk the sale, recording each sale and paying the sellers right after the sale. Morrow County is unique on this detail some places the kids have to wiot for their money. The time of parents Involved is so great that it cannot he calculated. Most spend almost a week with fair activities in addition to the support and encouragement they have provided all year. Taking kids to 411 meetings takes time, and it's costly today to travel distances to club meetings. Flow do you put a price on the learning experiences of a youth involved in a 4-H market animal project? In the process of preparing the animal for the show and sale, the 411 or FFA member has had many experiences worth more than dollar value. They have made decisions on ration, feeding and care schedules that effect their final product, , They have leurned the inside story on the cost of producing an animal for market, the responsibility of curing for an animal, and also how to manage their time. They huve learned the Rim id old American work ethic, u valuable lesson in the world today, Now t the county fair they have the opMirtunity to show the success of their project, the animal, and to show themselves. It is a time to receive recognition for their work, You'll see Bob Van Scho iack, president of Livestock Growers, and all the members he can round up, out there helping with the sale. Some faithful livestockmcn that show up every year are Hon Currin, Tom Currin, Merlin Hughes Charlie Daly,, just to name a few. They want the kids to get a good price for their animals, for as livestock growers they are painfully a ware of the high cost of producing a premium animal todoy. The margin between profit and loss is small. When you come out to the 4-H and FFA Livestock Auc tion Wednesday, August 20, come with an appreciation of the combined efforts of many that hus gone in to each animal that comes up for sale, whether it wears the champ ion ribbon, or not. When you make your bid, you aren't buying a beef, sheep, or hog. ...you are in vesting in the future of some boy or girl. That is what it is all about. Jones thanks Delpha Jones, chairman, and members of the 1980 Morrow County Fair Comm ittee would like to extend special thanks to all of the organizations, businesses and individuals who gave so much of their time and to those who sponsored awards for the Morrow Morrow County Fair. "Without such generosity, we could not function as a fair." O o