4-H'ers lament loss of Farm Show
Butler County residents are feeling the loss of this year's Butler Farm Show, but none possibly more so than the youths who participate in the 4-H club.
For 4-H'ers, the farm show provided a place to showcase the sweat and determination they had spent on things like animals, robots and artwork, all on display with a sense of pride.
“I was kind of disappointed because I've been going to it for a very long time,” said Brooklyn Peters, an incoming senior at Butler Area High School.
Brooklyn said she planned on being part of the cheese auction this year, and she had two lambs ready for auction. She said she sent one of the two lambs to the butcher to try to make a profit, while she will try to sell the other, a female, to a family who might want her.
Robin Peters, Brooklyn's older sister, said she hopes the club will find a way for the children to show off their projects.
“That would be nice for them to do something for these kids,” Peters said. “A lot of these kids have been working with these animals.”
<h3>Opportunity</h3>Amy Metrick, a 4-H educator for Butler County, said the statewide 4-H organization has noted there will not be a virtual sale or auction for the livestock. However, there have been some developments in finding a way to display the members' projects.“It's going to be a way to showcase their products,” Metrick said. “Even the kids (who) have the cooking and the sewing stuff, they're going to be able to show that.”Jennifer Cichra, an incoming 11th grader in the Butler Area School District, specializes in horses. She performs and is a member of a drill team.“It's definitely different not working toward a horse show that we get to perform at,” she said. “I think the county is doing a good job of providing virtual things.”In the meantime, Jennifer has been working on her skills with her sorrel-colored horse, Skippy.“One thing I've been working on is called 'flying lead changes,'” she said of a move that involves prompting the horse to jump and change direction. “It's a pretty difficult maneuver that is performed at the canter.”Through practice, Jennifer hopes to pass the Level 4 skill testing for horsemanship within 4-H, which is the final skill level of achievement.“I have the time to do it now that I'm in quarantine,” she said.<h3>Social media</h3>Metrick said the event will be Aug. 5, but specifics and details will be announced later. In the meantime, there have been other initiatives set into motion.Glenda Coughenour of Butler created a Facebook group called “Butler Youth Livestock” with the intent to post items of 4-H children showing their livestock project animals.Coughenour said she and other 4-H leaders are moderators for the group, but it isn't sanctioned by 4-H. She noted that the group does not facilitate the sale of the animals, encouraging the buyers to contact the 4-H member directly.“They decide on prices; they decide the butchers,” Coughenour said. “We are just a medium to connect.”Kylee Peterson, an incoming 11th grader at Commodore Perry High School in Mercer County, said she was able to sell one of her two market hogs at $3.75 per pound.“Even though it's disappointing that we can't have a farm show, at least we can still make a profit and have the animals not go to waste,” she said.Kylee's mother, Trina Rice, said her daughter agreed to sell one pig, but only after it reaches its full weight, which will take another few weeks. She said the promissory nature of the deal is another experience Kylee will have under her belt.“She's out there every day with them,” she said.Coughenour said she hopes the group helps children sell the animals because when sales are made, the money gets rolled into education funds and future 4-H projects. She said she knows it won't be the same as an auction because she's had both children and grandchildren who've participated in them. She said the farm show is hard to replace.“I know I'm going to miss it too, but I know they did it for a good reason,” Coughenour said. “We're making the best of a bad situation. That's all.”
<h3>Making the best</h3>Andrew Costel of Penn Township, an incoming senior attending PA Cyber School, said he has been a 4-H member and farm show participant for 10 years. He said he would appreciate a way to showcase his animals, but he'll miss the experience of the farm show.“It's going to be a little different than tradition,” Andrew said.Andrew said he already has plans for his 13 meat chickens, including keeping some for his family, while selling others to buyers with whom he's previously done business. He said not everyone is so lucky.“A couple people I know, they have to put down money for a steer, and they're out money,” he said.He said he hopes those struggling will “keep their heads up” as they venture outside of the annual auction to sell their livestock projects.Braydan Geagan, an incoming eighth grader at Butler Intermediate High School, has two market pigs for sale. Neither has offers at the moment.“We're trying,” he said. “We're going to different butchers and different people in the community.”Braydan said he was disappointed he wasn't able to show his animals this year. He said he spent a lot of time walking, feeding and watering them, and caring for the pigs. He estimated he spent eight to 12 hours each week working with the animals.He said the farm show is a testament to their work.“It's important to show the skills we put into the animals, that we put into ourselves,” he said.<h3>Positive outlook</h3>While some 4-H members look to sell, others have different ideas on how to spin the situation.“I felt kind of sad because I was really looking forward to the farm show this year,” said Mason Dupe, an incoming sixth-grader at Butler Middle School.Kaci Dupe, Mason's mother, said she and Mason had an inkling in February that the coronavirus might affect the farm show this year when they picked out four sturdy pigs for Mason's projects this year.“We're going to use them as a breeding project for baby pigs for next year,” Mason said of the four female pigs he had for this year's show.All four of the pigs were born on the Dupes' farm in February. Breeding pigs is a tradition for their family.“He decided to pick four female pigs as a project that if we ended up in this situation, we could come up with something positive,” Kaci Dupe said.Mason said he hopes to see good muscle definition in their legs and chest.“I am excited for next year,” Mason said.
